Anybody care to diagnose my fungus problem?

[NotAnotherNewNappy]

Most of the shrubs in our new garden seem to have something nasty looking growing on them. I've put a photo of it on my profile, in case any of you can tell me what it is and what I should d about it?

TIA

[LadyMud]

Sorry, NANN, but I can't see the nasty stuff properly in your photo. Any chance of a close-up?

[GrendelsMum]

I can't see the photo either, but I wonder whether it's a lovely lichen rather than a fungus problem? People do confuse the two, but a lichen's a harmless symbiotic relationship between a fungus and an algae that have teamed up to survive in extreme environments.

If so, it's a good sign for your air quality, as they don't like air pollution.

Here's the Natural History Museum's lichen info page
www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/life/plants-fungi/lichens/

And here's their ID guide
www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/life/plants-fungi/lichen-id-guide/index.dsml