flower pot coral.... impossible?

Truly amazing. 10 years is a looooong time considering im 24. I bought a branching alveopora from a less than reputable lfs. It started out white with good polyp extension. Once in my tank it turned greener and greener. The polyps soon extended to the max and i thought that the skeleton and flesh were even beginning to grow/swell etc. It looked amazing for 4 months. Then one week the polyps came out less and less each day until it never extended out like it once had. At best polyps come out a quarter of the way. Thats where im at today.

so sad most beautiful coral ive owned when extended

When I got my coral home it was very expanded. But after not to long just had very minimal expansion. Until I spot fed it, since then it's been expanding again.
 
Idk if it helps you but my flowerpot is probably one the largest pieces in my tank. I ve had hime about 4 months he is always extended. My lovely clowns have even decided to host him instead of my RBTA. Idk if thats helping or worse but in the beggining he was small and now he is quite large. I dont spot i just try to drop food over him and the clown tends to bring some food back to him
 
Idk if it helps you but my flowerpot is probably one the largest pieces in my tank. I ve had hime about 4 months he is always extended. My lovely clowns have even decided to host him instead of my RBTA. Idk if thats helping or worse but in the beggining he was small and now he is quite large. I dont spot i just try to drop food over him and the clown tends to bring some food back to him

what color is your flowerpot
 
slower flow and tons of food and you will not have a problem,
they come from lagoons, in nature, just try to replicate that environment
 
Idk if it helps you but my flowerpot is probably one the largest pieces in my tank. I ve had hime about 4 months he is always extended. My lovely clowns have even decided to host him instead of my RBTA. Idk if thats helping or worse but in the beggining he was small and now he is quite large. I dont spot i just try to drop food over him and the clown tends to bring some food back to him

That's awesome you had success with it! If you could post a pic that would be great!
 
That's awesome you had success with it! If you could post a pic that would be great!

Here ya go. Dont mind the plastic bin, thats get my mushroom to stick contraption. The first one is before feeding and the second is after. Also the NPS i am fighting with it to open up more often its starting to but still working on it.
2012-04-23_12-56-45_999.jpg

2012-04-23_14-05-26_811.jpg
 
don't brag about keeping this coral unless it is at least 18 months in your tank; more than 18 months and you have done something very rare!!!!
 
don't brag about keeping this coral unless it is at least 18 months in your tank; more than 18 months and you have done something very rare!!!!

wasnt bragging, just offering some advice and showing that it can be happy. ill let you know at 18m if its still alive, hopefully it will be
 
People seem to be attributing their success to feeding and low flow (sometimes nutrient rich water too). Coral magazine had an article about goniopora and it focused on the ORA red. They said that they do not feed theirs and keep them alongside their sps frags (higher flow im guessing). Not say that feeding and lower flow is bad. Just a thought.
 
wasnt bragging, just offering some advice and showing that it can be happy. ill let you know at 18m if its still alive, hopefully it will be

i wish you luck and hope you succeed. but having tried many types of goniopora and alveopra without success a believe they are nearly impossible to keep; some people claim success but i have never seen it beyond a year or two....my last attempt was a red branching alveopora that i was told had the best chance at survival, after about a year it did the same as all the others, extending less and less then death. i have seen nothing new on these corals; i think you have a better chance with the orange cup coral in your pic....
 
My ORA Red Goniopora has been thriving. It has more that doubled in size in the 10 months that I've had it.

June 2011



Crappy cell pic from today.

 
My ORA Red Goniopora has been thriving. It has more that doubled in size in the 10 months that I've had it.

June 2011



Crappy cell pic from today.



congrats dave;
but let me give you my story...tried one about 13 years ago and it died, met 2 marine biologist that had a lfs, they said" bare bottom tank, weekly water changes, lower flow", tried 2 more, both dead...went to a Julian Sprung expo he said "iron dosing". i told him i had been adding iron for years and still no luck....he said it needed to be "bio-available" iron that he was selling....bought 2 more; red branching alveopora and a red goni....dead!!!

i think these corals need a food that we can not supply in a reef tank, because mine always die the same way...slowily over the coarse of one to two years...
 
i currently have both pink and purple goniporas ..they are still frags at this point they are easier to keep..than regular gonipora..

if you are hesitant you van get an alvipora very similar look ..much hardier..
 
I had a green goni almost 20 years ago that died within 6mo. I recently tried the ORA red species hoping for better results. So far I'm optimistic. PE is rediculous and it eats frozen brine and cyclopeez every other day. I know it consumes the food I feed it because 8-10 hours later when the lights come on I see the tell tale digested remains. I've only had it a couple weeks but I'll post some growth shots once I've had it a while. Any success stories with this ORA species?
 
. I dont spot i just try to drop food over him and the clown tends to bring some food back to him

I don't think this is possible! Known food for goniopora is in the micron range, far too small for your clown fish to "bring back"

Check out goniopower. Also, more relevant foods would be fauna min foods, and reef pearls. Blended cyclopeeze (for cyclopeeze "juice") and oyster eggs worked wonders for me. But hey, don't take my word for it,here it is from a "professional opinion"

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-10/nftt/index.php

Also, from that source, some others and my personal experience,I have found that regardless of the type of sub-goniopora you have, they ALL require manual feeding. Well, the article says only one form of goniopora grew without eating, but all others it is a necessity, unless your tank produces a very VERY large amount of tiny fauna.
 
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