I came across this thread while searching for similar answers to a problem I have. We have a large, beautiful holly tree at the corner of our house. We recently had an arborist come to trim several trees on our property. We had a miscommunication with what we wanted done to the holly and he trimmed the lower branches all the way to the trunk so that it now looks like a deciduous tree. This is not what we wanted at all! I am heartbroken and sorely miss the full Christmas-tree look it previously had. It's a very large, mature tree, probably 12 feet tall and was about 10 feet wide at the base. Since this thread is several years old now, I'm curious how your tree situation turned out. Do you have any updates to share?

wuzoo, you might want to cross-post this on the Garden Clinic Forum. I'm far from certain, but the insects look to me like planthopper larvae. If so, they're sometimes considered more of a nuisance pest than a threat to the tree, and one can do more harm trying to eradicate them than by just letting them run their cycle. You might also check with your local extension service. Sometimes if insect pests make an appearance in unusually large numbers, the ext. service will put out information and recommendations on control and management.

what is that moss covered monstrosity behind the pear.. lol .. just a dead 6 foot stump??? .. keep us posted on that if it leafs out in spring.. dont get me wrong.. even dead.. it is green art ... buy a good pruning saw and hand shears .. as with any tool purchase.. GOOD matters.. and its usually only a few bucks difference with quality tools.. HINT.. dont buy them at dollar general.. lol .. if you give us some pix of the whole tree.. before they leaf out.. we can probably give you some suggestions here .. one tree.. one post.. dont mix them all together ... posts are free so dont worry about that.. and welcome to the forums.. lichens are a good sign.. that you have clean air .. you will see them EVERYWHERE now that you know.. but you will never see them downtown ... in fact .. my plastic mailbox is covered in them.. it amuses me.. as obviously they are not getting anything from the plastc.. except a place to hang out ... and where you find those.. will will usually also find mosses and other of the lower forms of life ... all indicating a healthy environment .. i spotted this on my wood fence last month ... and i think there is moss in your pix above .. i need to load the pic from my phone.. i hope i dont forget .. i will do it later .. one issue.. pruning fruit trees for high production can make really ugly trees .. look in any local orchard .. but who wants ugly trees int eh yard.. so its a balancing act between proper tree pruning.. and production pruning ... start with proper.. then worry about production later .. soooo.. for this season.. lets just do what the tree needs... and we will make recommendations after we see the pix ... oh i can link to an old post for the moss: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6334676/things-that-grow-on-useless-split-rail-fence#n=18 beauty in and of themselves.. beauty per se .... ken

It looks like a possible heavy infestation of gloomy scale. https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/gloomy-scale-1 https://extension.umd.edu/resource/gloomy-scale Internet search engine "gloomy scale" for even better photo comparisons. I'm thinking that you also might have a borer issue going on with the way that lower trunk bark looks "leaky" with some discoloration. Trees that are weak or stressed out by other plant health issues are the prime targets for borers.