White Markings on Mtssa

[aje_s]

Hi all - I have a Mtssa that is growing well: strong root structure, sympodial chain growth, and blooming on a regular basis. I feed it Grow More and Dyna Grow Bloom formula (depending on the season) using the "weakly-weekly" method so I know it is getting trace minerals in addition to its basic N-P-K needs. I flush each plant with regular water once a month to try to remove salts. I recently repotted it and divided it when I noticed these white markings internal to the leaves (i.e., they don't wipe off). They are only on select leafs and the plant hasn't demonstrated verigated patterns in the past. The orchids stay indoors in Colorado so they are not exposed to a large amount of pests. My orchid books and research on websites haven't helped to-date. I would appreciate any thoughts on what this could be!

[ysanabria]

I have the same problem
Let's wait to hear from our fellow geeks they always come up with a solution!

[orchids4me]

To me it looks like hard water stains, I bought one like that some did wipe off that was powdery and some of them didn't.
Emmaye

[tangers40]

not hard water stains. i have those on most of my plants thanks to our wonderful water here. that looks like something else, particularly since the OP mentions they don't wipe off. i honestly don't have a clue what they might be, but hopefully one of the experts can chime in with suggestions.

[kmarch]

Yes is does look like water stains, possibly form hard water or possible from an application of fertilizer or something else. Sometime you can wash thses off wiht just fresh clean water, sometimes wiht lemon juice. It's no cause for alarm.

[tangers40]

my hard water stains appear as a chalky white substance on the leaves, very much on the outer surface of the leaf. i've never seen any that looked like they were inside the leaf, so to speak.

[aje_s]

I am pretty sure they are not water stains (although there is a little bit showing on the pic but they are clearly on the surface). I have addressed and eliminated water stains with milk and lemon juice in the past; like tangers40 noted, the white markings are inside the leaf. Could this just be natural verigation triggered by something environmental or is this is a disease (bacterial or viral)?