Investigations on attack of lignified cell walls (beech, poplar, pine, spruce) by 57 bacterial strains extended earlier results that with the applied laboratory methods, no cell wall degradation was obtained. Experiments with samples submerged in two lakes revealed, however, a bacterial attack of the hardwoods, with fungi participating. For the softwoods, submerged sections showed exclusively bacterial degradation, which in cubes (l cm 3 ) was restricted to the outer parts. TEM micrographs showed the degradation progressing from the tertiary into the secondary wall. The generally rod-shaped bacteria were surrounded by granulär to amorphous substances or lay in distinct cavities.