Decay potential of various New Zealand Phlebiopsis gigantea strains using a soil block method
IRG/WP 99-10309
B Kreber, J G Van der Waals
The objective of the current study was to determine the decay potential of different strains of Phlebiopsis gigantea using Pinus radiata and European Fagus sylvatica, respectively. A soil block method was used to determine mass weight loss of P. radiata and F. sylvatica following 10 weeks incubation with different strains of P. gigantea. For comparison, Trametes versicolor, Postia placenta, Gloeophyllum trabeum, Poria vaillantii and Schizophyllum commune were included. For P. gigantea, mass weight losses ranged from 0.3% to 26.5% on P. radiata and 0.1% to 52.2% on F. sylvatica. Gloeophyllum trabeum caused the highest mass weight loss (~ 70%) of all fungi tested, irrespective of wood species used. Future work is under way to determine cellulolytic and and lignolytic enzyme systems of P. gigantea strains which showed a high and low decay potential, respectively.