Does my phalaenopsis have a virus?

[elmariachi]

I've had this orchid for two years now and this is its third time blooming. The flowers you see are around 3-4 months old.

Since shortly after blooming I started to notice some circular spots developing on a leaf. They kept multiplying and eventually a little injury appeared and started to grow (see picture). Some of the flowers do not look healthy either and have lost one petal.

I'm worried this might be a virus, because I have other orchids, all of which look healthy for now.

I understand this Phal needs to be repotted, which was my plan for this year. Last summer's growth was quite explosive, which I took as a sign of good health.

It stays on an east facing window, water every week, or when the top two thirds of the media are dry. Every two weeks I add orchid fertilizer to the water.

Since this was my first orchid ever, I did some mistakes and it's likely I did not use sterile instruments when I first cut the spikes.

What do you think?

[Ray]

The damage I see appears to be of insect origin, or possibly fungal or bacterial damage on the leaf end. If it "went to bed" with water droplets on them, I'd almost guarantee that.

[elmariachi]

I will try to find a magnifier to look closer at that injury site. It's possible droplets stayed on the leaf after I watered it, but I could not find any bugs.

So not a life threatening situation? Would it be a good idea to cut the stems and repot it now?

[Dollythehun]

Why do you need to cut the stems it it it done blooming? You can Repot phals in bloom, it just takes more care manuvering.

[MrHappyRotter]

For future reference, the only reliable way to know if an orchid has a virus is to have it tested. The symptoms of a viral infection are too inconsistent and too ambiguous to determine visually -- meaning many of the symptoms you might see from a virus are indistinguishable from other issues (bacterial/fungal infections, poor culture, environmental factors) and in many cases the visual symptoms of a viral infection can be virtually non-existent.

That being said, in home culture, of cloned or seed propagated plants, the chance of a viral infection are very slim these days thanks to better understanding of the causes and better cultural practices by commercial vendors.

[jkofferdahl]

The word "virus" causes absolute panic in orchid growers. In fact, they are pretty rare these days. I think that your plant is suffering from some insect damage, and also possibly fungus. Were this my plant I would presume that whatever is bothering it is also into everything else, and so treat my whole collection. I would first go after the insects, because I think that they are the bigger contributors.

Since you're planning to repot, there's no time like now. LEAVE THE SPIKES, because Phals can be repotted in bloom and because treatment is going to be effective with or without them. Unpot the plant as always, and clean all old material from the roots. Then spray the plant with a systemic insecticide, including the roots, before repotting. Spray all of the other plants as well. And please repot it in bark rather than sphagnum!

After a week, spray the plants again, this time using a copper-based fungicide/bacteriacide. After another week, re-apply the insecticide. My guess is that the leaf damage is more likely insect than fungal/bacterial, but there is some spotting on a flower that's fungal.