Please Help! Problem with Dendrobium blooming...

[Snooze]

Hello, my tall, cane, no name dendro has finished its newest growth, which is almost 3' tall. It has a forked spike starting at the top of the new growth and another coming out of the side of an old growth.

This is great, I haven't seen this plant do that before. I think my attention in the past months have payed off.

However, within the last week or so, the tips of all the leaves on the new growth have turned brown and are now dried and can easily be removed.

Also, the tip of the spike on the old cane has turned dark brown.

The other day, I spotted a few tiny (I mean really tiny) red ants in the moss.

Other than that, fertilizing, watering, sunlight haven't changed much.

I also went pretty deep into the pot and the main roots like great.

My questions are,
What is the cause?
What should I do?

[Snooze]

I will try to get photos up, but I hope the problem is obvious. Thanks in advance.

[Zoi2]

Does it have red spider mites? If you take a damp white paper towel or cotton ball and rub a leaf or two it will leave red streaks.
Joann

[Snooze]

I tried that and nothing showed up, but that's probably because I gave my plant a shower earlier today in an attempt to drown them, or replenish whatever moisture they were stealing from the roots.

If it is spider mites, what's the best or quickest way to get rid of them?

Here are some photos of the damage:

[Dendrophylax lindenii]

Aww, it's a shower dendrobium! How cute. If it hasn't been repotted recently, I would suggest doing so.-though orchids prefer being pot bound, they don't like sitting in old mix because it breaks down over time and suffocates the roots, not to mention salt built up, so that could be a problem if it has not been repotted recently. Here are the main causes of your plants condition:

If you know that you've been pretty neglectful of your houseplants, the odds are good that the cause of the brown leaves in under watering. If you know you've been watering a lot, over watering is a good guess for the culprit.

There are other problems that can cause plants to suddenly have brown or yellow leaves. A change in sunlight, such as if the plant has been moved from one room to another, can cause the plant to drop leaves. Sometimes moving a plant to a different container or just changing your watering routine can lead to brown leaves.

Plants that are root-bound often have problems with brown or yellow leaves, so this is one of the first things you should check. If the roots of the plant are growing in circles and look like a big mass or are growing out through the bottom of the pot, just moving your plant to a bigger home can solve your brown leaf problem.

Sometimes the minerals and nutrients in the soil cause leaves to brown. Chlorine, salt and fluoride can all cause leaves to turn brown on some houseplants. Using too much fertilizer may also be a culprit. If you think one of these issues might be your problem, try a soil test and see what's going on.

Finally, insect infestation and diseases can be the root of brown leaves on houseplants. Spider mites and other insects may cause damage to the plant, and blights or other diseases often turn leaves spotty or brown.

It takes a process of elimination to determine exactly what's going on with your plants, and each problem requires a slightly different treatment, whether that's regulating the water supply, cutting back on fertilizer, removing insects or moving the plant to a bigger and better home.

[Snooze]

Thank you so much for the long and informational reply, but as I said in my first post, nothing has changed. Water, food, and light conditions are all the same. I dug down into the potting material, which is no more than one year old, and everything is fine down there.

Despite my posts, I am a somewhat experienced grower. I have over 15+ Dendrobium species, all doing great, under my fluorescents. My spectibiles are about to bloom actually.

I just have never encountered spider mites before, which seems to be the problem. I want to get rid of this problem as quickly as possible. When I water this dendrobium, reddish brown water comes out. This started happening about the same time that I moved one of my phals next to it on my windowsill. This was also when the browning started.

Are there insecticides that i can buy at say walmart that will work in this scenario without doing further damage to my orchid?

Thank you again, Dendrophylax.

[Zoi2]

I use Safers 3 & 1. I would think Walmart would carry it or something similar. If it is spider mites, I would repot and increase the air circulation.
Joann

[thakshila smith]

A bigger home with much ventilation I will propose.
here we can buy pots with holes on the side/bottom of .
And the medium too.