Tag Archives: Dog Lichen

Dog lichen is the common name for a family of foliose lichens in the family Peltigeraceae.

Dog lichen on lawns

The scientific name is Peltigera. It can be seen on a lawn as a curious black and white growth which is very striking in appearance. It is a sign that the lawn is a very bad shape as it occurs on soil lacking in nutrients.

The main way to control it is to improve the growing conditions in the lawn, discouraging it from spreading. Improving the grass will prevent it returning.

Find out more about lichen, how it occurs on lawns and how to control it in these blog posts.

Question: Easy way to control moss and dog lichen?

I received this question in January 2018 from an older reader. She asked about easy ways to keep her lawn free of moss and dog lichen. Hi Kris, I have a lawn covered in moss and dog lichen. For years I have kept the moss under control. Now not so young and fit it is out of control.… Read More »

Question: Dog lichen taking over dry lawn

I received this question from a reader who posted on a comment in March 2017 on my blog post about dog lichen. Hi Kris, We have dog lichen in our garden for about five years and are unable to get rid of it. We have decided to re lawn but are wondering how we should treat the soil… Read More »

Dog lichen (Peltigera sp.)

This week I was called to a lawn which had been infested with a fantastic specimen of Dog lichen (Peltigera sp.), so in this post I will take a closer look at this fascinating, almost alien-looking species which finds its way onto very neglected lawns. Black slime on my lawn? Dog lichen is an extremely curious-looking organism. It… Read More »