Multiple Pests

[scy]

Hmm I never considered the sexes. I read that mealybugs were fuzzy so I figured that had to be it. That's good to know that they may resurface in a month's time. So, do I treat once a week? Do I treat until I don't see any more or until after 6 weeks?

[silken]

Others may have differing opinions, but I treated about once a week for a good 6 weeks even tho I didn't see any more pests. I stopped treating the first time when they quit appearing and almost integrated the plant with others. Only to find more a month later! The thing is, they start out in deep crevices where you can't see them and only when the females mature, they crawl up the leaf. So the life cycle for hatching seems to be about a week, although I haven't studied them in depth or anything.

Here is a link about scales, there may be others that have better pictures. Just Google 'scale insects' and there is lots to read.

I think after reading this it is the young that are fuzzy. Anyways, one stage of the hard shelled scale do resemble mealy bugs and it mentions it in this article.

Good luck.

[silken]

Doh! I forgot to attach the link

How to Control Scale Insects on Indoor Plants | eHow.com

[scy]

So does this mean I need to scrub each leaf individually or is spraying it enough? It also says I need to rinse it off well. If it requires rinsing, then how long do I need to let it soak?

My other concern was for the roots. I didn't want to disturb it, since it's a huge plant and seller said it would bloom in July - August. I didn't want to risk having it miss a bloom. Now that I've see the scale, I can't help but be worried about roots and if there are any other surprises. Do you think it's necessary for me to look at the roots? It's potted in super tight and would be an ordeal to take it out. I don't even know if I'd be able to get it back in properly.

[scy]

ARGH! To make matters worse, I just went over to peek at my cym and saw a very, tiny spider(?) hanging from one of the leaves. I photographed it before killing it. This is the 2nd one I've found in a week's time. How do I get rid of this too?

[scy]

I thought I would give an update, plus I need more advice. I sprayed rubbing alcohol through the spray bottle and it did not seem to make a difference. I gave in and went through each leaf with cotton balls and rubbing alcohol. That seemed to make a dramatic difference. A few days later, I finally got the neem oil, mixed the dilution and sprayed it all over (including undersides of the leaves). Now it's the next week and I've noticed that 3 leaves have turned yellow (from the base up). I noticed fungus gnats (possibly just small flying things) around the medium as I was watering just now. I've included photos.

* Pic1: Shows 2 yellow leaves. The first one dropped on its own. This happened in a week's time.
* Pic2: These black spots are not insects and are new. They are on newer growth (as the leaves are much shorter).
* Pic3: Scale? It's not as bad as before but they're still around.

I plan on:
* Pouring some cool coffee on the medium to flush out and get rid of any insects hiding out in the medium. I figure I'll let it sit for 15 min before I flush out with water.
* After flushing with water, I will spray the leaves with neem oil.
* I will continue with the neem oil treatment once a week until I don't see anymore scale or 5 more treatments, whichever is longer.

Questions:
1. Why are the leaves turning yellow from the bottom up? Is it a result of the scale or root damage?
2. What are the black spots in the photo? How can I fix this?
3. I have not unpotted this to look at roots since this cym is just massive. Do I need to unpot this and look at it? If it's not mandatory, I would rather not as I don't know if I can get it back in properly. Additionally, I know this is selfish, but the merchant told me it normally blooms in July - August, so I don't want it to skip blooming this year. The whole reason why I bought an adult size cym was to see the blooms sometime this year. My other cym is still growing from a backbulb, so I won't expect to see anything for a long time. However, I will do what's best for my orchid if it comes down to having to repot it.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you for your help!

[silken]

Your other leaves look a deep green, so the yellow one could just be an old one. It's hard to say. I don't think it would go like that from the pests when the rest look green. As for the spots, again hard to say. It could be where the scale was. Have you checked for spider mites? A plant that size will have some older growth. I know my older cymbidium leaves are not always perfect. Keep an eye on it, but it doesn't look too harmful at this point.

Hopefully someone else will have encountered the same thing and respond.

I would definitely contact the seller and let them know their plants are full of pests. They may compensate in some way at least. It's unfortunate to have more than one pest to deal with on a new plant.

I would think just spraying the leaves with alcohol or neem oil will not completely eradicate scale. They are one of the hardest to get rid of completely unless you have a really mild case of them. I would still consider looking for Merit or Malathion if these gentle measures don't work. They would also likely kill the fungus gnats, although that is a more minor concern.

[scy]

In the post above the one from today, I posted a picture of a tiny spider I found from that day. I took a picture of it up against the napkin and blew it up. Is that a spider mite? The coffee finally cooled down so now I'm soaking it in coffee for about 15 minutes. I'll post if I find any new insects fleeing the scene.

[silken]

Originally Posted by scy

In the post above the one from today, I posted a picture of a tiny spider I found from that day. I took a picture of it up against the napkin and blew it up. Is that a spider mite? The coffee finally cooled down so now I'm soaking it in coffee for about 15 minutes. I'll post if I find any new insects fleeing the scene.

No, that is not a spider mite. as far as I know, its just a regular, harmless spider.

spider mites are actually mites, not normal spiders and they can do a lot of damage if left untreated. They are usually found on the undersides of leaves. They are so tiny, you might need a magnifying glass to see them and they form tiny silvery webs all along and sometimes in the crotches of plants. The leaves can start looking silvery and bleached. The mites themselves are usually red or brown and like hot dry areas. Raising humidity and misting can discourage them.

Hopefully you don't have spider mites too, but the scale issue needs to be dealt with thoroughly or they won't go away.

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[TimetoFindMe]

Spiders may even eat whatever those fuzzy insects are, if they are mealies or young scale. I would not kill the spiders, though the treatments that kill the other insects would kill them too. There really is no reason to kill spiders unless they're of a poisonous variety. They are harmless and eat other bugs. I encourage them on my plants as well as ladybugs. (Yes I have ladybugs in my house)

Spidermites are awful pests. I show no mercy when I notice those and go straight for systemic.

I have read of people having success with Sucra-shield against miters and scale.