Owning a garden and caring for your plants requires an understanding of potential issues that may arise. If you come across a mysterious substance known as the “jelly nut” in your garden, here’s what you need to know.
Recently, a Redditor from Oklahoma discovered an odd sight in his garden, bright “yellow goo” on his trees and a peculiar object he described as a “gelatinous alien nut”. Unsure of what it was, he turned to the Reddit community for assistance, mentioning that the affected tree was a conifer, though he couldn’t identify it further.
Almost immediately, another user identified the problem as “cedar and apple rust”. This disease depends on two host plants to complete its life cycle, primarily affecting apple and crabapple trees.
The symptoms vary depending on the type of tree. On junipers, a brown gall forms on twigs and produces orange, gelatinous horns in the spring, particularly during wet weather. Although the twig beyond the gall may die, the damage to the juniper is minimal.
For apple and crabapple trees, yellow circular spots appear on the leaves soon after flowering. By late summer, brown clusters of cylindrical structures develop underneath the leaf spots, on twigs, or even fruit.
Galls from the infection can take several months to develop, appearing around seven months after infection begins. After 18 months, they evolve into gelatinous masses. In the spring, these galls develop depressions resembling golf balls, which give rise to telial horns that elongate and turn bright orange during rainy periods. After releasing spores, these horns collapse and dry up, although the galls can remain attached to the tree for another year.
Management of this infection can include pruning the affected areas or simply allowing it to run its course since it typically doesn’t kill trees but may cause some disfigurement. Preventive measures, such as fungicides or planting resistant apple varieties, can also help.
Overall, while cedar and apple rust isn’t a severe threat to your trees, being informed about it allows you to take the right steps if it appears in your garden. Share this information with others so they can be prepared too!
‘Families don’t have to look the same’ – Black couple talks about their experience adopting three white children
Sadie and Jarvis Sampson tried for years to have a baby, using every method they could think of. They eventually accepted that they might only ever be an aunt and uncle. Then, one day, they got a text that changed their lives completely.
The couple had been trying to get pregnant since they got married in January 2018, but when it didn’t happen on its own, they tried everything else.
“We used ovulation tests, took prenatal vitamins, tracked cycles with apps, and used fertility monitors,” the Houston mom told Love What Matters.
“We even tried advice from friends, family, and strangers. For 14 months, we tried, prayed, and waited. Month after month, it was always a negative pregnancy test. It seemed like we might need help to conceive, so we even talked to doctors about it.”
Doctors didn’t offer much help to the couple. They mostly told Sadie to lose weight to improve her chances of getting pregnant. With no other advice, she had gastric surgery and lost 28 pounds.
Sadie’s OBGYN was excited about the weight loss and praised her for it.
“She told me that if I wasn’t pregnant within six months, she would refer me to a fertility specialist because she couldn’t prescribe fertility medication herself,” Sadie said. “I was thrilled! We finally got a positive step forward, even if it wasn’t immediate. We were excited about the progress.”
Unfortunately, the couple didn’t get pregnant after Sadie lost the weight, and they felt like they were back where they started.
“I always felt like I was meant to be a mother,” Sadie said. “Even though my surgeon warned me that I’d be very fertile after the surgery, I still wasn’t getting pregnant. So, we gave up and accepted that we might just be aunt and uncle to our nieces and godparents to our goddaughters.”
Just when the couple had decided to stop trying to have a baby, Sadie got a text from a friend asking if they would think about fostering a baby from a couple she knew.
At first, the couple was hesitant because they were told by a caseworker to take care of the baby while the birth mom was getting treatment. They worried they might get too attached. But then, the situation changed.
“The birth mom has decided she wants you to adopt the baby instead,” the caseworker said.
Sadie remembered saying, “‘Holy crap!!’ out loud when she found out she was going to be a mom.
“We went from having no kids to possibly fostering one, to suddenly being told, ‘You’re going to be parents!’ I was still in shock as I listened to the caseworker. I hung up and called my husband, shouting, ‘Babe!! They want us to adopt the baby! We’re going to be parents!’ He said, ‘Wait! REALLY?! I thought they just wanted us to foster him!’ I told him, ‘Nope! They want us to be his mom and dad.’”
The couple spent the weekend trying to take in the shocking news and getting ready, just in case the birth mom changed her mind.
By Monday, they were not only told that the birth mom still wanted them to adopt the baby, but she also wanted to do an independent adoption and was ready to sign the papers that day.
Their baby boy was born at just 33 weeks, which is seven weeks early. He weighed 4 lbs. 5 oz. “He was so tiny, he literally fit in one of my husband’s hands,” Sadie wrote.
“He was wrapped in a white blanket with pink and blue stripes,” Sadie said. “He had a small tube coming out of his nose because he couldn’t eat on his own since he was born early. But he was so cute!!!”
The couple shared their news on social media and were encouraged to create a registry. They listed 72 items, and within just three days, 55 of them were already bought for them.
Ezra Lee’s adoption was finalized in October 2020, and the couple had adorable family photos taken, all wearing t-shirts that said, “Families don’t have to match.”
In 2021, Sadie and Jarvis became parents to twin girls, Journee and Destinee, through embryo donation. True to their family motto, “Families don’t have to match,” the Black couple now has three white children – a boy and two girls.
For anyone who might judge their beautiful family, they have just one response: their family is built on the strongest foundation ever – love.
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