Is my orchid sick? (pitted leaves)

[19moashl]

Hi guys! I'm a newbie here so allow me to introduce myself. I'm currently a freshman at Northern Arizona University and moved here over the summer from Iowa. I'm perusing a degree in secondary math education and mathematics because I love helping kids grow and thrive just like my plants! My expertise in plants doesn't extend to orchids unfortunately.

I used to have an Orchid back home in Iowa that I took care of all of high school and never had any issues with. I even got it to bloom a couple times! Exciting stuff I know, especially for someone that doesn't normally deal with flowering plants. Anyways, I had to give my girl away to a new home when I moved. So when I got home from break and went to the nursery with my dad I saw some orchids and had to get one. However, silly me didn't think to check the leaves, I was more concerned with finding one that didn't have that many buds blossomed yet. Oops.

So here's my issue. I noticed today that my orchid, which I have named Stella, has some pitted leaves. They aren't yellow or black. So I don't think it is a fungus or bacteria and I should lose all hope. However I did notice there is some white "fuzz" for a lack of a better word under the leaves. This makes me think the culprit might be spider mites. Once again, I'm not sure and I don't know any orchid appropriate solutions. I do have the orchid in quarantine away from my other plants just in case. It is in bright indirect light that's what worked for me in Iowa and I'm following the same watering routine I did back home. I've attempted to upload some photos as well. So hopefully that worked.

I apologize if this was just a ramble. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

P.S I also posted this on the beginners forum because I'm not sure where exactly to go

[orchidlauren]

Welcome! Im also here in Arizona, sophmore in highschool! newbie to this aswell, Im guessing, sun damage? Same thing happened to my orchid with heat damage, once orchids get sun damaged they cant fully repair themselves so the parts affected dry up or do what they can to repair themselves. Other members feel free to correct me, I can be wrong too.

[Fuerte Rav]

Hi
Hope you've resolved your concerns with your orchid but in case you haven't identified what has caused the 'white fuzz' I thought I'd mention a scourge of the plant world where I live!
I'm in The Canary Islands off the west coast of Africa and historically COCHINEAL was farmed here on prickly pear plants to produce a food colouring called Carmine. It is a Scale Insect and the young nymphs produce a waxy covering that I would describe as 'white fuzz'!
You might not have Cochineal but it could be worth researching Scale Insects in general to see if you have something similar in your part of the world.
Luckily they haven't got indoors to my orchids but it is a constant battle with Neem oil and horticultural soap solutions in my garden to keep them under reasonable control - I have used the same mix to treat my indoor orchids after they were invaded by mites. Didn't eliminate them but greatly reduced their numbers.
The pitted leaves could have been caused by adult scale insects attaching themselves and sucking the liquid out of the undersides of the leaves. They can decimate even tough outdoor shrubs very quickly!
Good luck!

[neophyte]

it is probably mesophyll collapse (the inner part of the leaf has died and shrunk due to loss of liquids, leaving empty spaces and thus pitting). it's caused by severe dehydration/heat or insect damage. try checking for insects first before they cause more damage (if they're there).

[Ray]

Originally Posted by neophyte

it is probably mesophyll collapse (the inner part of the leaf has died and shrunk due to loss of liquids, leaving empty spaces and thus pitting). it's caused by severe dehydration/heat or insect damage. try checking for insects first before they cause more damage (if they're there).

Agreed. Mesophyll collapse can also occur if a warm play is doused with cold water.

Basically, at this point, it's a "wait and see" proposition. It is likely that nothing more will happen.

[Fran20]

In addition to sun damage, could "white fuzz" indicate mealybugs?

[Dollythehun]

It could but, you'd probably see them more in the leaf axis. My vote is with Ray as I had the same thing happen recently. It didn't spread, just looks unsightly. Keep an eye on it.