white bumps on phalaenopsis orchid

[coralines]

Hello! I just made this account because I wanted to help identify what's wrong with my phalaenopsis orchid.. I'm a newbie at gardening and I don't know much and I researched it and most people said it was mealybugs? But they don't look like bugs to me..

A few weeks ago the sun hit some of its leaves directly and it was so hot outside and it took me around an hour to notice and move the plant. Are the black spots because of that or is it some kind of fungus? And now yesterday these white bumps appeared on some of the leaves. The leaves also started to yellow.. I haven't moved the orchid from it's usual place and it has adequate shade and no direct sunlight now except for a few sun rays in the very early hours of the morning (around 8am when the sun comes up).

What could the problem be and how could I help fix it? Do I need to remove the leaves or do some kind of treatment? The leaves have also started drooping and there's a few holes on some of them..

If anyone more experienced knows anything I'd be more than grateful, thank you so much. x

 

[Tetters]

Hello @coralines and welcome to our forums

Your orchid is suffering from improper watering, and I can see no sign at all of mealy bugs. What you see on the bumpy leaf is edema.
I think this plant has been given too much water, and this has nowhere to drain away, so that's why the leaves have discoloured and the pressure of too much water will also cause the leaves to split, and blister (thus the bumps)
Let the pot dry out completely, and keep it in its usual place. It seems like you have it in a warm but shady place which is perfect. The best kind of pot for this plant is a transparent one

like this, and it should have plenty of holes in the bottom.
It seems like you have the correct kind of compost. This needs to be very open and free draining.
I water my orchids thoroughly every two to three weeks usually with slightly warm water and leave them on the draining board until I'm sure they have stopped dripping - then they go back on the window ledge to get plenty of light.
The damaged leaves will eventually fall off, but if you want to you could carefully cut them off with clean sharp secateurs or knife.

 

[coralines]

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply!

I have been watering the orchid once a week (that's what the people I bought her from told me to do) and I assumed that because the weather here reaches up to 38°C on some days in the summer months that it needed frequent watering. I will try to water her every two weeks instead of once a week and see how that goes.

The pot it's in is one that's clear (and it has drainage holes at the bottom). I made sure to cut some holes on the sides as well so it has plenty of air. And I always make sure it has drained after watering before I move the plant to its usual spot.

Thank you once again for replying. I'm relieved it doesn't have a pest infestation or a serious disease. x

 

[Tetters]

You are very welcome. When I first grew orchids, I made the same mistake with watering, but my plants have picked up quite well. If you look at them growing in the wild ...

it indicates just how much air and ''freedom'' they are happy with. Sitting for too long in any composted matter will be a big NO to them, and rainwater will simply fall away from them.

I think they are fantastic plants, and sometimes can't believe how easy they have become to buy at very reasonable prices - always so tempting to spend the housekeeping money on