| Is the whitish residue from mealy bugs? They can do a lot of damage to a plant and make it look pretty sick. To check for them, take a Q-tip and some rubbing alcohol and swab at the whitish residue. If you find a small brown insect coming off on the cotton of the Q-tip, that's what it is. I have been able to eliminate mealy bugs from infested plants with acephate (Ortho Systemic Insect Killer), which I think you would need if the plant is as heavily infested as it sounds. For it to be effective, I've had to use it at about three times the recommended strength (which didn't harm the plants in the least) and to apply it three times, about a week to ten days apart. You should properly spray the plant out of doors or inside some kind of protective container (a garbage bag would do) in a well-ventilated space. Cynthia, who posts often, has other, excellent recommendations. You can search on "mealy" and probably find various approaches. What I don't think will work is trying to pick off every one with rubbing alcohol, although orchids are so tolerant of the stuff that you could, probably, just pour it on the plant and hope to knock off a bunch of them. Things like neem oil won't touch them. -- Bill  |