is this den sick?

[dudleyleroux]

I'd be very surprised if that bug was to blame for those black spots. I agree with quiltergal about it being fungal. I would isolate the plant if it's near others, increase the air circulation and spray with a fungicide. I would be very reluctant to soak any orchid in fungicide or pesticide of any sort. What did the roots look like when you repotted?

[cirillonb]

I question whether s/h is the correct move for a sick plant. I would be concerned about the browning of the most distant segment of the cane.
Nick

[VickiC]

Thanks for your help, Royal
Vicki

Originally Posted by RoyalOrchids

Yup. I knew it was Hemiptera or Hemoptera but I never could remember which was which. They do have piercing/sucking mouth parts so I guess it's possible for them to damage your orchids. But they're not really known for being a big problem plant pest.

[VickiC]

Hi Nick,
Before I read your advice here, I had already decided just as you say.....S/H wasn't the best for the plant at the time, so I had probably made a mistake. Since I'm so inexperienced, I didn't know what medium would be correct, though, so I just guessed and chose sphag.....at least until new roots start to form......maybe afterwards, too ???

Afterward I repotted it and treated it with Physan 20, the den contiued to look worse and worse....as if I had done nothing at all, so I'm wondering if the problem (fungus or whatever the case) had progressed more than I thought before I noticed a problem. Black spots continued to spread everywhere.....more leaves and more canes. I didn't know to look for a browish appearance of the distant cane, so thanks.....I'll know from now on that is something important to look for.
Thanks for your advice,
Vicki

Originally Posted by cirillonb

I question whether s/h is the correct move for a sick plant. I would be concerned about the browning of the most distant segment of the cane.
Nick

[dudleyleroux]

just a quick question, does this dendrobium get direct sunlight?

[VickiC]

Hi Dudley,
I didn't know that anyone else would have more advice for me, so before I read yours this morn., I have already treated my den and here it sits looking really bad.....so I think either I have made wrong decisions or else the problem had already progressed more than I thought by the time I spotted something wrong. It seems as though the poor den has gotten worse each day.....more dark spots on leaves and canes.....more yellow leaves, too. Anyway, right or wrong, here's what I did: I unpotted it, and saw that the roots did not look good at all....most black and mushy, so I trimmed them the best I knew how and, as you read, soaked the plant in Physan 20 for 10 mins.. (By the way, I read that you would be very hesitant to soak and orchid, so if I were to have sprayed, would you just simply have sprayed the roots or the roots and plant as well....and then repot?) Going on: I then repotted it in S/H (as you also read), but decided that I made a wrong choice there, so I repotted it again in sphag. After watching it seem to get worse after that, I got desperate the other day and unpotted it AGAIN (which most likely was another mistake) simply because I wanted to check how the roots were looking and also to check out the new canes. I had already wondered if there was anything at all that I could do to try to save them (??) because they looked nice and healthy. Is there a way? The roots hadn't changed, so I was in the process of repotting the plant again in sphag, and one of what I had thought was a new cane had roots of it's own and fell off of the mother plant. I potted that little plant in a mixture of sphag and BetterGro orchid mix (bark charcoal, etc.) I repotted the mother den back in all sphag and as I said, she sits here near me looking very bad. The new growth I potted is also sitting next to her, and both of them are away from all of my other orchids, so unless you have more advice, I'll just have to wait and see what happens next. One more question for you or anyone who has a suggestion: do you have a particular fungicide to be used on a regular basis, hopefully in order to help prevent such a problem as this in the future, and if so, how would you use it and how often?
I'm sorry for the long post, but I never know how to explain anything without being too wordy.
Thanks again,
Vicki

Originally Posted by dudleyleroux

I'd be very surprised if that bug was to blame for those black spots. I agree with quiltergal about it being fungal. I would isolate the plant if it's near others, increase the air circulation and spray with a fungicide. I would be very reluctant to soak any orchid in fungicide or pesticide of any sort. What did the roots look like when you repotted?

[VickiC]

No, it has never gotten direct sunlight but it always got full sun on a table in front of an east window in my kitchen. I also had a humidifier near it. Why do you ask about direct sunlight.....is there something that I should know, other than not to place my orchids ever in direct sun? As I have said, being a beginner, I would appreciate any advice that you or anyone can give me.
Vicki

Originally Posted by dudleyleroux

just a quick question, does this dendrobium get direct sunlight?

[dudleyleroux]

I understand the horrid feeling when a lovely Den goes all sad and wants to die. It is a very good idea to wait and see now. You have repotted it, fungicided it and spoken nicely to it, there is little else you can do right now.
I would grab the oldest cane, cut it off and lay it in a tray of sawdust for a few weeks, the nodes may produce new plants.
Other than that, sit tight and don't water the potted Den, just wait and see.

[dudleyleroux]

I have Dens that will not flower unless they have pretty serious sunlight. They also don't seem to flower if they don't dry out completely between watering and especially near flowering time. The reason I asked about the sunlight was because I spoke to a friend of mine who knows Dens very well and he indicated that the spots could be a reaction to excessive sunlight. Judging from your description of the roots I would be more inclined to believe it is excessive watering or water retention of the medium.