Diseased Trees (Port Washington: university, versus, garden)

[DawnSells]

Has anyone noticed that many trees in Suffolk county are getting this green spore like disease on them? So many trees are dying and I do not know why. I wonder if any of the towns are doing anything to combat this. SO sad. I read that elm trees are disease resistant. Any insight???

[alexei27]

Suffolk county (and a lot of southern NY) had copious amounts of rain this past summer (top 5 wettest summer on record in many spots). I am not sure what direct correlation exists between rain and green stuff on trees...but I would imagine there is one. I had moldy garden veggies all summer.

I do see the green stuff all over the place...except for pine trees. The pine forest at BNL looks to be green-stuff free while the oaks are covered.

[FrmlyBklyn]

The green stuff is a type of mold. It doesn't harm the tree, I just had my huge oak looked at by an arborist during trimming and was told it does not affect the health of the tree. If anything, all this rain has been beneficial, my oak had tons more acorns this cycle versus last cycle. Needless to say, the local squirrels are pleased.

[Port Washington Native]

Some of my trees have this too and they are called lichens. They are not harmful according to everything I've read . This website has a picture and description: Lichens - More Than Meets the Eye - The P&PDL Picture of the Week - Plant & Pest Diagnostic Laboratory, Purdue University

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by Port Washington Native

Some of my trees have this too and they are called lichens. They are not harmful according to everything I've read . This website has a picture and description: Lichens - More Than Meets the Eye - The P&PDL Picture of the Week - Plant & Pest Diagnostic Laboratory, Purdue University

Thanks for the info! My oak trees all have lichens, and I never knew if that was a "bad sign" or not... phew - breathing a sigh of relief