Fungus typically grows on dead tissue. That would indicate to me that a substantial portion of the trunks of these are dead and rotting away under the moss. If you dig these up, the trunks will probably be mostly dead in large sections, possibly making them unusable for bonsai.
! Wet already dead wood is place of normal habitation. No threat to tree health.
Hmmm interesting, thanks, I might give that a go. I think some of the fruiting bodies are newish and some look dead or at least not fresh. If turkey tails and they’re dead would they ever harden or just turn to mush? I was planning on removing the moss anyway which i thought may inhibit it a bit. They’re currently growing in a ditch on the edge of a woodland so straight away they’d dry up some regardless. I like the shape as a feature really. Never seen it on a bonsai, but they always look cool in nature.
I did think that that would probably be the case being dead under there, particularly as there is fresh signs of bark being stripped by deer. If the fungus can be preserved and not cause harm, that would kind of tie in with the design I can see for them. If the fungus would have to be removed it would probably kill the image anyway as I’m not sure how interesting they are otherwise.
Cheers for the confirmation of no threat to the live tree. I meant affect or inoculate really. I normally call other people out for silly stuff like that, so I’m happy to be corrected! Shouldn’t be a concern for my other trees unless their deadwood is wet and rotting then?Is NOT "infection"
They would harden first, then a couple years later turn to mush. But they can be preserved with epoxy if you want, it should make the colors pop a whole lot more.
There is no design future in the fungus. It will die off (either quickly after collection, or in a few months as conditions around the trunk change). I would skip this tree and find a more viable bonsai candidate.
