Well, it is true that this is the first time I look at the mix so
closely, and the discovery is scary given the quantity there. And, I
found similar bugs in my other plant too (in soil).

I think my orchid does have scales (there are white lumpy spots on the
leaves), and I heard that mealy bugs (I have no idea what it should
look like in real life) can hide in the pot. And there are a few small
round black spots on the leaves.

Thanks,
Guogang

"Daniel Joyce" wrote in message . ..
On Fri, 23 Jan 2004 11:14:55 -0800, Guogang wrote:

Hi,

I saw some white bugs in the potting medium. They are very small
(barely visible), hide under the surface barks, move fast(when I
remove the surface barks, they rush to find a dark place to hide),
high quantity (I saw a few clusters of more than 10)

What could this be? How can I deal with it?

Thanks,
Guogang

Don't freak too much. Unless your Orchid appears to be weakening, or you
see these guys somehow eatting roots/etc, they are probably just mites
that live on the bark and organic potting matter. You'll see them if you
go out and grab a handful of mulch from nearly any yard. Mites are
everywhere, and unless they are the kind that eat living plant tissue, and
harmless, and are part of the normal diversity of soil.