The use of microfungi to control basidiomycetous decay has been evaluated in Europe for many years, where it has produced mixed results against Lentinus lepideus Fries, the fungus presumed to be the major cause of decay in Scots Pine poles. In the United States, remedial decay control has been largely chemical, with little use of alternative decay control strategies. Increasing restrictions on chemical usage have stimulated renewed interest in biological decay control. In our tests, a European biological control, BinabÒ,was evaluated for its ability to prevent or arrest attack of southern pine sapwood or Douglas fir heartwood by 5 Basidiomycetes commonly isolated from poles in service. Lentinus lepideus was included as a comparison. In general, BinabÒ performed well against Lentinus lepideus and the other brown rotters, but was unable to completely eliminate most of the test fungi. In addition, the biological had little effect on white rot fungi, which are an important component of the microflora in decaying poles. The results suggest that biologicals will not be suitable for remedial decay control without supplemental treatments that favor growth and activity of the biocontrol agent.

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