Hi Mithander, Sorry, there's so much going on w/ this plant. Fungus gnats are generally indicators of too much watering. These plants are jungle cacti, not arid cacti, so they do need water w/ reasonable frequency & are designed to tolerate the extreme heat of the tropics. (They originally hail from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil which is where I grew up, so I know they have rainy season in January & that it gets VERY hot.) But that said, they need fast draining mix 'cause their roots can rot quite easily. Yes, flowering is a lot of work for the plant, but generally one withholds water for one month after flowering & then the plant slowly starts to come back. Usually mine start putting on new growth again in March or April & I resume a regular watering schedule. Maybe the soil you used had wetting agents in it? If you still have the package maybe read the list of ingredients. At any rate, soil that's too wet & then a a plant moved to a pot that's too big combine to make for conditions for rot. Also putting it into a cooler room combined w/ damp soil can also lead to serious rot & root rot (that's why you have fewer roots). These plants normally grow up in the crotches of trees w/very little mix & just whatever leaf debris & animal wastes happen to drop on them. Their natural habitat gets lots of rain, sometimes frequent rain (depending on the season). Sorry, but if a plant stays too wet, the last thing to do is water it more. Does the pot still have drainage holes? 'cause this is in part a bad drainage problem. I'd put it back into the smaller pot, into a mix of 1/2 African violet soil & half perlite or pumice. I'd smell the roots for rot & then sprinkle ordinary cinnamon (like you use for baking, actual to prevent rot) on the roots & then shake them off & pot up as above. I'd put the newly repotted plant into a position of bright, indirect light & then please leave the plant alone. These plants thrive w/ benign neglect & when healthy, a bit of fertilizer. They tend not to do well when fussed over. I realize you're trying to help the plant, but you're killing it w/ kindness & not resolving the basic problem which sounds to be bad mix, compounded by too much water & then maybe also cold, air conditioned air. While you wait for it to recover you can check out your other cuttings which you mentioned are growing well & also read lots of Christmas Cactus posts here at C&S. Good luck!

I would say let them do what they want. I'd probably bring them up and put them in front of a full sun window, and give them drinks when they are thirsty. I have three out in my garage that have gone dormant, three in the yard that are dormant, and three in the house, two of which that are still putting out big beautiful leaves, and the other a cutting that is still struggling to root. When your plants are ready for sleep they will let you know, and then you can tuck them in their beds (basement) for their long winters nap. That's my two cents worth. p.s. 14 degrees! Sheeeesh! I'll stay down here in Florida. Lauri

Oh, honey. Can't we fix up your SS and my SD and throw them to the curb??? I feel for you, but at least your husband is on your side. I have tried everything in my case and my DH is just burying his head in the sand. W/ us, I was taken advantage of so badly by his son, who lived w/ us for a couple of years at the end of H.S. and for breaks from college. Then, these SDs started crashing in on us during college, always w/ a crowd. Now, this older SD moved in for "3-4" months. It'll be 6 mo. in the end of the month and I'm just sick of it as it's very disruptive to my 3, almost 5, and 7 y.o. boys. Anyway, your situation stinks. Your SS CHOSE to be an adult when it was convenient for him to be an adult, but when it's easier for him to play the "poor son", he reverts back to being a child. I feel for this poor baby he fathered. I actually commend him for wanting to step up and be a father, but he needs to first recognize himself AS AN ADULT! My parents have had issues w/ my brother. My dad is calm all the time, but once just lost it and asked my mother how she'd have felt if he were in his 40's and still totally relying on his parents for food, money, etc. I would simply tell him that you're proud of the hands on father he is trying to be, but that the first step is for his child to respect him. Does he want the child to see him as an overgrown teen? (I have huge issues w/ so many of today's adult men who still view themselves as 16 y.o. boys!) Of course he should be able to see his baby whenever possible, but you and his father don't need to go through that stage again. Say you'd love to extend to them a standing invitation for Sunday dinner - tell him to come over early, let you both play w/ the baby, eat, then he can GO HOME! It's time. He's made adult decisions so it's time to be an adult. And, I'm w/ you - the technicality of being in school is a joke. Come on, being in school means you are taking enough classes that you are prevented from holding down a real job! He needs to grow up! Good luck, keep posting, Dana

Thank you for your response. The AC guy thought he was smelling creosote and ask where my furnace was, which I don't have. I have an air handler up in the attic. I had all the ductwork cleaned last week. Not much was in there. When I first smelled this odor back in April when I bought the house, it smelled like "a swimming pool" to me. Above this tar waterproofing on the outside of the house (because this is in the basement below the stairs) is a 1987 central air conditioner that still runs. I suspected they had water leaking from that unit at some point..because the copper pipes go into the closet and because when I removed the mulch from around the air conditioning unit outside THE MULCH SMELLED OF THE ODOR THAT I AM DETECTING. 3 Air conditioning repairmen later, and they all said the unit is not leaking and is running fine with no cost out of my pocket except for the service call. The windows are open every day and the bulkhead doors too. I am guessing it will not dissipate. I can smell it in my clothing if I leave my laundry to hang there near the washer. I would like to paint over this dry-feeling tar with something like a KILZ ODOR BLOCKER, but I am not sure which one I should use. Sadly, if I cannot overcome this I will literally have to sell the house. I have also removed the drop ceiling tiles in that area and the insulation- that ALL smelled of this odor. I will just have to cover it up, I guess. Any ideas what I can use? The Baxter Group out of Chambersburg, PA said they could sand the tar off the wall in January. Not sure I want to remove the waterproofing tar material, though, without a back up plan. And after all this, WHAT IF it is not even the tar being the culprit sickening odor? LOL OMG. Thank you for your information! Stay safe, Sir.