Vanda bug question

[Cjcorner]

Experience has taught me to go over my new plants, especially the vanda's. They can hide things down in close where the leaves are hard to see down into. I found this circular patch after cleaning some icky stuff that looked like an old spiders nest with bug leavings in one of those hard to get to spots. I used a q-tip to clean the gunk out and found this spot. It seems to be a depression, but the other side of the leaf shows no sign of the damage. I am so new/uneducated about Vandas...is this some strange new bug thing or did the spider cause that??
When inside, do you still water vanda types everyday? Do they need extra misting? Do I cut their food when they are inside getting less sun?
Thanks for any advice....I would love to get better at these ones. I was thinking about buying a tall hat rack and putting a shower curtain around it to help hold the humidity at night for when it has to come indoors.



The back of the plant shows no sign of the damage...



I used a q-tip for a size comparison of the spot. I can put the tip into the white circle and feel it's bowl like indentation.



Thanks for looking....
Connie

[Brutal_Dreamer]

It might be where a snail or bug had a snack and then the spot just 'scabbed' over. I don't think it is actually a bug, but rather damage done by one.

Cheers,
BD

[Orchidzrule]

Hi Connie,
I echo Bruce's comments about it being past damage from something snacking on your plant. The critter, especially if it was a slug, could still be lurking, though, so be vigilant.

I can't comment on Florida, but it most places houses get really dry in winter when central heating is running. Plants dry out very quickly in that environment. So, I'm thinking anything to keep the humidity up would be very desirable, and if it's growing on a hanging apparatus like most Vandas are, I don't think you could run any risk of overwatering it.

Cheers,
Rob

[sadie]

Yep, ditto from me as well. Not knowing the humidity in Florida "winters" it is hard to say, but you may well need to at least mist every day. You are correct about cutting back on the fertilizer when they aren't actively growing, but I wouldn't eliminate it altogether.

[Cjcorner]

Thanks everyone, the advice was very appreciated. I had a nice warm day (for a change) and took them outside for a good drenching and since I needed to feed the plants around the yard I gave them a good shot of food. When it started cooling back off I brought them back in. I've been misting them and a big towel that lays underneath them in the spare room. So far the root-tips still show new growth, this time inside wasn't as long as the last....thankfully.