Expert: Greg Simpson - 8/4/2007

Question
I have a cactus that I bought from Walmart a few yrs. ago. It is abt. 7" tall w/ spikes 3/4" long and then smaller ones. It is smaller on the bottom and gradually gets wider at the top. Recently, in this cactus pot w the cactus, some sort of yellow fungi has been growing. I noticed it like a week ago. There was this thing at least a half inch tall growing. So I scooped it out w a spoon and lifted up the few big rocks that I have on top of the dirt as decorations. There were little yellow dots under almost all of them. So I scooped it all out the best I could and then washed the rocks before putting them back. Since then two more "mushrooms" have grown up in almost the same spot. I scooped out the second one and the next day, today, another one has grown back! This new one has a really skinny stem and a big cap and the same light yellow- definately a mushroom! Is this bad or not? What should I do? Thanks! Calista Fogg

Answer
Calista,

Typically, mushrooms indicate that there is a lot of water present, but not always. They won't hurt your plant, however you can buy a fungicide from a local nursery if you like and try that at keeping your mushrooms at bay. Hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Greg