Orchid sap anyone?

[males149]

Hi

I won an orchid in a draw at the local orchid club. The plant has a spike with a flower and some buds remaining on the spike. All seems to me to indicate the plant is heathy but while watering it today I noticed on 2 of the leaves something I have never seen. Under the leaves there seems to be crystals of dew, like sugar candy, a tad sticky and mostly clear. Is that dew or sap or some kind of pests way of invading a plant?

thanks!


M.

[CodiMN]

First, welcome to the OB there M.!!! Glad you found this wonderful resource!

Hmm looks a little like salt build up from watering/fertilizing... but I could be wrong. Let's see if anyone else chimes in on this one.

[FinnBar]

Welcome!
my guess would be fertlizer-residue also. though it's stickiness is a little perplexing. Fortunately i'm not that experienced with pests so i can't really comment on those. i'm quite sure you can rule out orchid sap. try wiping it with lemon juice?

[Ray]

It might not be only one thing, but based upon the original description, I'd say it is at least partially "honeydew", a sweet, sticky substance exuded by plants that have been particularly well grown.

I surmise (AKA "guess") that when a plant has plenty of food and light, and no undue stresses, it builds up its energy stores (sugars) to a certain level, and then must "dump" some, as there just isn't room for more, and that's what we see a leaf edges, undersides, and even on spikes.

I have also heard that the sugars might be pollinator attractants.

A caveat is that the sugary stuff can also attract pest insects, so some wash it off with slightly warm water on a paper towel. (I don't bother)

[Dorothy]

My Phal violaceas are always oozing liquid sugar on their spikes near developing buds. The sap is sweet to the tongue .. and doesn't cause hallicinations or any ill side effects

[males149]

See... If I was somewhat certain that it was sap/honeydew/salt buildup I'd taste it...but since I'm not the person who took care of it I dunno what was used to fertilize it... do you think theres danger in tasting it even if it is fertilizer?


thanks!

M.

[John]

Ray did you notice that the color of the leaves is lighter where the dew is? Could something like aphids cause this? John

[flhiker]

Originally Posted by Dorothy

The sap is sweet to the tongue .. and doesn't cause hallicinations

Back to the mushrooms uh!

[FinnBar]

That's really interesting, i've never heard of such thing before

[Dorothy]

Originally Posted by flhiker

Back to the mushrooms uh!

Dave - Which ones are you selling?