Orchid diseases: dark spots and other types of plant diseases and their treatment

A fancy orchid flower will decorate any windowsill. Experienced flower growers know that the exotic is demanding to care for. In order for it to please the household, you need to know the secrets of growing it. Among other things, it is important to have an idea of ​​the diseases that can cripple the plant. There are many of them, each with its own reason and, accordingly, the method of treatment.

Exotic care features

Among the main points to which a person growing a recognizable flower should pay attention are the following:

• priming;
• a worthy place of residence;
• competent watering;
• adaptation period;
• top dressing.

A tropical flower is prone to common ailments

Priming

The queen of the tropics cannot develop in ordinary land. Roots need air. Therefore, the substrate must be special. Among the components, the following components must be present:

1. coal;
2. bark of trees;
3. moss;
4. fern rhizome;
5. Pine cones;
6. shells from walnuts;
7. peat.

Thanks to this cocktail, close to its natural habitat, the plant will feel comfortable.

Location

The orchid should be surrounded by diffused light for 12 hours a day. If you leave it on a windowsill, which is exposed to direct sunlight, the plant will get burned. A comfortable room temperature is + 23 ... + 25 degrees in the daytime and at least +18 in the evening.

Watering

It is necessary to moisten the soil in a timely manner. Watering can be substituted for the immersion method. The pot, in which holes have been previously made, are lowered into a basin of water at room temperature. Leave for 5 minutes. The procedure is organized once a week and a half during the warm season and once every two weeks during the cold season.

Adaptation

The newly purchased plant is placed at a distance from other house flowers. The quarantine lasts at least 10 days.

Top dressing

Exotic should be fertilized with special dressings. Purchase them in specialized stores. Activities are carried out strictly according to the instructions. Some mixtures can be used every 60 days, some - once every 3-4 months.

New plant is quarantined

Common diseases

Even the most tenacious and popular Phalaenopsis orchid is susceptible to various diseases. Basically, ailments appear due to improper care. Each of them has its own characteristics and symptoms. Among the known problems of the tropical beauty, the following stand out:

1. dark spots;
2. brown rot;
3. powdery mildew;
4. white bloom;
5. viral diseases;
6. other ailments.

Dark spots

Are the leaves stained on the orchid? The owner should sound the alarm. Black, brown, lilac-dark, brownish markings on the leaf blades indicate a number of possible diseases.

Small specks, the scattering of which is noticeable on the foliage, can become harbingers of late blight. This is an infectious disease in which dark spots then begin to get wet.

Stubborn spots on orchid leaves indicate chlorosis. The diagnosis of chlorosis is made on a flower on the condition that after the appearance of spots, the foliage begins to shrink, curl.

Brown rot

Brown rot stands alone among orchid diseases. Because of it, an exotic flower can die in a short period of time. This is due to the fact that at first the disease develops without any special symptoms, since rot captures the roots. Only when the root system rots thoroughly will the leaves begin to change color from emerald to grayish.

Powdery mildew

Among the fungal diseases of Phalaenopsis orchids and other species, powdery mildew is worth wary of. Its initial signs are immediately striking. Even a novice gardener can determine them. White bloom is first visible on the orchids. Its color can range from whitish to off-gray. If we start to consider the foci, then they represent an accumulation of small fungal organisms.

White bloom on orchid leaves is smoothly transferred to the stem. Parasitic fungi feed on plant sap. As a result, the flower feels very bad and begins to wither.

Brown rot

The leaves turn yellow and hang, then fall off. The same can be observed on the floral part.

White bloom

White bloom on orchids can report not only powdery mildew, but also about the defeat of the plant by pests. If powdery mildew is expressed as a gray-whitish bloom, which really looks like morning dew, then the presence of a pest makes the bloom look like a wet cotton wool, a spider web. It has a wet-sticky nature.

The pest that captures the queen of tropical plants in this way is called a mealybug. The plaque contains eggs of the parasite. They are tiny. The worms themselves are no more than half a centimeter long. You can see them with the naked eye.

Parasite worm and traces of its vital activity

In addition to the worm, other parasitic insects can also take a fancy to the flower. Among them:

1. aphid;
2. spider mite.

These pests also leave a sticky whitish product of their vital activity on the foliage and stem. Both the worm, and the aphid, and the tick feed on the same thing: juices and nutrients. In addition to their presence, these insects pose another problem. It consists in the fact that the plant is slowly weakened, fungi and pathogenic bacteria multiply on the centers of the presence of parasites. They destroy the root and slowly kill the houseplant.

Viral diseases

Scientists know about fifty different viruses that can defeat an exotic plant. Many of them do not show themselves for a long time, then the flower dies. Most viruses do have symptoms. For example:

1. Patterned, mesh pattern on foliage, petals. It can be faintly or clearly visible.
2. New leaves grow already with some specks, spots.
3. At the bottom of the leaves, dark tubercles in Phalaenopsis or other types of orchids speak not only of a fungal disease, but also of some of the viruses.
4. At first, barely noticeable spots appeared, which then grow, turn into holes.
5. The leaves begin to shrink and dry.
6. The foliage changes color to gray, red, black, brown.

Other diseases

What else are orchids sick with? Among the non-dangerous ailments, the following stand out:

• anthracnose;
• rust;
• stickiness.

Anthracnose

Black dots on the leaves growing on an orchid, which then turn into huge dark foci, are a symptom of anthracnose.

Rust

Very rare, but the plant can get sick with rust. This is a fungal disease. White spots appear first. Every spot is like a drop. After a few weeks, they change color to brick. The foliage is covered with plaque.

Patterns indicate the presence of a virus

Stickiness

The leaves begin to stick unexpectedly. An unhealthy shine appears on them.

The main causes of disease

Dark spots

They can appear both due to the flooding of the plant, and with insufficient lighting, the absence of the necessary dressings.

Brown rot

This bacterial disease occurs due to the uncomfortable environment in the apartment. For example, the house is very cold or too humid. Perhaps the flower was flooded or planted in ordinary soil, where the roots are hidden in a layer of soil.

Powdery mildew

The causes of the disease are as follows:

• the abundance of nitrogen in the soil mixture;
• high humidity in the room;
• abundant planting, plants on the windowsill are close to each other;
• oversaturation with moisture, etc.

White bloom

According to experienced flower growers, there can be many reasons for the occurrence of harmful insects. Among the main ones:

1. weakened plant immunity;
2. lack of proper lighting;
3. proximity to infected plants;
4. the air in the room is excessively dry;
5. constant wetting of the soil in the pot;
6. poor quality substrate;
7. insufficient humidity of air masses, etc.

Viral diseases

A person is exposed to the virus due to a weakened immune system. So the virus clings to the orchid with its defenselessness and general weakening. Another reason is damage to the plant's body.

Other diseases

Anthracnose, rust, stickiness are caused by improper care. For example, waterlogging of the air, soil, being in the shade.

Being in the shade destroys the plant

Orchid treatment

The treatment of a flower butterfly, as the plant is sometimes called, is mostly a laborious process. The owner of the flower must be ready to fight for the life of his pet. Thanks to the advice of experienced florists, various ailments can be dealt with at home.

Dark spots

How to cure an orchid if dark spots appeared on it, and it got sick with late blight, chlorosis? The very first step is a moderate feeding with iron chelate. Next, the affected leaves are removed with a sharp knife rubbed with alcohol. Places of cuts are sprinkled with fly ash. As soon as the slices begin to tighten, the plant is treated with fungicides. for example:

• Alerin;
• Mikosan;
• Bordeaux mixture;
• copper sulfate;
• Quadris, etc.

Brown rot

This is a bacterial disease. The infected plant is placed on a free windowsill so as not to infect neighbors. Damaged areas are removed. After a couple of days, the flower is treated with Bordeaux liquid. The procedure is repeated every 20-35 days.

Powdery mildew

Fighting the disease at the initial stage is not difficult. The plaque is wiped off with a cloth soaked in soapy water. The solution is prepared from warm water and laundry soap. Further, the means are applied:

1. Speed;
2. Topsin-M;
3. Fitosporin, etc.

Fungicide Skor

White bloom

How to treat white sticky plaque on an orchid? Parasites are removed in a complex manner. The plant is isolated, the affected parts are removed, and the soil is changed. The flower is sprayed with Fitosporin or Aktara, Calypso.

Viral diseases

These are the worst ailments. According to experts, the flower is recommended to be disposed of.

Other diseases

Anthracnose

Anthracnose is treated by removing damaged leaf plates. For this, a disinfected sharp knife is used. Places of undercuts are sprinkled with ash.

Rust

The initial stage of rust is treated in the same way.Damaged leaves are cut out, places are treated with ash.

Foliage stickiness

If there are no other signs besides the usual stickiness, then the flower is placed on the windowsill, where there is more light. You can install additional lighting lamps above it. The room is thoroughly ventilated, but drafts are not allowed. The leaves are treated with antibacterial drugs. Suitable:

• Maksim;
• Fitospirin;
• Sutomai.

All orchid diseases are a nuisance for the grower. To prevent ailment, you need to provide the plant with proper care. If it starts to wither, gets sick, the first thing to do is to determine the disease. After that, treatment begins. At the same time, you cannot start the disease. The sooner the treatment starts, the sooner the tropical beauty will come to her senses.