That’s a really bad scale infestation. Alcohol+dawn soap+water and a soft toothbrush are in your near future. I would get some Bonide indoor houseplant insecticide granules (imidacloprid) and add some to all your pots. As this is the time when most cactus are going dormant for the season, you will have to really inspect the plants closely all winter to make sure the scale does not come back. Dormant cactus cannot take up the systemic insecticide because they are not growing.
I will be perfectly honest – if this were my plant and it was not rare/valuable/sentimental, I would toss it. Too much risk of scale moving to your other plants when it’s this bad.
Abject_Sprinkles
Not for that, you have a bad scale infestation. If you zoom in you’ll see tiny round things that are stuck on the surface. With a solution mixing water, dish detergent and mineral oil you can get rid of them.
Camulwa
Thank you all for your fast and great advice! It’s really weird that none of my nearby plants also have the scale, is it possible that this type is cactus specific or not really?
Koxinator
I would just toss this one to be honest. Scale is a pain to deal with.
6 Comments
https://preview.redd.it/8asj9h2wqiud1.jpeg?width=1533&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=105cfbd34c5164901e60d7128006af2d1cfd56ad
Can this little fellow be held responsible?
This is scale (insect)
That’s a really bad scale infestation. Alcohol+dawn soap+water and a soft toothbrush are in your near future. I would get some Bonide indoor houseplant insecticide granules (imidacloprid) and add some to all your pots. As this is the time when most cactus are going dormant for the season, you will have to really inspect the plants closely all winter to make sure the scale does not come back. Dormant cactus cannot take up the systemic insecticide because they are not growing.
I will be perfectly honest – if this were my plant and it was not rare/valuable/sentimental, I would toss it. Too much risk of scale moving to your other plants when it’s this bad.
Not for that, you have a bad scale infestation. If you zoom in you’ll see tiny round things that are stuck on the surface. With a solution mixing water, dish detergent and mineral oil you can get rid of them.
Thank you all for your fast and great advice! It’s really weird that none of my nearby plants also have the scale, is it possible that this type is cactus specific or not really?
I would just toss this one to be honest. Scale is a pain to deal with.