I have a mammilaria rhodantha that is two inches wide and four inches tall. sadly, it appears to have base rot and I fear that my only options are to either cut it in half and try to root it or just throw it away. Can it survive this kind of surgery???

The lawn hasn’t been fertilized since early last fall and I’m pretty sure we used milorganite. The grass is what I think is a pretty standard northeastern mix of TTTF (around 75%), PR, maybe a little fescue and a a little KBG. My instructions were to bag clippings and based on the pics they’ve been sending, that’s what they’ve been doing. I would think that even if they hadn’t, given the number of times they mowed in the last 3 or 4 weeks, any clumps should have been been dispersed within five days. But, I guess that could be a possibility - that’s the problem with not being there. Interesting about the KBG, I know it’s in the seed mixes I use, but I assumed since it’s in such small quantities (5%) and it requires more care than I can provide to germinate, that it never survives. I agree that the rectangular dry spot is suspiciously man-made, but it’s definitely not caused by fertilizer as noted above. That area has been difficult from the start and, compared to the rest of that area of the lawn, hasn’t been as responsive to cultivation. Based on looking around this forum and others, I’m beginning to think that there might be something underneath that’s preventing the grass from forming deep roots. I asked DH where the sceptic tank is located - it’s where the dry spot is in the back which I thought was caused by something being left there. That’s another area where I’ve had a tough time growing grass. When you say that you wouldn’t do anything, do you mean do nothing at all? Because here’s what I’ve been thinking about doing (though I might choose a different path based on what I see when I get there). I’ll check for new growth and water the rectangular brown areas. I’ll try to figure out whether the rounder spots were caused by a fungus and address that accordingly. As I said, I have not fertilized the lawn this year. I’d planned to do a winter fertilization, but I missed the window. However, I have the fertilizer. I don’t remember the brands or the numbers except that it may have been something like 29 or 30-0-4. As a general question, is it ok to fertilize the unaffected parts of the yard now with what I have or should I wait? Unfortunately I only have one bag of milorganite, which is my go-to, my experience has been that the local stores run out by now. Thanks!

"Soooo, my actual question is, is it fair to the builder to ask him to do business with a big box store that may not have the quality other vendors do? Gosh knows, F & D sells a heck of a lot of tile." Why are you asking us? Ask the BUILDER. Who undoubtedly will NOT say yes to any big box. and unless this is a very custom build ( guess not ) will not allow a change from his supplier. Any of them. Your builder builds homes for one reason only: To PROFIT. And as much as he can while remaining competitive. You have two threads going. You signed on with a builder. Did you not read the fine print? Your builder is at best, semi custom. You get to select WITHIN his limited range of suppliers and the selections within those suppliers. This.......IIS COMMON, AND IT IS not IN ANY WAY "CUSTOM BUILD" You have two threads, and one is better. A new question ? You add it in the comments of the thread you began.

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