Question
my mother in law has many pine trees and they have gotten a black fungus starting from the ground up that is also causing the bark on the branches to peel off.  Obviously this isn't good for the trees and these trees are anywhere from 20-8 years old.  what is this fungus and what can we do to save the tree?  the fungus by the way is really close to the bark of the trunk almost like mold on bread.  
thanks,
natasha

Answer
What you are describing sounds like a form of sooty mold, which is a harmless mold growing on the plant surface because of sugars deposited by insects feeding higher up in the tree. The bugs can be on trees other than the pine trees and the wind can blow the dripping material onto the pine tree branches, and then the mold grows.  If this does not seem to be the case, please send a picture and we can try to determine what is going on.  Send picture to [email protected] with the subject line allexperts so it wont get deleted.  Thanks.