Fungal diversity inhabiting tissues of ebony (Diospyros celebica Bakh.) in urban forest

Abstract

Eboni (Diospyros celebica Bakh.) is an endemic tree species of Sulawesi Island including Central Sulawesi, West Sulawesi and South Sulawesi. This species is also called fancy wood; its color is black-striped reddish brown, beautiful, and luxurious. In addition, tree growth is influenced by microbes, including fungi. Fungi are heterotrophic and eukaryotic organisms absorbing organic compounds from other organisms. The study aimed to identify ebony-associated fungi in Urban Forestry at the Tamalanrea Campus, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia. This study consisted of the isolation stage both direct and dilution methods, the rejuvenation stage, and fungal identification. The study result indicated that there were 60 fungal isolates isolated from the ebony tree tissues, while 19 fungal isolates were isolated on the soil under the ebony stands. The direct isolation-based method was higher in term of number of fungal isolates than the dilution-based method. The isolated fungi belonged to the seven genera, namely Aspergillus, Penicillium, Gliocladium, Trichoderma, Fusarium, Rhizopus, and Phytophthora. Aspergillus and Penicillium was genera dominated both in tree tissues and in the soil under ebony stands.