Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.

js

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My state(NC) does not allow the importation of gooseberries or currents
because they carry a fungal disease that damages White Pines. I'm not sure
which fungus or what the damage may be. Try Google White Pine disease +
currents.
Steve
"Jack Schmidling" wrote in message
...
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.

js

--
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com

Steve Peek wrote:
My state(NC) does not allow the importation of gooseberries or currents
because they carry a fungal disease that damages White Pines. I'm not sure
which fungus or what the damage may be. Try Google White Pine disease +
currents.
Steve
"Jack Schmidling" wrote in message
...
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.

js

--
PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm
Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com



White pine blister rust is the disease and gooseberry is the alternate host.

--

Rick
Fargo, ND
N 46°53'251"
W 096°48'279"

Remember the USS Liberty
http://www.ussliberty.org/





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Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.

Your wording suggests that it appeared suddenly (if it got that big
without you noticing it earlier).

My guess is somebody cut down a diseased tree or tree-limb and the wind
(or kids) put it there.

We have incidents of corn cobs or ears of corn in trees, but that is the
doing of the thieving squirrels.

I'll be interested to know what the tree thing turns out to be.

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On Aug 12, 10:05*am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....


It is what is known as a 'witch's broom.' They occur rather
frequently on conifers. They can be caused by a virus or some other
infectious agent or injury , but sometimes they happen spontaneously
as a result of mutation. There is one on a Norway Spruce near my
office.

Some of the more interesting ones become valuable cultivars when an
enterprising arborist spots them and clones them.

J. Del Col

On Aug 12, 10:05*am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.


One point of clarification. As I said in an earlier reply, it's a
'witch's broom.' They are all caused by a mutation in a branch bud.
Nobody is sure what triggers the mutation; viruses, injury and
spontaneous mutation have all been suggested as possible causes.
Pines and spruces seem to be very susceptible to them.

An analogy would be 'cresting' in cacti.

BTW, White Pine Blister Rust doesn't look like that. Branches with
WPBR just turn brown, wither and die; they don't produce that kind of
bushy excresence.


J. Del Col

jadel wrote:
On Aug 12, 10:05 am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.


One point of clarification. As I said in an earlier reply, it's a
'witch's broom.' They are all caused by a mutation in a branch bud.
Nobody is sure what triggers the mutation; viruses, injury and
spontaneous mutation have all been suggested as possible causes.
Pines and spruces seem to be very susceptible to them.

An analogy would be 'cresting' in cacti.

BTW, White Pine Blister Rust doesn't look like that. Branches with
WPBR just turn brown, wither and die; they don't produce that kind of
bushy excresence.


J. Del Col
There are rust pustules also

--

Rick
Fargo, ND
N 46°53'251"
W 096°48'279"

Remember the USS Liberty
http://www.ussliberty.org/





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----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =----

In article
, jadel
wrote:

On Aug 12, 10:05=A0am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....


It is what is known as a 'witch's broom.' They occur rather
frequently on conifers. They can be caused by a virus or some other
infectious agent or injury , but sometimes they happen spontaneously
as a result of mutation. There is one on a Norway Spruce near my
office.

Some of the more interesting ones become valuable cultivars when an
enterprising arborist spots them and clones them.

J. Del Col

Yep, many dwarf cultivars have been developed from "witch's brooms." I
find that so fascinating. I have a 'Pimoko" Serbian spruce developed from
a witches broom. It was a stubby little thing when I got it but without
getting much taller than eight inches it's now qutie the tiny shrub, in an
outdoor pot with a teency species of cyclamen. Here's my article about it:
http://www.paghat.com/pimoko.html
photo from the first year I had it; it's a denser rounder mini-shrub now,
I should add an update photo.

And here's an article on the Miniature Bird's Nest Norway Spruce you
mention, one of the more commonly encountered witches brooms in the trade:
http://www.paghat.com/birdsnestspruce.html
--
visit my temperate gardening website:
http://www.paghat.com
visit my film reviews website:
http://www.weirdwildrealm.com

On 8/12/08 2:38 PM, in article
, "jadel"
wrote:

On Aug 12, 10:05*am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.


One point of clarification. As I said in an earlier reply, it's a
'witch's broom.' They are all caused by a mutation in a branch bud.
Nobody is sure what triggers the mutation; viruses, injury and
spontaneous mutation have all been suggested as possible causes.
Pines and spruces seem to be very susceptible to them.

An analogy would be 'cresting' in cacti.

BTW, White Pine Blister Rust doesn't look like that. Branches with
WPBR just turn brown, wither and die; they don't produce that kind of
bushy excresence.


J. Del Col

You beat me to it Jadel. I've seem several "witches brooms". It's an
interesting aberration.

Cheryl

On Aug 12, 3:23*pm, (paghat) wrote:
In article
, jadel





wrote:
On Aug 12, 10:05=A0am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

It is what is known as a 'witch's broom.' *They occur rather
frequently on conifers. *They can be caused by a virus or some other
infectious agent or injury , but sometimes they happen spontaneously
as a result of mutation. *There is one on a Norway Spruce near my
office.

Some of the more interesting ones become valuable cultivars when an
enterprising arborist spots them and clones them.

J. Del Col

Yep, many dwarf cultivars have been developed from "witch's brooms." I
find that so fascinating. I have a 'Pimoko" Serbian spruce developed from
a witches broom. It was a stubby little thing when I got it but without
getting much taller than eight inches it's now qutie the tiny shrub, in an
outdoor pot with a teency species of cyclamen. Here's my article about it:http://www.paghat.com/pimoko.html
photo from the first year I had it; it's a denser rounder mini-shrub now,
I should add an update photo.

And here's an article on the Miniature Bird's Nest Norway Spruce you
mention,....


I have a Bird's Nest Norway. I'm working with it as a bonsai.

Over 100 different WB cultivars have come from Norway Spruce alone.

J. Del Col

On Aug 12, 3:14*pm, Rick wrote:
jadel wrote:
On Aug 12, 10:05 am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.

One point of clarification. *As I said in an earlier reply, it's a
'witch's broom.' They are all caused by a mutation in a branch bud.
Nobody is sure what triggers the mutation; viruses, injury and
spontaneous mutation have all been suggested as possible causes.
Pines and spruces seem to be very susceptible to them.

An analogy would be 'cresting' *in cacti.

BTW, White Pine Blister Rust doesn't look like that. *Branches with
WPBR just turn brown, wither and die; they don't produce that kind of
bushy excresence.

J. Del Col

There are rust pustules also


Yep, nasty-looking stuff.

J. Del Col

"jadel" wrote in message
...
On Aug 12, 10:05 am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....


It is what is known as a 'witch's broom.' They occur rather
frequently on conifers. They can be caused by a virus or some other
infectious agent or injury , but sometimes they happen spontaneously
as a result of mutation. There is one on a Norway Spruce near my
office.

Some of the more interesting ones become valuable cultivars when an
enterprising arborist spots them and clones them.

J. Del Col

-----
can you poas a photo of that?

"Cheryl Isaak" wrote in message
...
On 8/12/08 2:38 PM, in article
, "jadel"
wrote:

On Aug 12, 10:05 am, Jack Schmidling wrote:
Returning home from our Friday trip to town, we spotted this strange
apparition in a tree along the road.....

I need some help identifying it.


One point of clarification. As I said in an earlier reply, it's a
'witch's broom.' They are all caused by a mutation in a branch bud.
Nobody is sure what triggers the mutation; viruses, injury and
spontaneous mutation have all been suggested as possible causes.
Pines and spruces seem to be very susceptible to them.

An analogy would be 'cresting' in cacti.

BTW, White Pine Blister Rust doesn't look like that. Branches with
WPBR just turn brown, wither and die; they don't produce that kind of
bushy excresence.


J. Del Col

You beat me to it Jadel. I've seem several "witches brooms". It's an
interesting aberration.

Cheryl


i think the tree was just making a fashion statment, The Pine Tree Afro is
Back!, in memory of Isaac "Chef/Shaft" Haze

On Aug 12, 3:23*pm, (paghat) wrote:
In article
, jadel





wrote:
And here's an article on the Miniature Bird's Nest Norway Spruce you
mention, ,....

The WB on the tree outside my office isn't a bird's nest WB. It is
about five feet long and looks just like a very bushy Christmas tree
stuck onto a branch of the huge old spruce.

J. Del Col

In article
, jadel
wrote:

On Aug 12, 3:23=A0pm, (paghat) wrote:
In article
, jadel





wrote:
And here's an article on the Miniature Bird's Nest Norway Spruce you
mention, ,....

The WB on the tree outside my office isn't a bird's nest WB. It is
about five feet long and looks just like a very bushy Christmas tree
stuck onto a branch of the huge old spruce.

J. Del Col

Golly gee, I'd love to see that.

-paggers
--
visit my temperate gardening website:
http://www.paghat.com
visit my film reviews website:
http://www.weirdwildrealm.com