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What is this lichen?
madpenguin
Posts: 2,543
This white lichen is all over the local churchyard.In some places it looks like snow or vandals have been chucking white paint around.It just seems to be very brilliant right now.Can anyone give it a name please?
“Every day is ordinary, until it isn't.” - Bernard Cornwell-Death of Kings
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This may be of help http://www.britishlichensociety.org.uk/activities/churchyard-survey/churchyard-lichen-conservation
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Thanks it looks to be a White crustose lichen.
Walking through the churchyard it just seemed to stand out eveywhere,maybe because it is such a grey day.
It’s seems such a shame to destroy them, some have taken many many years to grow.
I’m a monument restorer so thought I’d share this with you, before and after. The back was covered in those lichens, the white ones come off easily but the yellow dye from some is a beast to get out, stains right through, there’s also a red one that leaves a pink mark that is impossible to remove.
This is living proof that a stone should never be taken out of its country of origin. This is marble, not a native stone to damp Cornwall. It now looks exactly the same as it was before I did it About 15 years ago.
I remember when friends were choosing a gravestone for their father ... they were very taken with some smart illustrations of Italian marble ... until I reminded them that he had endured a particularly difficult time in Italy when in the British Army in WW2 ... I thought he'd revolve in his grave if he thought he was being memorialised with an Italian headstone ........... fortunately they saw my point of view and chose York stone ... much better suited to him and an English country churchyard
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Dove ,
Your link regarding lichens is excellent ; we take care of a couple of village churchyards in the Lincolnshire Wolds .
Very open and clean environment , the lichens prove that to me !