Yeah I was talking about spraying with alcohol, but after reading through the main pest thread and a few other posts I decided to go with a soapy bath. So I soaked it in soapy water for ~20 min, then in H2O2 1% for half an hour. I intend to let it dry out then repot it. Now, after I'd set it in the ...

Hang on, I think I see one of them in one of my photos. Second from bottom, and its missing from the next photo. Here's a a zoom in:
What is that?

Hmmm, that's possible. I didn't get a good enough look to know for sure - they moved fast (hence the lack of a photo). I'm not certain though because it says deep soil and rotting stuff, which I'd think implies damp and I've been keeping the soil dry over winter. Also whatever it is, it's definitely...

Yeah, I had a look through the thread and couldn't find anything that looked like my problem.

I'm thinking about treating it with alcohol to try something asap.

My mammilaria (which I first posted about a few months back) is Not looking good. I believe it has mites. I noticed it was looking a little skinny and also dropping sections of spines down the bottom, so I first examined the base and found a few odd things, such as part of it that looked blistered (...

All right, my cactus is back in its pot. Hopefully its okay! Thanks for all the help.

Oh cool, I didn't know it would flower. And I'll definitely be making sure it gets more sun once its back in its pot.

Yeah, I was wondering if that was summer watering advice since I read somewhere else mammillaria don't need much water over winter. I've got to keep in indoors since I don't have many places outside where it won't get drenched when it rains. Since this is probably why it hasn't been getting enough s...

Thanks, but its okay. I work as an analytical chemist and had definitely noted the 1%. I've bought 3% and I'm going to dilute it, I lost the moon cactus I mentioned in the first post to root rot and I'll be annoyed with myself if I lose this the same way if I don't use the peroxide.

Thanks for the detailed reply. Still too much soil? darn. I did spend a while doing exactly what you suggest with a q-tip and what you see is the result. I guess I was too worried about severing the roots off at the base so I backed off. I'll try again. Good to know the pink isn't a problem, though,...

Its a little soft, but not mushy and no smell. A week seems a long time before repotting but I'm guessing its a better option that taking a risk with root rot.

Thanks for all your help!

I've de-potted the cactus and removed the soil. There's far less roots then I thought, mostly because there was cactus in the hard soil ball not just root. It's also pinker than I thought. I'm assuming the pink is not good since my cactus isn't exactly the picture of health right now. Is there anyth...

Ah okay, so its not supposed to get narrower like that. Using nutrients from itself sounds like a problem; if I can help the roots will the colour ever return?

I plan to try and fix the root ball tomorrow. I'll definitely try lukewarm water, I don't see it coming loose any other way!

Thanks for the replies Okay, so I'm getting the impression that its not immediately going to keel over and die, which is nice. And if the yellowing is because it needs more sun that should be okay. I'll move it so it gets as much light as possible, which is a little hard at the moment because its be...

Hi, I've only recently bought a cactus and I'm a little concerned about it. I think from googling and looking at forums here that its a mammillaria. Anyway, I've noticed that its gone a little paler around the base (light green/yellow) and is a bit softer on the lighter areas. I have no idea if this...