Congealed sap on weeping cherry
Gummosis can be caused by any number of factors
My weeping cherry tree has been slimed — gross! Three of the tree’s branches are totally dead beyond the chunky globs of clear gelatin gunk. Thanks for any help.
The substance on your cherry tree is gummosis. The gummy material is congealed sap which oozes from the vascular system located immediately under the bark. Ornamental cherry trees have extremely thin bark, and gummosis can be caused by numerous factors: weather-induced bark splitting, insect activity, mechanical injury or disease. In minor cases, sap can seal off insects and disease pathogens long enough for the tree to isolate and quarantine the wound. If not, part or all of the tree is lost. Peach tree borers are often the culprits in the demise of weeping cherry trees. There is no effective treatment once the borers enter the tree. My Stella d’Oro day lilies seem to be growing green “bulbs” at their tips where flowers used to be. How do I encourage more flowers?
You are seeing seed pods on your lilies, the natural progression from flowers. Leaving them on does not hurt the plants, but the process of producing and maturing the pods uses up some of the plants’ energies. Many gardeners choose to snap off the pods when they appear. Two important ways to increase flowering in Stella D’Oro, a repeat-blooming day lily, are to deadhead the spent flowers (be sure to get the entire flower not just petals because you don’t want it to form a seed pod) and also to divide the clumps every two years or so for maximum blooms. University of Maryland Extension’s Home and Garden Information Center offers free gardening and pest information at extension.umd.edu/hgic. Click “Ask Maryland’s Gardening Experts” to send questions and photos.