Ceanothus problem

Hi folks

Im trying to get my mother's garden into shape after a year or so of neglect. She has a lovely bush which from the Identification thread, I now know is a ceanothus.

It seems tobe under sever attack by a fungus or something though. Most of the branches are covered with a blue-grey growth. Some of the covered branches seem to be otherwise healthy, but many are looking pretty dead.

Can anyone help me with what I can do about this? The bushwas beautiful so I'd like to save it if I can.

Thanks.

 

well that is lichen but i cant really be any more help than that lol

 

Hmmm. I was wondering if it was lichem too. The question is, is the bush dying because of the lichen, or is the lichen growing where the bush is dying?

 

The litchen will not kill it, if anything it is a sighn of unn poluted air.

cut out any obviusly DEAD wood but dont woory about the litchen

 

Lichens are composite organisms - in unscientific terms, they are a cross between algae and fungi - that proliferate via airborne spores and grow particularly well in places where the air is damp and clean. They tend to grow on woody plants that are themselves growing extremely slowly, but are harmless to their hosts.There is no "treatment" that will control lichen, but depending on where it is growing, you can often remove some of the oldest, worst affected shoots with a bit of sensible pruning.

 

Thanks Walnut. I'll prune off the dead wood and ignore the lichen. If it's not damaging the bush, I'm quite happy to let it grow.

L.

 

Every year my gooseberry bushes get covered in litchen. They are planted in the open so there is good air circulation. If I pruned away the litchen I would have no plant left and the litchen even seems to affect the fruit. If I replaced the plants with new ones, would I still get the same problem? Anybody and ideas?

 

Its supposed to be a sign of good clean air id just leave it

 

Yes you will Terrier.

 

There was quite a lot of dead wood on my Ceanothus, and lots of undergrowth at the base of the bush. I've gone round pruning the dead wood and I've cleared the undergrowth away. There will be a lot more air circulation under and through the bush now, so hopefully this will calm down the rampaging lichen.

 

It will help Louis.:thumb:

 

Added interest to the garden , great for christmas table decs if your into floristry at all.

Munday