Brown fuzz destroying phal leaves
 

I have some sort of brown fuzz destroying the leaves on one of my mini phals. Don’t know what it is, looks fungal if I had to guess. Any ID and suggested treatment would be appreciated.

That looks like scale insects. Phals can be repotted at any time. I would unpot it. Discard the old medium. Scrub it gently with a soft brush and slightly soapy water. Repot into fresh medium.

They are probably on other plants, too, and are difficult to kill completely. Be vigilant. Many people would treat with an insecticide.

Do you really think that's scale ES? Take another look. Looks too overall pitted. I'm not sure what it is. Repotting it won't hurt. Treating it as ES says or wiping down with rubbing alcohol won't hurt regardless.

I still think scale is likely.

Granted, it's really hard to diagnose from photos, but if they are scale, it must be a new micro species.

I'm thinking mites.

Mites is also what I was thinking, but I've only seen them on my catasetum once, and don't know much about them other than they're nasty little buggers. But I was hesitant to say that, as I thought they mostly preyed on thinner leaved plants. Phals?

---------- Post added at 07:53 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:41 AM ----------

I googled "red spider mites on phal leaves," and resulting pictures sure looks like the leaves on Arringar's plant. And evidently they can be common on phals. As I said, only seen them once here. Mites aren't a common pest here, but probably because I keep humidity fairly high and have fans.