What does the growth of lichens symbolise

I don't know exactly what the growth of lichens symbolizes in general, but I found the information about what does it mean for California state:

In 2016, according to The Mercury News (mercurynews dot com), Lace Lichen

becomes state symbol of California. The president of the California Lichen Society, Shelly Benson, said: " Lichens are widely overlooked. Our main mission was really to create more awarness about lichens and their role in the ecosystem."

As Lichen, widespread and may be long-lived, was chosen for a state symbol, its growth may symbolize the increase of state strength.

Explanation:

for example, no new evidence will demonstrate that the earth does not orbit around the sun (heliocentric theory), or that living things are not made of cells (cell theory), that matter is not composed of atoms, or that the surface of the earth is not divided into solid plates that have moved over geological timescales .