hello, Paul, that is too bad. from your description, the first thing which came to my mind is snails or slugs. if it is slugs, i have had some success using coffee. a photo would be helpful.
your cym must have been spectacular with all those blooms.
sue

Are you sure it isn't scale?

Kevin

I looked closely (magnifing glass) and don't see any scale, but I did notice that it almost looks like something has bored into the flower bud.

Slugs was a good suggestion, but the Cymb is in a pot on a stand. I don't see any trails.

I tried to paste the picture in the message, but it wouldn't paste. Is there a way to do that?

Cheers,

Paul

From your description I too would go with slug/snail damage. I had a similar problem last year and like you could find no trace. In the end I found the slug inside one of the flowers where it stayed during the day only to come out and munch during the night.

hello, Paul, I have a metal gazebo which is on interlocking bricks. each corner has a metal shelf about 4 feet off the ground. on these shelves i have orchids. one day i found a slug on a dend. on one of these shelves. i saw no evidence and if i did not see the slug on the cane of the dend. i would not have known. my conclusion: i think that slugs have invisible wings.
sue