Nature…

So, a new ponder timely to this spring season.  Have you ever seen this?  In the spring they adorn some, operative word – some, Eastern Red Cedar trees. 


I have often wondered what this weird, orange, sticky, cold and clammy thing is and why it is only on some of the trees.  Later in the year, there are hard walnut sized bluish things with dark orange whiskers obviously related to these weird orange things.  (turns out they are called galls which are actually under these smushy orange things – add water and poof smushy stuff grows out) I thought maybe it was some type of flower or reproductive process of the Cedar.  Well, I finally got around to googling it.  Hmmm, it is a fungus!    Strangely, although we have only a few apple trees in the area, it is the Cedar Apple Rust. This orange thing is called a tellai horn and it makes teliospores that germinate to produce basidospores.  These float off to find Apple trees and with the absolute perfect weather conditions they infect the apple by landing on the young leaves and potentially defoliating the tree!  What a weird life cycle!  Amazing nature always amazes me.  If you want to read through some basics about this, just google Ceadar Apple Rust. I read  It’s interesting and strange.  Ponder on nature and the amazing connections that exist!