This is one of my favourite cacti, too. Enormous blooms for a Mammillaria and a prolific flowerer. Mine has just thrown up its second set of buds for this year. These have a reputation as a difficult species, prone to rot, so I have mine in a clay pot and water it sparingly. Its best display last ye...

I have similar marks on a few of my 3 year old Echinopsis seedlings and also a Cereus hildmannianus monstrose. It's a bit like a sooty deposit and appeared over the winter. It doesn't seem to be doing any harm but it is unsightly.

Well, 12 months on from the bee attacks and my Gymnocalycium calochlorum doesn't seem to have been adversely affected. I've had more blooms than ever from it this year. It has been repotted in the interim, though. All other "burrowed" cacti also appear to have been unaffected. Gymnocalyciu...

Welcome Jules. You can't go far wrong with Rebutias. They are quite undemanding but they do need cool conditions in the winter in order to flower well the next year.

AllanA wrote: ...if you grow Lithops from seed they need cool conditions at night.

...or they won't germinate.

A lovely display Peter. Yellow flowers are my favourites - probably because I am rather colour blind and some reds are hard to spot. Lilacs and pinks are ok too, and bright reds.

I haven't been growing Lithops for long, but I always let them dry out completely between waterings. When they start to wrinkle I give them a thorough soaking so that water runs out of the bottom of the pot. I haven't killed any yet. I'm not sure what their natural rain cycle is, ie whether they get...

Lovely flowers Sylvia. They certainly make a great display. Now have I got some room in my greenhouse...?

iann wrote: Don't know what a Cinnamon Cactus is. Some sort of Opuntia?

According to Google, Yes.

We are more fortunate in the UK. Temperatures in Wales have been in the low to mid 20s for the past couple of weeks, with night time temps keeping above 10 degrees C.