A to Z of Pests

Cellar Fungus

Coniophora puteana

Appearance

• Mycelium – first whitish–yellow, later yellowish–brown.
• Strands – yellowish–brown at first, later dark brown.
• Sporophore – creamy–yellow at first, later olive–brown with a creamy margin.
• Individual spores – 0.01mm long and pale yellow–brown. Bulk spores – olive–brown.

Lifecycle

• The growing body of microscopic threads (known as hyphae) invade the cells of the wood to form a vegetative surface (or mycelium).
• Strands may be thick and felted on wood and extensive on walls. The sporophore formed of strands is a thin, plate–like skin with smooth irregular bumps.

Habits

• This may attack timber in buildings where there has been serious water ingress, through such things as leaking roof tiles, broken guttering, failed plumbing and rising damp.
• It is also a common cause of decay in external painted joinery and other timbers.