Louise Soil could be wet deep inside, even if top is dry. it all depends on what it consists of. Best way to find out is to use bamboo or other wood skewer or chopstick, that will reach deep down into pt. Extra water accumulates there, and it could keep your soil mix wet. It is impossible to guess what the bugs are without photo and sometimes even with photo :) I understand that it is very difficult to photo very small bugs. Could be springtails (they come in many different sizes, colors and shapes), soil mites, root aphids...and many. many more. It is possible for bagged soil to be infected, but bugs still need certain conditions they like to thrive and multiply. More organics in your mix and more water + higher temps and/or humidity, better environments there is for many bugs. Common advice is not to use things like worm castings in potting mix. They are great for gardens, not so much in containers. (from wiki): Springtails commonly consume fungal hyphae and spores, but also have been found to consume plant material and pollen, animal remains, colloidal materials, minerals and bacteria. ETA: I just looked up Ecothrive Charge. It is beetle poop - so you are adding more poop to your pots, together with worm poop. ..."Laboratory tests have shown that Charge consistently contains more than 450 million colony forming units of beneficial rhizosphere bacteria per gram! "... It also states: ..."Charge is a 100% naturally-produced potting soil enhancer ..." Soil enhancer is not fertilizer IIRC.

Thats true.... but there always is and was demand for hoya and orchids, and ive seen plenty of old hoya plants as well..... but i am questioning whether there is a high demand for slow growing succulent plants with stinky flowers..... i dont live in the US, and the plant is from a local manufacturer. And I can only speculate that rare plants=hard to grow and propagate for mass production. Then again, same one made and sold euphorbia heptagona and orbea decaisneana..... those two arent dutch shelf variety cultivars either....

Ecology: English Ivy prefers open forests but is adaptable to many habitats and moisture conditions. English Ivy serves as a reservoir for bacterial leaf scorch that infects maples, oaks, and elms. This invasive vine colonizes by vine growth and seeds that are spread by birds. Very few species of wildlife use English Ivy because it is mildly toxic. taken from the site linked below: https://projects.ncsu.edu/goingnative/howto/mapping/invexse/englishi.html

I'd still go with springtails, even if the particular species you have isn't very springy.