Masdevallia possible virus

[Gregor]

Hi guys, I need some advice regarding the disease that affects this masdevallia (probably belonging to tovarenis species).
Below you can see the photos showing some newly formed leaves with color breaks, surface irregularities and some blackened margins. The plant has never flowered since I have it in cultivation, so i can't say if the flowers show some color pattern or surface irregularities too.

[WhiteRabbit]

[nlm2951]

looks like scale, get a tooth brush ,soap and water and scrub all that white I also use an insecticide from HD that is use for roses its from Bayer, good luck

[LeeB]

If you are worried about the rest of your collection send a leaf to Critter Creek in CA. They will test it for virus.

[Leafmite]

I would get it tested for virus. It might be a mineral deficiency but those leaves would greatly concern me.

[lepetitmartien]

I'd check both deficiency and virus, but deficiency first. Meanwhile, treat it like it may be infected.

See table 5 in
http://www.staugorchidsociety.org/PD...lizersRev2.pdf

[naoki]

It looks more like a typical symptom of stressed out Masdevallia to me. Low humidity? High temp? The salt residue on the leaves indicate that you might be using relatively hard water, too. Maybe, it's not flowering since the condition is not suited for this plant. According to Madevallias by Gerritsen & Parsons, M. tovarrensis is intermediate-growing Masdevallia, 13-20C daytime and 10-13C night is given as a guideline.

[Discus]

My Masdevallias look like this in two cases 1) when they're unhappy (usually too hot) 2) when they're infested with mites.

Always look at the *underside* of plant leaves when looking for critters, as more of them tend to hide there. Mites are pretty small and many people won't see them with the naked eye.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Check for both virus and nutrient deficiencies as some have said. Also check temperatures, and possibly even for root rot. Make sure there are no insects either.

[Polarizeme]

Did we ever get a verdict on this?