Question
When I'm at college, I have two plants, a christmas cactus (have owned it for approximately 1.5 years) and a spiky plant that occasionally grows long stems with tiny trumpet shaped flowers, which I've owned for about eight months.  I came back to my parents' house for the summer, and my plants have been with mom's plants (another christmas cactus, a few more of the spiky plants with long stems (she got me this, I have no idea what it is called) and a small bonsai plant).  My spiky plant now has little yellow mushrooms growing in it, and an investigation of mom's plants revealed yellow stuff on the soil in two, and what looks like old spores on the soil of the bonsai plant.  I have a sentimental attachment to my plants, they are the only plants I've managed to keep alive for this long, and I'm severely allergic to pretty much any type of spore that I have been exposed to.  I really don't want to have to get rid of the plant that has the mushrooms, and I really don't want the christmas cactus to get the mushrooms.  Is there any way to get the mushrooms to go away permanently and keep them from spreading to the cactus?  Preferably before exposure to the spores makes me sick?  Or does the presence of old spores in the other plants indicate that the cactus is already infested? Searching on the internet found lots of people asking this question, and lots of people answering "you should learn to love the mushrooms, they are pretty and educational!" but my allergies make this answer not practical at all.  I really don't want to have to get rid of the plants...

I desperately hope you can give me a solution other than "The mushrooms won't hurt you unless you eat them!"

Answer
Layn,

I understand, I have lots of allergies myself! Pick the mushrooms off immediately then go to a dollar store or Walmart and get a can of Lysol spray, the kind that says it kills viruses and bacteria while it scents your air. If you are allergic to scents as I am you can take the plant outside to spray it. Spray the surface of the soil daily for 2 weeks. That should kill off the spores. Mushrooms are a fungus and Lysol kills molds and fungus also. After the first 2 weeks you may spray it every 3 days for another month because in the fall there are a lot of fungus spores in the air and you don't want to give them a chance to get established. Good luck!!

Darlene