Cymbidium with pale spots - is this a virus?

[varda.elentari]

One of my Cymbidiums has pale spots and mottling on the new growth. Is it orchid fleck virus or something else?

[estación seca]

You can't tell without a viral test. I don't know whether testing for fleck virus is available.

How are you fertilizing it? A lot of pale leaf problems can be caused by insufficient nitrogen or magnesium.

[varda.elentari]

I didn't mean to abandon this board but it's been a hectic few months.

I water with aquarium water which contains some nitrates but I did try fertilizing a little (don't want to fertilize too much during the winter). The spots haven't improved much so I still suspect it's a virus of some sort. Going to try and do some more research and possibly try a test.

[Roberta]

How about calcium? If you aren't giving the plant the rest of the nutrients that it needs, you can see leaf mottling like that. (Cyms do fine with hard water...) You can't diagnose virus without a test... and that doesn't look like it to me. Magnesium deficiency is also very possible. A top dressing of a teaspoon or so of epsom salt might be in order to "green it up". Cyms love it.

[varda.elentari]

Thanks for the tips! I'm relieved to hear you think it's not a virus. I would've tried testing already but the only source I found only sells them in bulk and they're VERY expensive so I'm trying to exhaust other possibilities before I go that route. And I don't have the heart to toss the plant without knowing.

I'll definitely try the epsom salt as well as powdered egg shell for calcium. Thanks again!

[Roberta]

Use a soluble fertilizer that contains calcium (and magnesium too). Eggshells are pretty much insoluble unless the environment is somewhat acidic. You need to stop with the "home remedies" and give your plant a proper fertilizer designed for the purpose. That way, you know what you are giving the plant. What you're doing now, you have no way of knowing. So deficiencies are very likely involved here, I would think of those before worrying about diseases.