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Happy Sap on Orchids: What Causes It & How to Treat It
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Oct 3, 2024
Orchid Sticky Sap: 3 Reasons Leaves are Covered in Dew Your orchid is growing beautifully and has even bloomed. Yet, when you watered this week, you noticed that something wasn’t quite right with the leaves on your orchid. They were covered with a sticky, gooey substance that wasn’t supposed to be there. First, you have to identify where the sap is coming from to correctly fix this problem. In this article, you’ll learn the 3 main reasons orchid leaves become sticky. The reasons orchid leaves become covered in sticky sap are 1) the blossoming flowers produce honeydew that drips on the top leaf, 2) excretions that are left behind by insects such as aphids, mealybugs, and scale, and 3) the natural tendency for the orchid to neutralize hydration pressure by releasing water which contains sucrose. If you want the full explanation of this video in writing, go to https://orchideria.com/orchid-sticky-sap/ On Orchideria.com, you can find more in-depth guides and all the access to our information, tutorials, guides, and much more... all for free! Happy Cultivating! ______________________ HASHTAGS: #orchidcare #orchid #Orchideria #AmandaMatthews _______________________ SOCIAL MEDIA: Website: https://orchideria.com
View Video Transcript
0:00
There can be a substance on your leaf that looks like dew or sap or sticky stuff that on the leaf
0:10
on the pseudobulb. It shouldn't really be there because it's not water. I mean if you rub your finger on it
0:16
it's kind of gooey and it's what is that? Oh in this video I'm going to give you three reasons
0:24
that that sticky sap or dew or honeydew is there. If it's okay to a
0:29
to actually leave it there. The first reason is the one that is least concerning
0:37
because it just means your orchid is happy and that is one of the names of this sap
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It can be called honey-dew, happy sap, orchid nectar or orchid sap
0:50
All these are just the common names of the same substance. The orchid actually is very hydrated
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it's full of nutrients, and it just produces this. this sap. This sap is more likely to occur during certain times of the year. And that is when the
1:05
orchid is producing either new suitables or a flower spike or the bud is already in formation
1:12
and it's about to open up into that beautiful blossom. Now why is this happening? It's
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think back to what the orchid is going through. During these active growth stages, your orchid
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is actually pulling nutrients through the internal structures of the orchid. So it's
1:29
can hydrate and take all the nutrients and water and everything that the orchid needs to all the
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extremities of the orchid. So this orchid will need to be extra hydrated to keep that bud in
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formation, to keep the bud healthy and opening properly. It actually absorbs more water during
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this time. So if you are in these active growths, you can water more as long as you're not
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overwatering. Another thing to note is that sometimes these nutrients, and these water do get a bit excessive
2:02
And it's just the orchid getting rid of the extra nutrients and extra water in a natural way
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It's a happy orchid that's just doing fine and it's got excess to give away
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just let it do its thing. When it is this situation, you will probably notice the extra sap or honeydew
2:20
form right by the bud, or you'll notice it formed by the pedicule
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which is where the blossom reaches the branch, so about right there
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there Or you notice on the peduncle which is the thicker branch that attaches all these orchids to the flower spike If the sap is excessive and it dripping down the spike and it oozing out all over the place
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you will need to wipe that off because it will remain in contact with the flower spike and weaken the plant cells in that area
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So if your sap is excessive as in dripping and it's staying there a long time
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you do need to wipe that off just to prevent other problems from occurring
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One other problem also is when this sap drips from the bud onto the orchid leaf
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Now from the orchid leaf, and if it's a phelenopsis orchid leaf, it will be hydro-repellant to some extent
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So that just means that the leaves are made so where you pour water on them, they just roll off
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Now the sap is thicker, so it's not going to roll that naturally
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and it's just going to stay there. Now, when it stays in contact
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and it's the same problem with the orchid spike, but to a more severe level
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this honeydew and honey sap, which sits on top the orchid leaf, on a phalanopsis orchid
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most of the gas exchange happens on the bottom side of the leaf. But that doesn't mean that it doesn't occur on the top side too
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So when this happens, when the orchid sap drops from the blossom onto the leaf
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then it stays there, it just closes that stomata and no gas exchanges is occurring
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So if it wants to get rid of this gas that it doesn't want and it can't
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these gas levels turn toxic inside the orchid because they just build up and build up and build up
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This toxicity, which I cannot say that word, will just grow over time and that's what kills the plant cell tissue
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So the plant cell is now dead. It has something that is on top of it, preventing gax exchange
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And bacteria just sees that as, hey, this is water, this is nutrients, this is a sticky
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substance, but there's nothing hindering me from entering this orchid leaf and getting more
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where there's coming from. So it forms a point of entry for bacteria and fungus and virus and everything else to just
4:52
attack your orchid. That's the problem with the honey. or the honey sap or the orchid nectar or the happy dew or anything you want to call it
5:01
So if the honey dew becomes a problem in that it dripping it so excessive that it dripping that it dripping everywhere that you need to clean off The second reason that orchids will produce honeydew or there is sap on your orchid is not really honeydew at all
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And this is the disgusting part of orchid care. Orchids attract insects
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Insects excrete stuff because they eat stuff. So yeah, that's the technical definition
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So this sap actually is not being produced by your orchid. these little drops of what looks like orchid sap is actually, you get it
5:41
So, orchids can fight off bacteria to some extent by themselves. They do not stand of chance against insects
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Now, these insects will come to the leaf and they'll chew on the leaf and they'll leave behind this trail of sap
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What you think might be happy, your orchid might be under an insect infection
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Not only will these insects leave behind these extraments that cause in bacteria, these insects
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will kill your orchid because they're chewing on your orchid leaf ever so slowly
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There are three insects that actually leave behind this trail of sap and that is aphids
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milliebugs, and scale. So if you see this sap and your orchid is not in bloom or your orchid does not have a flower spike
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or it's not in a phase where it's actually, you know, drinking a lot of
6:31
of water. Take a look and see if your orchid is infested with insects, so sometimes they're
6:37
really hard to see. The third reason your orchid can produce a sap-like substance, and this one
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will, you'll see it on the underside of the leaf. It's kind of like the orchid is dropping
6:47
off extra humidity and has little droplets of sap on the underside. Is your orchid happy? Yes
6:55
but it's over happy. It's to the point where it can't stand the state of happy
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penis. But it can't, it has too many nutrients, it has too much water. One of the signs can be
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edema, which will be like little blisters that occur on the top side of your leaf. But sometimes
7:13
this edema never happens. Sometimes the orchid reacts by producing happy sap that just drips from
7:19
the underside of the leaf. So in this case, you need to take a look at how much water you're
7:24
providing your orchid. If it's dripping from the underside of the leaf, it's just trying to get rid of
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that excess water and it's doing so at a rate that is still okay when it when it cannot bear that
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much water anymore the leaf will expand the tissue will expand forming these little blisters called edema on the top of the orchid leaf Now sometimes they go hand in hand depending on how much water you giving
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Sometimes they do not. So look at those three places of where this honey sap is being produced and if it is a problem or if it isn't a problem
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The difference between the sap left behind by insects and little creepy crawlers and critters is that this sap, you know
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besides it not being actually sap, is low in sugar content. Now the sap that drips from the underside of
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the leaves, that is extremely high in sugar and sugar will attract ants. Yeah, yippity-d-da
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So this high sugar content that drips from here, you need to wipe it off but ever so carefully
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because the underside of the leaf is one of the weakest parts of the leaf. It's one of the
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the most tender parts of the leaf. And we, I never advised to clean the underside of the leaf
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But in this case, where this sap is actually dripping onto the top, you know, it will form under
8:55
here and drip to this leaf. You really need to get that off. So ever so carefully, and you
9:00
probably don't want to do this in one day, you know, do the whole orchard the same day
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You know, just wipe it off here, wait a couple hours or maybe give it a little
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some time to get over that being manipulated with and then wipe the other side. So be careful with
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the underside of your leaf on phalanopsis on other orchids. Actually the top side of the leaf
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is the most is one of the most fragile. For all the cases of happy sap, you can just use a wet cloth
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with water. You do not have to use any products. Actually, on the underside of the leaf, it's best
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if you don't and make sure that water is a pH of around 5.5 to 6.5 so you don't hurt the orchid
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any more than you have to. If this video has provided any kind of help, please give it a thumbs
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up just so I can have some kind of feedback to know what's going on. And don't stop your orchid care
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I do suggest two videos. The first one is about why do your orchid roots twist and curl? You can see that one up here
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and in this video down here, I talk about hydrogen peroxide and why you should or shouldn't use it
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If you want to subscribe to the channel, you can hit the circle in the middle, and thank you so much for watching this video
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I hope to see you in the comments below. Happy cultivating