Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

My Mysore does. Iholena does. !000 fingers too.
Any other nectar jelly makers out there?

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

I love making jam, I like bit and pieces of fruit in mine.
Just made some star fruit jam, and peach jam.
So much more rewarding making your own, rather than buying it in the store. The difference is like night and day..
I might add, I make the best bread and butter pickles this side of Florida, so I've been told. And I am a bit parcel to believe it..hehe

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

Kub, what she's talking about it not making jelly out of nectar, but that certain cultivars have naturally occurring nectar jelly in the male flowers, rather than just liquid nectar. It is a nice edible treat. The Hawaiian word is pilali, and apparently it would be fed to babies.

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

Maybe before rats/rodents were introduced to Hawaii.

Now it's a nice edible treat that might kill you.

It is estimated that seven to ten million people are infected by leptospirosis a year. The number of deaths this causes is not clear. The disease is most common in tropical areas of the world but may occur anywhere.

Leptospirosis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Threat: Rodents « Partnership to Protect Hawai‘i's Native Species

Fun Facts about Rats - Hamakua coast area on the Big Island

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

I'm willing to take my chances that a rat did not pee on the male flowers that opened that morning, making contact with the somewhat protected glob of nectar. My dogs get lepto vaccines, why can't I get one?

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

I'll stick to my kind of jelly.

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

Kub! Now you are making me hungry! I'll be looking for Kub's Famous Pickles & Jams at the supermarket.

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

I would not take that risk, I always wash my hands after touching a banana plant. Being in the morning just increases the risk because of the dew.

Leptospirosis is a serious problem on banana farms and it seems crazy to take that risk but I'm guessing you don't personally know someone affected by this. It's a common topic among farmers and most people here are probably just more conscious of it.


If you do a search, you'll find better info.


http://www.health.qld.gov.au/ph/docu...tphn/29073.pdf


"On average, about two thirds of notified cases
of leptospirosis from the Innisfail/Tully area are
banana workers.
This is because the leptospirosis bacteria thrives in wet
conditions, and because banana farming involves lots of
exposure to soil and water that may be contaminated
with animal urine. Leptospirosis is most probably spread by rodents on banana farms – but bats,
pigs, dogs, frogs and bandicoots could also be involved.
Banana workers who don’t wear protective clothing (boots or shoes, long sleeved clothing, gloves),
and who don’t wash their hands frequently and thoroughly, are most at risk of catching leptospirosis.
Smokers are at greater risk because their hands are always going to their mouths.
There are 23 strains of leptospirosis bacteria in Australia (and over 230 strains worldwide).
Unfortunately there is no vaccine to cover all the strains of leptospirosis in the Innisfail/Tully area."

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

My vet said the vaccine for dogs does not cover all the stains we have in Hawaii. Apparently "lepto" is not as widespread here, although certainly present and something to be aware of.

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

Back to the thread topic!
What my question should have been-
Is jelled nectar uncommon and thus a useful identification trait?
If so, which cultivars have it?

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

Re: Jelled nectar- who has it?
 

I appreciate your concern Keith, but as an epidemiologist and a health educator, I'm familiar with the issues here. As with many diseases, a public structural response (education, safety practices for employers) can be beneficial even if any one individual's risk is extremely low. I live in an area with 50,000 living with catchment water. The vast majority of those have no filtration to stop lepto and they shower, shave, brush teeth with it, etc even if they don't drink it. You would think there would be massive lepto outbreaks here constantly and that's not the case. The biggest lepto concern for most people here is exposure to fresh water streams when they have open cuts, and indeed I have known others who have acquired lepto that way.

As for pilali, the Hawaiians actually brought rats, though I don't know if lepto was present pre Western contact.