I would rather act than hope!
I think the rot is a secondary damage. Usually you can't see the Oribatids (Moosmilben) or Tarsonemids (Weichhautmilben) if they are hiding deep in the crown. Their size is only 0,3mm!
Brown spots on new Phrag. schlimii growth
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I would rather act than hope!
I think the rot is a secondary damage. Usually you can't see the Oribatids (Moosmilben) or Tarsonemids (Weichhautmilben) if they are hiding deep in the crown. Their size is only 0,3mm!
I tried to find those small mites in my Phrags. I use 30 x lens. Never saw anything. Since the plants always recovered, I was thinking my problem was a cultural one.
My question: Are Phrags and Paphs proned to Tarsonmids or other tiny mites? Many orchids are, but what about slippers ? I detected tiny mites on Masdies, Coelogyne and intergeneric Oncidiums. But never on slippers.
I repotted the plant. The roots look like this:
Two roots were dead, the ones you see on the photo were all still hard and seemed ok to my (inexperienced) eye. There is no smell on the roots or the plant.
Yeah, that's my problem too, I would have no idea how to spot those tiny things. Let's assume the schlimii had Tarsonemids, would they also affect nearby plants? I have two other Phrags making new growths standing right next to the schlimii and neither has those spots.
Two roots were dead, the ones you see on the photo were all still hard and seemed ok to my (inexperienced) eye. There is no smell on the roots or the plant.
Yeah, that's my problem too, I would have no idea how to spot those tiny things. Let's assume the schlimii had Tarsonemids, would they also affect nearby plants? I have two other Phrags making new growths standing right next to the schlimii and neither has those spots.
SlipperFan
Addicted
I've personally had spider mites on my Paphs, but I've never seen them on my Phrags.
Hamlet, it looks like your plant might have, or had, some kind of rot on it, down close to the roots.
I had this problem with one Phrag. that I air layered and
it was on the new growth just like the photo. I drenched
a couple of times with Cleary's 3336 and the damage
stopped completely. I also cut away the damaged parts
of the leaves. No new growth has shown this kind of
damage since the drenching. Whether it's the same problem? Maybe so, maybe no.
it was on the new growth just like the photo. I drenched
a couple of times with Cleary's 3336 and the damage
stopped completely. I also cut away the damaged parts
of the leaves. No new growth has shown this kind of
damage since the drenching. Whether it's the same problem? Maybe so, maybe no.
The Mutant
Well-Known Member
Could it be Anthracnose: Orchid diseases? Scroll down till the 'Orchid Leaf and Flower Spotting Fungi', it's the first subject in this section.
Thank you all for your suggestions.
I repotted the plant, removed dead roots, cut off the affected leaves and switched to less feeding. If the spots come again, I'll try some fungicide.
That looks like it starts at the tip and then spreads downwards though, my plant has blotches and the tips are not affected. Looks quite different.
I repotted the plant, removed dead roots, cut off the affected leaves and switched to less feeding. If the spots come again, I'll try some fungicide.
That looks like it starts at the tip and then spreads downwards though, my plant has blotches and the tips are not affected. Looks quite different.
27 posts with talk about possible to much feeding (fertilizer).
No one has asked what you fertilize with or how much you use.
So number one question is what is in your fertilizer?
No one has asked what you fertilize with or how much you use.
So number one question is what is in your fertilizer?
I fertilize with NPK 14-7-8 or NPK 20-5-10 standard fertilizer, 80-100μS (RO water is about 10μS before adding fertilizer). One of the fertilizers has 2% Magnesium added.
NYEric
Well-Known Member
Mites usually don't survive on plants that are watered a lot like Phrags. 
The amount of fertilizer you are applying is not too strong.
This is one of the types of disease symptoms that seems to just happen to certain plants for no reason. It is an example of what I believe may be a reaction to elevated potassium levels. Not saying it is, just that it is a possibility. Your fertilizer does contain a fairly high ratio of K.
After I started using less potassium on Phrags I no longer saw plants with this symptom.
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