I've used hundreds of these test kits without any problems. I used to send the positive results out for confirmation by ELISA, but I quit doing it because the results were always the same. There are more accurate tests available, but these seem to work quite well.

The buffer solution is already inside the bag with the abrasive grid. If you had lots of samples to test and they were already ground up, you could just add buffer and insert the test strip. I always use the test kits. Once you get the hang of it, you can do composite testing with 2 or 3 leaf sections from different plants combined to make a single sample. This is how I test flasks and compots. If I really like a particular flower, I perform individual virus testing before it becomes part of my core collection, even if it tested negative as part of a composite test. I've never had contradictory results, so this may be redundant, but I do it anyway.

If you decide to begin testing your plants and you have a lot of phals, be prepared for some bad news.

Mike

Thanks so much for the info -- very helpful!

Mike wrote, "I used to send the positive results out for confirmation by ELISA, .....the results were always the same."

That has been my experience to date. For really valued individual plants, I may choose to do that again.

--Stitz--

Glad to hear that self-testing is pretty reliable.

One other question -- in your experience(s), are there some orchid species / hybrids which seem less virus-prone than others, or are they all fair game? Seems like phals are highly susceptible, and those are the ones in my collection I'm most concerned about (appreciate your comment, Mike!) -- a couple of catts I want to check, and an oberonia which looks iffy. Understand they can be totally asymptomatic, but wonder if there are some that just have higher susceptibility?

Occasionally, Andy Easton mentions this topic on another forum. Perhaps, you can find more through his name?