By Deyes1
West Sussex,
United Kingdom 
My privet hedge is about 20 years old and over the past 3 or 4 years has been very slowly developing a growth like a lichen on it. The growth is greenish and grayish and covers the stems. The leaves are fine but each year it has gotten worse and the area's infected mean that the leaf growth is less but it hasnt killed off any thing definately. The leaf grow is slower and not as robust in the area's infected. any idea's about what i can use to get rid of the growth?
18 Feb, 2013
Answers
We had the same problem here with a gigantic privet that we 'inherited' with the house, we knew it was old, so I think with age comes weakness [no surprises there!] We let it go on a while and it got thinner and thinner, so we chopped it down and dug it out.It was just past it, and nothing we added helped.We made a lovely bed of shrubs and plants where it had been, which looks much better.If you simply must have a hedge of some kind, try conifers[the cheap lemon cupress kind which you keep trimmed and are mega fast growing.] Or what about grissalina littoralis, they are evergreen too.Or portuguese laurel.Or bamboos.
19 Feb, 2013
The lichen is probably growing more on the slower parts, simply because the bark isn't expanding as rapidly there.
21 Feb, 2013
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I joined GoY with the same question Deyes. I was told there was nothing I could do. I tried wetting it and putting sand on it. I just thin it by hand. I will be interested to see any advice given to you.
18 Feb, 2013