Cattleya suspicion of a virus

[KatKate]

Hello,
I have received a Cattleya Little Treasure on the 07th April 2021 from a known nursery in Switzerland. Already upon receipt I noticed some dark spots on the leaves which I attributed to some minor fungal defects. The flowers were very beautiful.
However upon observation, as of today, I see that the spots became more pronounced and there is some yellow patchiness that appeared on one of the leaves and around one spot on another one.
According some of my knowledge that pattern might be indicative of the CymMV and not fungal infection.
I am searching for an expert opinion, please, on how to continue with this plant, I would appreciate it very much.
Due to a lack of space this cattleya was sitting next to several other orchids in my collection during the first 2 weeks, which is not that good, however I watered them separately. Hopefully there is no risk for the other orchids.

I have seen lots of opinions on whether to destroy the suspicious plants, frankly speaking I am hesitating...
Thank you very much in advance for your input!

[rbarata]

Contact the nursery and ask them if they can test it. It's in their own interest as well.

[SouthPark]

It's hard to say what it is due to at the moment. If it was received, then we could assume it arrived in the post? If it arrived by post, then consider what temperature it might have been exposed to ------ eg. freezing temperatures? Or very cold temperature?

Also - if black coloured spots start to build up, and if they weren't there upon arrival - then could maybe spray the leaves and all with copper spray or another trusty fungicide of choice.

The flowers look fantastic. Hard to say if a virus is involved or not. However ------ I'm leaning toward 'not a virus' though.

[rbarata]

I'm leaning toward 'not a virus' though.

That's my oppinion too as so many of those symptoms appear due to many other causes. However, virus testing is the only way to be sure.

[Fairorchids]

From the photos, I am also leaning towards 'not virus'.

Only testing will tell for sure. However, be aware that some test kits are notorious for false positives.

[Roberta]

I would also lean toward "not a virus" - flowers don't show any "color break" that is a big, red flag in Catts. (There are some Catts that don't show the signs though, testing is the only way to be sure) Basically, good hygiene is the best defense. Make sure that when you water, none splashes between plants. Never, ever share water between plants. And work with sterilized tools when you repot.

[rbarata]

Added some info... viruses are everywhere and I'm sure that some of us might have (or had) some infected plants without knowing.
In general, it only kills weak plants that already have some other issues while in healthy plants it might even show no symptoms.

[Fairorchids]

Originally Posted by rbarata

Added some info... viruses are everywhere and I'm sure that some of us might have (or had) some infected plants without knowing.
In general, it only kills weak plants that already have some other issues while in healthy plants it might even show no symptoms.

Very true. However, any infected plant is a reservoir, and can potentially infect other plants (via tools, insects, touching leaves, etc.).

I have a few valuable 'suspects', which I am holding onto despite my suspicions. However, they are isolated in a separate corner of the greenhouse.

[KatKate]

Thank you all so much for your feedback! I appreciate it a lot.
To clarify some information from my initial post: yes the orchid was shipped by priority post (1 day) and yes, the nights were around -1 Celsius around that time. However, another plant was shipped together with this cattleya and it does not show any signs of cold damage, they were wrapped very well and frankly speaking to me it does not look like a cold damage.

The disturbing thing for me is that the yellowish streaks (difficult to show with the photo) with black spots are only visible on the leaves of a pseudobulb that is in blossom, hence a younger one. When I received the plant only black spots were visible however yellow streaks became apparent during this month. I know that viruses are tricky things, and they can display all range of symptoms and effects in humans, from shingles to Marburg fever. plant kingdom is not spared either. It’s just there is always this hesitation, especially when it comes to such a beauty, to destroy it because of a suspicion. And also a hope, that, like in humans, although viruses often do not disappear, they just become latent when the immune system takes over, same can happen to the plant.
As for virus testing, I do not have an impression that in Switzerland it is as easily available as in the US for example. I learned that Agdia ships here the kit of 25 tests for 135€ plus 35€ shipping plus customs taxes and duties around additional 35€. At >8€ per test it’s quite pricey. Shelf life is 1 year from the reception date, meaning that I have to force test 24 other orchids not showing symptoms to justify the expenses

---------- Post added at 01:42 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:41 AM ----------

Thank you all so much for your feedback! I appreciate it a lot.
To clarify some information from my initial post: yes the orchid was shipped by priority post (1 day) and yes, the nights were around -1 Celsius around that time. However, another plant was shipped together with this cattleya and it does not show any signs of cold damage, they were wrapped very well and frankly speaking to me it does not look like cold damage.

The disturbing thing for me is that the yellowish streaks (difficult to show with the photo) with black spots are only visible on the leaves of a pseudobulb that is in blossom, hence a younger one. When I received the plant only black spots were visible however yellow streaks became apparent during this month. I know that viruses are tricky things, and they can display all range of symptoms and effects in humans, from shingles to Marburg fever. plant kingdom is not spared either. It’s just there is always this hesitation, especially whether it comes to such beauty, to destroy it because of a suspicion. And also a hope, that, like in humans, although the viruses often do not disappear, they just become latent when the immune system takes over, same can happen to the plant.
As for virus testing, I do not have an impression that in Switzerland it is as easily available as in the US for example. I learned that Agdia ships here the kit of 25 tests for 135€ plus 35€ shipping plus customs taxes and duties around additional 35€. At >8€ per test it’s quite pricey. Shelf life is 1 year from the reception date, meaning that I have to force test 24 other orchids not showing symptoms to justify the expenses

[Roberta]

Is there an agricultural lab to which you can send a single sample (more cost-effective than buying 25 tests, for certain)? If not in Switzerland, I wonder if you can find such a testing lab elsewhere in Europe (like the Netherlands, which has a huge orchid industry)?