Replying to my own post.
I received several replies in private e-mail and on the OGD forum.
Several people were convinced that I had mites, even though the
first thing I tried was repeated sprays with SunSpray oil.
This week, I remembered that I own a microscope. I didn't think of
it at first because it is basically a toy I got for Christmas when I
was a kid. It is an actual functioning microscope and it DID let me
get a good look. I looked at several leaves on 5 different plants.
(I didn't have to cut off the leaves, I could just lay the leaf
across the microscope table.)
I found all sorts of tiny dust specks of various shapes and sizes
but nothing that could be a mite. I spent considerable time looking
and I am convinced that there are no mites there.
Just an update.

Steve

Steve wrote:
It was nearly 6 months ago that I started a thread about "Phal
Problems". I showed a web site with pictures. Several of you had ideas.
Probably the best answers were about a disease called simply
microfungus. I tried a few different fungicides but didn't get to try
every fungicide or fungicide combination that was suggested.
I tried the systemic fungicide often sold as Funginex. I really thought
maybe that was going to work. Things seemed to slow down and I hoped the
leaves that still dropped were just dropping because of previous damage.
It didn't take too long for it to be obvious that new leaves were still
going bad as they matured.

I have finally gotten around to taking more pictures and reorganized the
web site to better explain the problem. Here's the new improved site:

http://www.geocities.com/tlswilso/Ph...s_2-15-04.html

Maybe someone has learned more about this disease since we last
discussed it. Maybe someone new is lurking here and knows something
about what really works and what really doesn't. I saved the original
discussion and there are more things there that I can try.

Thanks in advance for any new ideas.

Steve in the Adirondacks of northern NY

PS If you want to reply, but don't want to read the entire web site,
please at least read the part right after "treatments I have tried".
If you want to reply to me without posting here, change my address to
@adelphiadotnet.