Hi,
I'll try to be brief... hard for me to do. :~}
If you see a couple of scale 'dots', you can swab some alcohol there.
Maybe rinse with water soon after since it tends to dry out the plant.
Just soapy water will also suffocate most insects. Then use a tooth
brush or other tool to brush it off. A stream of water also works.
Just be careful of those tender new growths that we wait on. Check
closely the other orchids and area where the orchid was sitting/
hanging. Killing visible scale doesn't mean they are not down in the
pot. I guess it is sometimes not practical to repot but you can soak
the pot or entire plant in a soapy water solution for maybe for 5
minutes. No stress to the orchid; its like watering. Then an
application of Imidacloprid is good. The Bayer products are probably
the most economical way to buy it. It is taken up mostly by the plants
roots and systemically fends off bugs. The scale seems to 'carpool'
with mealybugs.
Bugs are serious business. Unfortunately insects do transfer virus
from a sick plant to others... similar to a hypodermic needle.
('Encyclopedia of Plant and Crop Science' April 2005) An orchid
infected with a virus cannot be cured. It may grow beautifully for a
long time. If not discarded, it should be quarantined for the
duration.
.
Lee (in SC)

It must be May! The Myr... no, Mcp (well previously Schomburgkia)
tibicinis with ~20 pseudobulbs is about to display it's fireworks.

On Apr 29, 3:57*pm, "Maggie's Mom" wrote:
Yesterday I've noticed SCALE parasites on couple of my orchids. I've seen
scale on my ferns, but that was killed off by Bayer Dual Action Rose and
Flower Insect Killer.