white mold or fungus?

[acd]

I just discovered some white "stuff" on my young highland Nepenthes. It almost looks like hard water stains on the surface of one of its leaves. There's also a spot where there's a very small area of white on the edge of a leaf that almost looks like lichen. I tried gently scratching it with my fingernail, but it didn't come off.

This morning I spotted a little bit of white on the peat surface of a sundew, although I did not have time to investigate it further. Of course I will later tonight. This may be unrelated to the Nepenthes.

I can snap some photos later today, but from this description can anyone tell me what this could be? I've been working to keep it below 90ºF and around 60-70% humidity with plenty of air circulation in my newly established terrarium. I only set it up about a week ago.

[peterhewitt]

Could be anything, Photo's will be needed for a definitive answer. Fungus is usually fluffy, and would come off with scraping.

[acd]

Here are some photos:

[peterhewitt]

Does not look like mold or fungus. It seems to me, as though someone who had been playing with Tipexx or some such "Paint" might have been fondling your plant. It could also be Chlorine burns, but I doubt it. The one in the last picture and Below, seems to be ash, Paint, or something like that. I dont think it is something you need to worry about. Unless you are using Chlorinated water on your plants, and some of it Burned, or stained the plant.
The plant seems in excellent health, and if your circulation is good, it is unlikely to be fungus.

[acd]

Thanks for your response, peter. It definitely isn't chlorine burns, since I use distilled water, and haven't used bleach or similar around my plants. I guess this is still a mystery, but I guess I'll just keep an eye on it.

[charles]

It is difficult to tell what the material is, but one possibility is slime mold. When it dries, it can leave a grey or white deposit.

This is usually more dramatic than what I see in your photo.

[acd]

There actually is a little bit of slime mold developing on the sphagnum.

[peterhewitt]

Slime mold is not normally a problem, and would not really develop on the leaves of the plant, but in the substrate. It usually occurs when fertilizers are used or tap water with a high degree of dissolved salts. Also if the substrate is kept too wet. As Charles has stated, it is also usually more dramatic than what you have there. It should scrape off easily if it is slime mold. I often have to go through pots planted with peat, that I fertilize, to scrape of slime, but the plants remain unaffected.