An investigation of needle endophyte colonization patterns with respect to height and compass direction in a single crown of balsam fir (Abies balsamea)

Abstract

All branches of a balsam fir (Abes balsamea (L.) Mill.) were removed and twenty 3-year-old needles from each branch were surface sterilized and placed on 2% malt extract media. There was a trend for obtaining more isolates of endophytic fungi at the bottom of the crown than at the top (r2 = 0.87). Phyllosticta sp. and Leptostroma sp. were isolated most often and were the most prominent by virtue of having more isolates for each branch sampled. No significant difference was found between compass directions for the four most frequently isolated species.