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Do you have any more information on what led you to this idea? I'm not an expert by any means, but when I look at trees I see 100% plant, with some fungus in th
by friend_and_foe 4y ago
Do you have any more information on what led you to this idea? I'm not an expert by any means, but when I look at trees I see 100% plant, with some fungus in the soil and roots and what not, somewhat akin to animals' gut bacteria.
- hinkley 4y agoThe fungi are underground. Out of sight, out of mind. Suzanne Simard was one of the first to draw attention to it. She has a book now, as does Paul Stamets, but there’s also The Secret Life of Trees and a few others. Healthy forests are a network, the fungi arbitrage sugars and water, and sometimes minerals between the trees. But in addition some of these fungi can still degrade stone to make minerals accessible to the plants. There was a study where they found nano holes in forest sand particles that are consistent with the dimensions of mycelia. No direct observation yet that in know of, but the pathways exist so it’s “worth further study” as they say. Biological weathering of rock, as in lichen, was critical to how plants got a foothold on land. I think we’ll find that it was also critical to the development of mega flora, and that fungi and trees are a case of coevolution, where the fungi take a less overt role in the partnership.