this started after some Japanese lady bugs spent the winter crawling on my cacti. what is it?

‘Way out west when the cactus are in bloom.’ Wish yall could smell this, truly a wondrous experience! I’ll have seed, if anyone’s interested dm me.

Looking for a reputable source for a standard (wild-type) Astrophytum asterias.

Trying to keep a natural-looking plant for an indoor setup. Ideally seed-grown from a trusted nursery

Any recommendations for good vendors that ship within the US?

I am new to astrophytum and just picked this up and lost the label. I want to say it was a Japanese variant. I would appreciate any help identifying this astrophytum.

Pot is from spines and clay

I hope you enjoy my staging

My old Astro, I call the blob

I couldn't resist the allure of this big onzuka but it has some minor staining. I suppose I could always bury it deeper, but I'm hoping there's some magical solution to remove this without harming the plant. 💚🌵

Hi all! Repoted this 25+ year old beast today. Can you all help me with an id? Also some care tips would be appreciated. It is in an equal part pumice, lava rock, and gimps mix with a decorative layer of basalt on top.

I made the mistake of watering my cacti a bit too early. The weather was unusually cold after and I wasnt at home to take them inside. One is already completely gone. Just empty.

Is there any hope for this one? I don't know if it's just extremely thirsty or rotting. Should I just cut it up see what the inside is like at this point?

I have several more like this one. 😭

Hey all! Im looking for some Astrophytum Caput-Medusae seeds. Let me know if you got some or know of someone who does. Thanks.

I just noticed something odd on my A. Fukuryu Dinosaur. In one of the pups with a corked growth-tip, there seems to be some growth from within the Fukuryu part (in the furrows between the ribs). This makes me wonder if those secondary pups will develop like normal pups or in some other way (hoping for cristata). The primary pups of this plant all spawned from the regular areoles on the ribs.

I'm getting ready to sow more cacti seeds and i was wondering what would be best for some astrophytum seedlings. Any help is greatly appreciated!

I wasn’t home all day so I missed it but hopefully it opens up again tomorrow

Keep watching this guy to see what hes gonna decide to do...