This is a tree that is dead, and is host to a fungi, the wood fungus.
xylogenous means growing on wood, so I take it that the Chinese Ear Fungi is xylogenous.
I went for a walk to a park next to Mt Albert Grammar school. I came across this tree stump which has some Chinese Ear Fungi growing. I have never been here, so I walked rather slowly and clicked as I went along.
This
fungi is eaten by the Chinese and has a rubbery texture. You can buy
them in dry form, soak it to reconstitute and it expands about 5 times
its size. Not many people like it as it feels slimy and rubbery. I used
to pick them when I was a child in Borneo.I remember reading how this Chinese man made his fortune in New Zealand by shipping them to China. The Kiwis, Pakehas and Maoris laughed at this China man, but he had the last laugh. He laughed all the way to the bank.
So now, I will be keenly looking at tree stumps and hope to make my millions.
Wood ear fungus
The first commercial sale of edible fungi in New Zealand was in the 1870s, when Taranaki merchant Chew Chong sent bags of dried wood-ear fungus (Auricularia cornea) to his homeland, China. The fungus was in demand for the crunchy, chewy texture it added to food.
http://jennymatlock.blogspot.co.nz/
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