Amber jelly on evergreen shrub
 

Hoping for some help please! I moved recently to a house with a carefully-planned mature garden, which I'm trying to care for properly but I'm not familiar with some of the plants. I noticed today that a big low spreading Juniper-like shrub has got amber coloured blobs of jelly all over it and it seems to be dying. The heather next to it also seems to be mostly dead. What do I do?? Picture attached.

Amber jelly on evergreen shrub
 

On Sun, 8 Apr 2012 16:52:56 +0000, Blenny wrote:

Hoping for some help please! I moved recently to a house with a
carefully-planned mature garden, which I'm trying to care for properly
but I'm not familiar with some of the plants. I noticed today that a big
low spreading Juniper-like shrub has got amber coloured blobs of jelly
all over it and it seems to be dying. The heather next to it also seems
to be mostly dead. What do I do?? Picture attached.


Are there purple-brown lumpy things under the amber? I can't get a close
enough look to be sure, but it looks like it might be cedar apple rust
to me, http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/p...pm.asp?code=28
or another Gymnosporangium.

I think you might want to be thinking about a different species to replace it
with, as it does indeed seem to be on its way out from any of many possible
causes. Here are a couple of possibilities:
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3056.html
and drought, and severe cold following a dry winter, and dog urine.





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Thanks, Kay - I think you're right! There seem to be small orange lumps at the base. The trouble is a) it's a big "architectural" feature so I was hoping to save it and b) I also have lots of hawthorn and roses and I gather from the web it can spread to those. I had plans to pick off all the blobs, maybe under a plastic sheet to stop them spreading, but there are just too many and too inaccessible. Removing the shrub might also spread the spores. Do you know any effective fungicides I could spray on?

And another update - a local qualified gardener has had a look at it and says to cut it back 6" below the bottom infestation so I'm trying to do that with secateurs and put the pieces instantly into bin bags - it's a mammoth job and the stuff gets everywhere including in my gloves. Anyone know how infectious this stuff is? A Wisconsin advice sheet says to keep dipping your pruning shears in alcohol or 10% bleach. Does this mean I'm carrying it around on my trousers and wellies? But if I get someone to come and uproot it bodily the gloop will fly everywhere … Aargh! I don't want it spreading to the hawthorn and roses or the nearby japonica.

Amber jelly on evergreen shrub
 

On Wed, 11 Apr 2012 19:33:24 +0000, Blenny
wrote:


And another update - a local qualified gardener has had a look at it and
says to cut it back 6" below the bottom infestation so I'm trying to do
that with secateurs and put the pieces instantly into bin bags - it's a
mammoth job and the stuff gets everywhere including in my gloves. Anyone
know how infectious this stuff is? A Wisconsin advice sheet says to keep
dipping your pruning shears in alcohol or 10% bleach. Does this mean I'm
carrying it around on my trousers and wellies? But if I get someone to
come and uproot it bodily the gloop will fly everywhere … Aargh! I don't
want it spreading to the hawthorn and roses or the nearby japonica.

Cover it with one of those cheapo disposable plastic painter's drop
cloths, fasten it at the bottom with duct tape, then nip it off where
you want and dispose of it all wrapped like a mummy.

Thanks Brooklyn1, that would be an excellent idea if the thing was smaller but it is a monster and also I can't get at the base of it. I'm now just trying to get the whole thing dug up and taken away, and I'll spray anything susceptible with anti-rust spray afterwards. Hope that will work!

And another update - a local qualified gardener has had a look at it and
says to cut it back 6" below the bottom infestation so I'm trying to do
that with secateurs and put the pieces instantly into bin bags - it's a
mammoth job and the stuff gets everywhere including in my gloves. Anyone
know how infectious this stuff is? A Wisconsin advice sheet says to keep
dipping your pruning shears in alcohol or 10% bleach. Does this mean I'm
carrying it around on my trousers and wellies? But if I get someone to
come and uproot it bodily the gloop will fly everywhere … Aargh! I don't
want it spreading to the hawthorn and roses or the nearby japonica.

Amber jelly on evergreen shrub
 

On 4/11/2012 3:33 PM, Blenny wrote:
And another update - a local qualified gardener has had a look at it and
says to cut it back 6" below the bottom infestation so I'm trying to do
that with secateurs and put the pieces instantly into bin bags - it's a
mammoth job and the stuff gets everywhere including in my gloves. Anyone
know how infectious this stuff is? A Wisconsin advice sheet says to keep
dipping your pruning shears in alcohol or 10% bleach. Does this mean I'm
carrying it around on my trousers and wellies? But if I get someone to
come and uproot it bodily the gloop will fly everywhere … Aargh! I don't
want it spreading to the hawthorn and roses or the nearby japonica.


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I didn't see the original post, but FFR if you're talking about Tremella
mesenterica, it infects only wood that's already dead.

I just had a look at that, and it's similar, but I think mine (unfortunately) is Gymnosporangium which is loose and jelly-like, and it's on the live growing bits (though it's now also on the inner barky bits below where I had cut it back). Still trying to get someone with the necessary equipment and muscle to remove the whole bush.

Just to sign off on this, a local tree-and-hedge man quickly and efficiently removed the infected juniper down to a low stump and took it away - he said he'd never seen anything like it. I scraped off the top layer underneath (needles and sawdust) and binned it, so I hope there isn't infection in the soil, and I'll look out for any signs of anything else catching it, and use anti-rust spray if so. It seems to be too late to kill the stump this year, but I'll do it next winter if necessary. And I'll plant the bed with stuff that doesn't get rust.

Although Gymnosporangium seems to be common in the US, I can't find much about it in Britain. I couldn't find anything on the internet about how to treat the jelly itself - is it infectious on clothing or the ground? When does it release its spores - continually? It's very unpleasant to the touch as well as nasty to look at and I hope never to experience it again. Thanks to everyone for suggestions.

Amber jelly on evergreen shrub
 

Blenny wrote:

Although Gymnosporangium seems to be common in the US, I can't find much
about it in Britain. I couldn't find anything on the internet about how
to treat the jelly itself - is it infectious on clothing or the ground?
When does it release its spores - continually? It's very unpleasant to
the touch as well as nasty to look at and I hope never to experience it
again.

Too late, it lives:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkOfeSNsWpM

Yikes! You're right, I could have tried shooting it!