How safe is moss and lichen for fruit trees: remove or leave?

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When lichen or moss appears on branches, at first they attract attention with their decorativeness. But they really look attractive. There is even a thought that there is nothing wrong with this. However, lichens and moss are not safe. They are slow killers of fruit trees.

Negative effect

Let's start with the fact that pests like to hide in lichens. You can't look for a better hiding place for the winter. The same applies to infections. Pathogens make a real home there. As a result, trees get sick more often and bear fruit worse.

What to do in the fall

Wait until the leaves have completely fallen. After that, you can proceed to treatment with iron sulfate.

To prepare the solution, dissolve 500 g of the product in 10 liters of water. Note that the water must be hot. Therefore, take 2 liters, dissolve the sulfate, and then add water to 10 liters.

Strain the finished solution, pour it into a sprayer and treat the trees with lichen. After 2 weeks, spread a film near the tree and clean the lichens and moss that have died on it. Remove everything. We finish the procedure by whitewashing the trunk.