[OUOTE All the articles I've been reading about this fungus say that a large bark mulch is best to prevent the emergence of this pesty fungus. Annual turning of the mulch and topping off with about an inch of mulch will prevent the Artillery Fungus from sprouting.
The reason why I'm telling you my tale of woe is we have a home in The Villages and two seasons ago we had the same type of mulch added to all the flower beds. It is a black wood shredded mulch. I do plan to have all this mulch removed as I don't want this same problem to develop. Just wondering if any of you have heard of Artillery Fungus and has there been a problem with this fungus in The Villages. QUOTE]
I've been trying to find something on this artillery fungus that would relate to central Florida. All I've been able to find about it has been in the northeastern states such as Pennsylvania, Maryland, etc.
While I realize this has been a problem up north for many years, as a Florida Master Gardner I've never heard about it and was never taught anything about it when I took the Master Gardner course.
Do you have any information that would relate to this part of Florida? [/QUOTE]
We saw artillery fungus on Monday Nov 10 in the annex plant clinic. It's shredded hardwood mulch that is the culprit (often nothing more than shredded pallets). The color of the mulch is not going to change anything. The hardwood mulch needs to be removed and either eucalyptus, maleleuca, or pine bark mulch (smaller nuggets or just pine bark ) should be applied and "fluffed" a couple of times per summer.
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