This may not be very scientific, for reasons I will state, but in response
to AJ's attempts to identify the fungus that is supposed to cause the symptoms
of "micro-fungus" - I have been told by Dr Bob McMillan, retired plant
pathologist for Univ of FL Institute of Food and Agricultural Science (IFAS)
and Tropical Research Educational Center (TREC) that the possible / probable
fungus was Gaeumannomyces. It was not possible to culture samples of the
fungus from damaged plant tissue and it was never possible to identify the
fungus through field observations because we never found any fruiting bodies.
In my experience, Phals obtained from Hawaii were the most susceptible (maybe
because of the benign growing conditions there??) and plants grown in a cool
cell / wet pad greenhouse seemed to show the problems the worst --- here in
deep south Florida (high humidity, long hot stressful summers that last up to
10 months of the year, etc).
I converted my small cool house over to deflasked Paph hybrids and noticed
that the Phals did not develop the typical sunken lesions (first yellow and
then coalescing into blackened areas that look like a really bad case of
spider mite damage that should have been trashed many many many months before)
when the plants were grown in a naturally ventilated greenhouse environment.
Triforine alone never cured the disease - it very well could be that
Triforine helps prevent "spread" as stated. Bob Gordan recommended an initial
spray (also approved by Bob McMillan) of Bayleton + Subdue on day #1 (this is
one surface + one systemic fungicide) followed by a spraying of Triforine the
next day (another systemic fungicide -- Dr McMillan warned of possible
phytotoxicity if you tank mix multiple systemic fungicides together, so why
take the chance that the cure is worse than the disease). The regime would be
repeated in a month, followed by a twice yearly "prophylactic" spraying if
your greenhouse environment seems to be conducive to "micro-fungus."
As I said, this is "research" done in a strictly "in vivo" situation - the
real world. As a commercial nurseryman, I am certainly not going to spend any
money, growing space, or time in conducting a properly constructed blind test
to scientifically "prove" if a practice that works in everyday protocols is
supported by scientific research. If it works, it works. I found this out in a
recent law suit I went through with fire and smoke damage, where the insurance
company's "lawyers" kept demanding "proof" that smoke chemicals caused the
extensive damage and death of our orchids -- the bottom line is that orchids
are a relatively minor crop and something like smoke damage and micro-fungus
affecting a single genus of orchids are an even smaller commercial concern, so
researchers will not be getting any grant monies to research these questions.
As for Dennis Read's question on Taiwanese Phal exports, it was stated to
me in 3/2003, by Mr Shui-En Kao of Ching Hua Orchids Co, Ltd, at the time the
President of the TPS and the TOGA, that Taiwan produces "over 20,000,000
flasks" of Phals per year and China produces "at least 30,000,000 flasks"
(even though there was no centralized reporting of orchid production in China)
of Phals yearly. Do the math with an average of, say, 20 plantlets per flask -
seems to be enough plants material to bury a good sized city to me. All I can
say is thank Buddha that most of the Phal production and sales seems to go to
the "throw away pot plant" (even though I thoroughly disapprove of this
terminology) market.
Terry A. Glancy
Pine Ridge Orchids, Inc.
21100 SW 300 Street
Homestead, FL 33030-7812
Ph (305) 247-4839
Fax (305) 247-8853
Email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.PineRidgeOrchids.com
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