A SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP

If you gently remove the earth under a pine tree where bolete mushrooms grow, you will find the small roots of the tree closely covered by the felt0like white mycelium of the fungus. The tree and fungus live together to their mutual advantage. This kind of permanent association between two plants is called symbiosis. The mycelium threads penetrate the outer layers of the roots and provide them with water and minerals. The tree, in turn, shares with the fungus some of the foodstuffs produced by its leaves.