I have four 10 month old seedlings; I am not 100% sure of the type of tree I was given. This fungus (picture attached) started on one seedling and has now spread to two others. It does not appear to inhibit the trees growth. I received the tree with the fungus, and it has still grown over four feet.

I am curious what to treat the tree with to get rid of the fungus, or if this fungus is harmless. I am also curious how to keep the fungus from spreading to the other trees. There are three different types of seedlings all close to each other and the fungus has spread to two different species of trees if this is relevant.

Thank you in advance for any input- LR

I believe the "fungus" is actually part of the tree's bark. Take a look at Winged Elms.

I thought of Winged Elm right away too, porkpal. I'm sure that's what the tree is, and those vertical extensions on the trunk and branches are the natural way the bark grows. They are really neat trees.

But there is some rusty fungus on the undersides of the leaves. If this is what's worrying you, it's probably not anything serious. The trees will lose their leaves in September or October, and to keep from carrying the rust over to next spring, just be sure to rake up and remove the leaves. Don't compost them or the fungus will hang around in your yard and infect the leaves again next year.

If you want to slow down the spread right away, just remove any leaves you can reach that have a lot of it. Bag them up and put in the trash - again, if you compost them or use as mulch, the fungus will fly around some more. Also when you're watering, try to always water in the mornings, so that the leaves will dry out during the day. Leaving water on the leaves at night encourages fungal growth and spread. It's better for the plants to water in the morning anyway. They get a good drink before the heat of the day sets in, and less water evaporates in the cooler air, too.

I think you can try pruning. I came across an online article which had few remedies for fungus http://infinitygardens.ca/blog...
It says that to prevent fungal growth on trees, you should not water plants during evening and night times. This is because fungus are prone to moisture.

porkpal said:I believe the "fungus" is actually part of the tree's bark. Take a look at Winged Elms.

Thank you for your note! It is definitely a winged elm. I have no experience with trees and you were right on.

Thanks for everyone else's advice too, I thought I would get notified by email if someone responded so I hadn't checked back until now.