Weird Non-Bonsai question from a friend.....

[plant_dr]

The tree to the right has the same đrip ring as well, but doesn't look as defined as this one- It could be the angle of the photograph... You can see that the tips of the branches on that tree line up perfectly with the greener grass underneath it.

Basically, when the tree is in leaf and it rains, this happens...
That ring of grass gets more water than the grass around it. Therefore, greener grass...

 

[AJL]

Large Fairy ring!

 

[leatherback]

Pretty sure it is what earlier is referred to as a fairy ring. A ring of fungal growth. Saw exactly the same last summer in a lawn in my neighbourhood and there the darker grass had many mushrooms in it. Very cool sight yet .. Did not have a phone or camera with me. Failed to return there to take some shots.

 

[Shibui]

I would also put this ring down to a fungal ring. The fungal growth releases nutrients that can make the grass grow just a bit better. Each year the ring grows outward just a bit further. I've seen rings 10m or more across but really big ones are so old that parts tend to die off leaving an incomplete ring.
It would be interesting to check in spring and fall to see whether this one produces fruiting bodies and what type of fungus it is.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Marasmius oreades makes rings like that around trees. In my backyard they die back during the summer, then continue growing after a good rain.
Edible too! A bit on the sweeter side.

Beige mushrooms, beige gills, white spores. Fruits when temps exceed 15°C. No response of cuts parts exposed to air.

The ring is where the decomposing plant matter and mycelium is feeding the grass, the mycelium also holds water way better than soil can - in the case of oreades, which can't die from dessiccation.

 

[penumbra]

Man you all overthought this. Glad some finally came on board. Fairy rings are fairy rings.

 

[leatherback]

Fairy rings are fairy rings.

True story.



Not a fairy tale!

 

[Firstflush]

Fairy rings are actually with mushrooms. Chlorophyllum molybdites is the common grass mushroom. Most common for dog illness. Also, it is the no.1 mushroom mistakenly eaten that causes human poisonings. Chemical smell when flesh is broken.

The ring is a single organism, mycelium running, going through nutrients in the soil so it moves outward looking for more.

I guess the myc itself could be considered a “fairy ring” though the term is usually associated with observed fruiting bodies, the mushroom.

 

[amcoffeegirl]

Maybe he has a leak in his septic tank/line -possibly from tree roots???

 

[Diggumsmack2]

Type II fairy rings, bla bla bla followed by something scientifically sounding.

 

[newby]

if it's by the septic tank, then your friend has a big problem! I would bet the tree roots have cracked the tank.

 

[leatherback]

if it's by the septic tank, then your friend has a big problem! I would bet the tree roots have cracked the tank.

nope