by Levon Durr, president of Humboldt Permaculture Guild and owner of Fungaia Farm

Fungi play an important role in fire-damaged landscapes by rebuilding soils, attracting insects and birds, and retaining water. These landscape builders, composters, and remediators can be used as allies when faced with excessive fuel loads and fire-scarred soils. 

Most of us have now become aware of the overwhelming fuel load that has built up in our forests from years of fire suppression. Common treatments like controlled burns and burn piles aren’t always an option for every situation. As we face increasing risk from catastrophic fires, we will need all the tools available to face this changing climate. 

In Balcones Canyonlands Preserve in Northern Texas, a group of mycologists and biologists, including Jimm Stack and Lisa O’Donnell, were faced with the challenge of reducing the spread of Invasive Glossy Privet (Ligustrum) throughout the park. While researching ways to remove this invasive species, the team noticed Turkey Tail mushrooms growing on dead Glossy Privet logs. Taking this cue from nature, they got to work growing native Turkey Tail mushrooms spawn to be used as an inoculant. By applying the spawn to cut Glossy Privet logs, they were able to speed up decomposition eleven times faster than if the logs were just left to be colonized by fungi on their own. 

Jonathan Frank, a mycologist in Southern Oregon, has conducted preliminary trials involving speeding up decomposition on Ponderosa Pine trees. Following large clearcuts, the tree “plantations” were replanted. These pine monocultures are now growing so thick that they pose an extreme fire danger. Because of the remoteness and seasonal burning restrictions, cutting and burning is not always an option. They are now researching local fungi that could be used to speed up the decomposition of the trees that will be thinned. 

Closer to home, the Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima) has become extremely invasive along the Klamath River and increasingly invasive along the Salmon River. The Salmon River Restoration Council is researching native fungi that can be used to speed up the decomposition of trees in remote areas where burning isn’t an option. By shaving the bark from these invasive trees and inoculating them with native fungi, they hope to dramatically reduce the spread and harm these non-native species pose to the watershed.

In 2017, communities outside Santa Rosa, California, were faced with a devastating fire that swept through the Dry Creek Rancheria Tribal community, burning the forest and leaving bare damaged soils in its path. Faced with dead brush, trees, and eroding soils, they looked for ways to revitalize the landscape while reducing future fire risks. The Tribe also had concerns about the health of a creek that runs through Tribal land and drains into the Russian River. Instead of burning or hauling the biomass away, the Tribe reached out to Fungaia Farm to see if we could provide a local native fungus to speed up decomposition as the woody debris was chipped onto the forest floor. The spawn was added to the track wood chipper along with the debris as they remediated the scarred landscape. Through their trials, they were able to show that the fungi were able to speed up decomposition, retain moisture, and build soils. The inoculated woodchip areas reduced soil erosion and helped suppress invasive plants while providing habitat for native plant life.  

These fungal allies jump-start the regenesis of damaged landscapes. They play a vital role in decomposing organic matter, including charred remains, and release essential nutrients back into the soil, which are then available for plants to uptake. By implementing this biomimicry of nature and speeding up this ecosystem recovery, we can help our communities and forests adapt to this changing climate. 

Now is the time to come together with our community partners, and our Flora Fauna, and Funga, to do this vital work.

Levon Durr is president of Humboldt Permaculture Guild and owner of Fungaia Farm

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