Fungal succession on aspen poplar leaf litter

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Abstract
Fungi from the litter, fermentation, and humus (LFH) layers of a mature aspen tree stand were qualitatively assessed using the soil-washing method and quantitatively assessed using the agar-film technique. Fungi were isolated and identified at two sampling times, June and October. From the isolation data obtained, it was concluded that the pattern of fungal succession in aspen litter followed the general succession schemes proposed by Garrett (1963) and Hudson (1968). The parasites on living aspen leaves included a sterile dark organism and Pleurophomella spermatiospora, while the common primary saprophytes, thought to be existing on sugars and simple carbon compounds in the leaf, included Penicillium janthinellum, Cladosporium spp., and Aureobasidium pullulans. The secondary saprophytes, such as the cellulose and lignin decomposers and associated fungi, were dominated by Penicillium syriacum, Trichoderma spp., Mucor spp., Volutella ciliata, Cylindrocarpon spp., and Phoma spp.The quantitative study revealed that the fungal length and biomass per gram dry weight of litter in each layer studied were much higher in October than in June. The amount of fungal mycelium in the humus in each of the two sampling times was not significantly different. The difference in standing crop of mycelium from June to October in the aspen LFH horizon was estimated to be at least 58 g wet mycelium per square metre of dry litter.

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