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Dark brown spots are developing on my Oncidium Sharry Baby. Some… | The Orchid Oasis | Comunità di Planta

Amy

Dark brown spots are developing on my Oncidium Sharry Baby. Some spots are at the leaf tip and others are not. They weren’t there when I purchased the plant last summer. I heard Oncidiums are prone to leaf spots but wondering if I should be concerned that something is wrong. I have the plant under a grow light. The plant didn’t flower this year but it’s growing plump new bulbs. The old bulbs are still plump and firm. No pictures of the roots but I did check them and they look normal- firm, white, not mushy. What is causing the spotting? Virus? Bacteria? Should I spray the leaves with something?

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  1. Jen

    Sharry baby in particular, but many oncidium orchids with this type of leaf are prone to this spotting. Answer varies when you talk to growers about causes or read about solutions. It probably depends on your environment. I’ve heard people swear that it’s caused by leaving water droplets on the leaves- like a form of botrytis. I don’t ever do that though, and I have had it on a couple of my orchids. Zygopetalum orchids are also prone to these spots - and have sort of similar leaves. I couldn’t stand it anymore, and treated thoroughly with a 3 in 1 bacterial/fungal spray. If it did anything, I certainly couldn’t tell. The new growths have all come in pristine, and developed the spots over time. 🤷🏻‍♀️ As long as it’s not spreading to your other plants, or getting so bad on your sharry baby that it causes an obvious infection and rotting of the leaf, then you’re good. Keep an eye on it, see if it develops into a problem, but otherwise, I think it’s a natural issue with this orchid.

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    • Amy

      Thank you for your thoughts. Every website seems to have a different reason for the dark spots! Everything from water on the leaves that cause an infection, to genetics, to bacteria/fungus, and too much light. The plant did not have the spots before I moved it under grow lights, so maybe it’s too much light? But because it didn’t flower this spring, despite growing new bulbs, I thought it needed more light, so I put it on a shelf with the grow lights. Maybe I should move it back to see if the spots go away? I’ll spray it with a 3 in 1 just in case too.

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    • Jen

      I faced the same problem with that pesky zygo. I moved it to a lesser light area and it didn’t make the spots stop appearing, but it also didn’t bloom this year! The 3 in 1 didn’t help, honestly. (And with those sprays you have to be very careful if making sure it dries thoroughly so as not to cause additional rotting issues.) Unless the spots are causing the leaves to break down and rot- I wouldn’t bother. Just my two cents, but the risk is not worth the zero reward, and your plant seems otherwise, very healthy. I think all the online answers are probably all, in part, correct. These plants are genetically predisposed to spots like these that can be caused by water droplets or overly intense light that easily develop into these spots. Sorry- if you find a definitive answer at some point, or something you do actually stops them from forming- I’d love to hear it.

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