What the heck are they - scale or mealybugs, or evil combination of the two?
I was re-potting it last week and was so excited about new roots growth that didn't pay attention to the start of this invasion. That's annoying -should be more attentive next time.
I pulled plant out of the basket, scrubbed all bulbs with toothbrush and 70% rubbed alcohol, washed basket with dishsoap and repotted into fresh sphagnum.
Isolated plant from other orchids and will keep a close eye - if they will come back.
Hope not.
That's definitely scale :(
ReplyDeleteHope you got all the buggers - they sometimes hang out on the roots as well, so if the plant continues to look sad, consider lifting it out and checking the roots too.
I've taken to putting smaller orchids into a ziplock back with some pesticides and shaking them around to get everything totally coated - less overspray inside too as a bonus, and really sinks into all the crevices the scale hide in.
Thank you! It is really good idea about ziplock bag, sometimes crevices are so small that it is pain to get there with toothbrush or q-tip.
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