sdu faculty of forestry journal special edition 2009 - Orman Fakültesi

SDÜ Faculty of Forestry Journal
samples were collected from trees bearing cankers and lesions; totally 340 samples
were collected for fungal isolation. The samples were kept in paper bags at +4˚C
until isolation.
The isolations were made from cankers and lesions on the shoots and the stem
(Fig. 2).
Figure 2: Cankers and lesions on the stem and the shoot of F. ornus.
After surface sterilization with 70% ethanol and removing the surface bark,
pieces of shoots were removed and placed in petri dishes containing 2% malt
extract agar. The cultures were incubated at room temperature in dark conditions.
RESULTS & DISCUSSION
The average diameter of the sampled trees was 3.2 cm in Dutlukır and 2.6 cm in
Altınapa and the average height of the sampled trees was 235 cm in Dutlukır and
233 cm in Altınapa.
Almost all, 98.2% of the sampled trees were bearing cankers, 4.1% had signs of
insect attacks and 24.7% of the shoots had dried. In addition, wood discolouration
and necrosis on the shoots were observed. The study is still going on and
identification of the fungi is under progress.
The high proportion of the trees bearing cankers and dry shoots indicates that
the trees are either growing at an unsuitable site or that the trees are frequently
attacked by a biotic agent. As the origin of the trees is not known, the possibility
that they are poorly adapted to the local climate in the study area can not be
excluded. The fact that the plantation sites are located outside of the natural
distribution of F. ornus in Turkey (cf. Yaltırık, 1978) supports a hypothesis of
weather related damage.
122