Fungus Among Us: MTU Student Using Native Fungi to Weaken Invasive Trees
![Undergraduate researcher Abe Stone records application of a native fungi on invasive buckthorn trees in a forest near Michigan Technological University. Stone is looking for effective ways to slow the spread of invasive buckthorn trees, which are rapidly altering the Midwest landscape.](/unscripted/2024/03/images/abe-stone-field-work-possible-banner-banner1024.jpg)
Abe Stone can expertly identify mushrooms. The longtime forager’s affinity for fungi guided him down a research path that holds promise for suppressing two of the more dominant and obstinate invasive species in the forest.
Stone, a senior majoring in ecology and evolutionary biology at Michigan Tech, is living proof that you don’t have to wait till you graduate to tackle tough and complex problems. He’s experimenting with the most effective ways to stop the widespread Midwest invasion of buckthorn trees. His not-so-secret weapon: a native fungus — lab nickname SuperPurp — that he’s propagating, processing and applying to test plots.
Come into the forest microbiology lab to learn more about his work on Michigan Tech's Unscripted Research Blog.