Q What can I plant in a spot infected by honey fungus?
Wendy Saward, by email
A PIPPA SAYS Unfortunately, your infected malus and similar trees, including ornamental prunus, are very susceptible to honey fungus, which attack and kill the roots of many woody and perennial plants. With this in mind, avoid planting more of these in the infected spot. Depending on the conditions of your area and the space you have, you could consider catalpa, chaenomeles, fothergilla, kerria or tamarisk, all of which show a good degree of resistance. But whatever you select, make sure you remove all the roots from the infected malus, and remove and burn the infected soil, before replanting the spot.