"Al" wrote in message
...

snip
Glands along the stem of Phals produce the stuff we call honeydew,
probably to attract the pollinator.

It the honeydew you are speaking of is along the margin of your phal
leaves, it is probably mites, but there are glands on leaves too...

snip
I speculate that the lady bug found the plant is due to the honeydew.
However the best way to know what's going on with your plant is to look
for aphids and, using a magnifying glass, look for mites.

Al,
As far as I can tell all the honeydew on this Phal is along its spikes, none
is on the leaves. Hmm, I don't own a magnifying glass, so using one to look
for aphids or mites would require a shopping trip. I think for now I will
hope/assume that all is well but keep the Phal under daily observation just
in case, and only buy a magnifying glass if anything else appears
suspicious. It appears to be a really healthy Phal, actually you know this
one since it came from your greenhouse -- it's the one I call Big Momma
(Phal. (Carmela's Brite Lites 'Big City' x Kenneth Wong 'Carmela') that I
got as a gift from several rgo regulars on the occasion of Robert's birth.
It's lost some of its first round of flowers in the meantime, a few flowers
remain, and now it's in the process of growing additional buds.
Joanna