Q: I live in Rabun County and I have this weird fungus on my leucothoe. Is it exobasidium leaf gall?

A: You get the diagnostic prize: it’s Exobasidium vaccinnii!

There are several members of this fungal clan. They cause leaf and bud galls on azalea, camellia and leucothoe.

They don’t particularly hurt the plant. Most folks deal with it by picking affected plant parts and putting them in the garbage.

See Leaf Galls