Spider mite damage??

[Birgit]

Hoping someone can help me diagnose this.

It's a Phragmipedium kovachii, old and dear, but I can't seem to find any mites.

 

[Morja]

I recently bought a phrag Ruth Morrow that arrived with similar rust on all 3 of its new growths- none on the older one though. The worst spot is most visible in this picture. I wiped it down thoroughly with rubbing alcohol while potting it up and haven't noticed the rust spots grow. Mites aren't necessarily always visible are they? Anyway, I'm also curious so adding my pic to follow and see what others say.

 

[CarlG]

My experience with spider mites is that they give a "silvering" effect on leaves, not a rusty-colored effect.

My preference would be to go nuclear with mites - kill them hard and fast, so that they don't spread or develop resistance to any pesticide you may choose to use.

 

[Ozpaph]

Morja's photo looks like spider mites.
Not sure about the first photo - probably not

 

[Birgit]

Thank you all for kind replies.

I have found Thrips and there will be larva and lots of eggs....hmmmm. Not pleased.

 

[big923cattleya]

I don’t think that it is thrips. They are so small, so slender, and I can’t imagine them attacking leaves like that. I
Think that a sucking insect like a thrip would not be able to penetrate the leaf surface.
I dealt with them often in Florida. I have seen damage caused by them dozens of times. I am pretty sure they were attacking flowers, which compared to a leaf, are much more easily damaged.
I think it is fungal or maybe bacterial.

 

[southernbelle]

I have had thrips attack leaves and streaking damage near the spike as the leaf grew was the result.

 

[southernbelle]

Thank you all for kind replies.

I have found Thrips and there will be larva and lots of eggs....hmmmm. Not pleased.

Overture is the big gun for thrips. Expensive because of the size you must order. I but the bullet but got rid of them. If you are in the U.S. I can send you some. $20 plus shipping. PM me.

 

[Djthomp28]

Thrip damage can look like this on Phrags leaves. I am not sure if it from the thrips directly or if their damage leads to a secondary, opportunistic infection. The leaf damage I have seen from thrips on Phrag leaves is much darker though. It is brown, not rust colored. Still, the pattern is similar.

 

[big923cattleya]

Disappointing I guess.
I wonder what the Creator had in mind when he or she created "thrips"???

 

[Ozpaph]

lady bug food!

 

[Djthomp28]

As orchid grower we associate thrips with flower damage but those tiny monsters with get into the leaves and the roots too.

 

[Birgit]

I don’t think that it is thrips. They are so small, so slender, and I can’t imagine them attacking leaves like that. I
Think that a sucking insect like a thrip would not be able to penetrate the leaf surface.
I dealt with them often in Florida. I have seen damage caused by them dozens of times. I am pretty sure they were attacking flowers, which compared to a leaf, are much more easily damaged.
I think it is fungal or maybe bacterial.

Could be fungal and/or bacterial after infestation.

 

[Birgit]

Overture is the big gun for thrips. Expensive because of the size you must order. I but the bullet but got rid of them. If you are in the U.S. I can send you some. $20 plus shipping. PM me.

Thank you very much. I live in Denmark.
I'll treat it with a neem-oil foliar-spray solution and later evt. Siltac which is an environment friendly product and very good in my opinion.
I have cut it back dramatically, poor plant.

 

[southernbelle]

View attachment 50193

Could be fungal and/or bacterial after infestation.

This is thrip damage on a cattleya leaf. It emeged as the leaf grew starting at the sheath.

 

[southernbelle]

Thank you very much. I live in Denmark.
I'll treat it with a neem-oil foliar-spray solution and later evt. Siltac which is an environment friendly product and very good in my opinion.
I have cut it back dramatically, poor plant.

Be sure you use something that kills, nit just suppresses thrips specifically or you will really have a problem and thrips are particularly bad because they spread virus from plant to plant.

 

[IvoPhal]

I also think it is fungal or maybe bacterial.
ps Neem oil never help me with insects (trees, flowers, orchids). No or little effect.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

This might already be covered in the comments (so apologies in advance), but has anybody ever had problems with mites on their Phrags?

I've certainly had my fair share of mite problems in my orchid collection on most of the genera I've grown, but I've never noticed mite damage on any Phrags. Maybe it's because they prefer Paphs and Phals and Catts, but I was assuming that (healthy) Phrags may be somewhat resistant to most of the pest mites that are common in cultivated plants.

 

[orchid527]

This might already be covered in the comments (so apologies in advance), but has anybody ever had problems with mites on their Phrags?

I've certainly had my fair share of mite problems in my orchid collection on most of the genera I've grown, but I've never noticed mite damage on any Phrags. Maybe it's because they prefer Paphs and Phals and Catts, but I was assuming that (healthy) Phrags may be somewhat resistant to most of the pest mites that are common in cultivated plants.

I agree. I monitor plants closely with a microscope and I never see mites on phrags. It is very interesting see the variety of critters on paphs under a scope such as broad mites, several species of spider mites, juveniles of both, discarded exoskeletons, and predators, but never on phrags. I have about 600 plants and maybe a third of them are phrags. Mike

 

[Morja]

Update on my end- I also have thrips. The suspect plant got worse and 4 othe phrags got a few spots and even visible bugs, see below.