CAM orchids - mist or not to mist them, that is the question

[Ray]

The necrosis of newly growing tissues due to a calcium deficiency is entirely different from most “stem rots”.

Calcium is an essential element in all plant tissues. Without it being present as a “building block”, the apical meristem cannot do its job and dies, then rots.

The thing is, unlike most other nutrient elements, if it is not being actively supplied, calcium is not easily transferred from old tissue to new.

If the rot is at the growth end, it may be a calcium issue; if it’s elsewhere, it’s probably a pathogen, and if there is healthy tissue beyond the rot, it’s definitely so.