OHIO – Around Mid March blossoms of this fungus can be seen all over Ohio and its not good for certain kinds of trees.
The Cedar Apple Rust is from the family Pucciniaceae, a group of fungi that contains many species that usually require two or more hosts to complete the life cycle.
The fungus needs a few things to grow and rural areas of Ohio are perfect for it. The fungus needs areas between farmland and forest or thicket to grow, two different hosts as described above need to be present, and within a mile of each other. A juniper species, usually eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), and an apple, crabapple (Malus or Pyrus spp. depending on source), hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) or quince (Cydonia oblonga).
The fungus even takes on different appearances with each host but the most interesting is on redcedar where it takes on a almost flower like appearance.
The fungi when it spread its spores, (or rust) can highly effect the growth cycle of apples, blemish the fruit, and lead to weakening and death of redcedar.
In apple farm areas workers cut down heavily invested trees in a 2-3 mile area around the farm to prevent infestation on the crop trees.
