Weird orange/red marks on phragmipedium's leaf what is it?

[DeafLeslie]

Does anyone know what this is on the bottom of my phrags leaf? I took a wet q-tip and wiped across the underside of the leaf where these orange/red marks are, and there wasn't any residue left on the q-tip. I ordered this orchid on eBay and received it yesterday. I have never seen anything like this on an orchid before. I found two different bugs in the soil. One was so small I could barely see it. Here are pix of my orchid and the bugs I found. The marks are mostly on the bottom of one leaf and a small spot on the top of the leaf. I did notice tiny marks like this on the underside of another leaf, but they were so little you could barely see it in a pic.

[Keysguy]

In all honesty, The only thing I see there in those pics I'd be concerned about is the size of the plant itself. It's going to be a long time before you see a flower.
The red/brown tinting on the lower leaves is typical of most Phrag's. The lower leaves periodically will turn brown from the tips toward the crown as the plant grows and adds new leaves from the center of the crown. Once they are fully brown you can remove it near the stem. If you're really patient and don't mind the brown, they'll eventually dry out and fall off but it usually takes a year for that to happen. If the browning starts on the stem/crown end though get at it quick with a good fungicide because that is where it gets started by excess water sitting in the crown of the plant. If you don't get right at it, you may lose it. Best preventative is good strong air flow over the plant at all times.
As long as the roots are healthy (those look fine) and the crown is green, you're good to go.

I'm not an entomologist so not sure what those are but I don't get excited about that but my plants are all grown outdoors so it's part of the deal for me and ignore most of them unless I know they're bad or see a problem starting. I'll let someone else chime in on the critters.

[DeafLeslie]

Thank you! This is my first phrag, so I am still learning about them. I was scared when I saw the weird coloring on the underside of the bottom leaf because I have never seen that on any of my other orchids. I am slightly worried about the browning on the stem. I am going to add a few more pix to this post. What do you think?

(sorry for the dirt under my nails I was planting a new cactus right before I took these pix yesterday lol)

[DeafLeslie]

Here is a couple more pix I just now took. I think it looks worse today than it did yesterday.

[estación seca]

Welcome to the Orchid Board!

That's a very small plant. It got knocked around in transit. The brown/orange on the undersides of the leaves is likely mechanical damage, like you would get if you were knocked around in the back of a delivery truck. The stem is probably unhappy your growing area isn't as humid as it was back home.

Read up here on Orchid Board about Phrags. There is a forum here called "Cypripedium Alliance - others" reachable via the left yellow menu. Click on Forums. Page through that and read a little. They like large amounts of water.

[aliceinwl]

The little “bug” looks to be a springtail: they’re harmless but high numbers can be indicative of old broken down media.

[Keysguy]

Leslie- Honestly I think it's fine.
Good potting job BTW so talk to me about where you are going to grow this little guy. Windowsill? Under lights? a little of both? How strong is light? How long each day? Temps........

---------- Post added at 08:43 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:34 AM ----------

Leslie- the photo attached is of one of my hybrid Phrags (Sorcerer's Apprentice) that is half longifolium.
This pic is a couple of years old but all my longifolium's seem to do this.....notice the tips of some of the leaves?



That plant this year had six spikes with dozens of flowers over 8 months. The browning of the bottom leaves is just what they do as they grow.

I'm just trying to help you relax until we see something that's worth panicking about.

[DeafLeslie]

Thank you so much! It makes me feel better seeing your pic! I was so worried! This is my baby! We both have the same name lol!