My Acro Nursery

[knukles55]

wow these are nice looking colonies looks like your in the set it forget it kind of stage. corals look amazing

 

[maoiwowie]

Thanks Knukles. Serious set it and forget it mode. I add my supplements and feed the fish daily, hand massage the zeolites when i remember to, and change some water weekly along with other minor things like clean the skimmer and recharge the kalk. I do not deviate from the routine at all. I test Alk perhaps once or twice a month and have stopped testing for NO3 or PO4 completely. I havent purchased any frags nor fish for the tank since last February so no pest concerns. Unfortunately the glass will only be clean for a few weeks before the coralline spots take over again...

 

[knukles55]

Glass is over rated look down tanks are in now anyways lol

 

[scrapz]

Saw the tanks in person, to say the least I was very impressed. Bigger tank time

 

[maoiwowie]

Its been about a year since my last frag purchase. Since we are about to step into a new year, i thought id update this thread with some more growth shots. Good things do come to those who wait... Cheers!

This one is from BattleCorals. Its called "Rainbow Swarmi" and its barely covered the plug in a year. But its about to take flight...

This next one is about 20 months old. Its an "Icefire" that is finally growing well and fast.

When I bought this piece, i thought it was another Red Planet. The seller told me it was called "Hellfire." Over the last 18 months it has morphed into something almost efflo-like. It has these thick paddles that is definitely not typical RP growth.

This piece came in half dead. Didnt do anything for over a year. Its finally living up to its reputation... "Blue Matrix."

And lastly, this piece also came from BattleCorals. Its not the most popular piece, but it is amazing. "Blue Moon Humulis."

 

[maoiwowie]

Last one... BCs "Hyperberry". A really cool SSC variant.

 

[matt 76]

That hyperberry looks amazing! Very nice!

 

[sandipan.ece]

I just read the entire thread! Its an inspiration for new sps keepers like me. Thank you.

 

[maoiwowie]

Thanks Sandi! This hobby sometimes feels like you are paying to watch paint dry, while having a tooth pulled. Goodluck!

 

[markalot]

Thanks for the update, I love looking at growth over time shots. Hope the new year is good for ya.

 

[rvareef]

nice growth!, the rainbow swarmi looks like a.saramentosa

 

[maoiwowie]

Thanks Mark... Ditto to you. Hope 2016 will be kind to yours and your corals.

Yes, its a Saramentosa. If it turns out to look anything close to the one pictured on their website, it might be my favorite.

 

[sandipan.ece]

Thanks Sandi! This hobby sometimes feels like you are paying to watch paint dry, while having a tooth pulled. Goodluck!

So true.
Only a fellow sps keeper will understand.
My family and friends think I am crazy in trying to grow brown sticks!
I showed them the photos in this thread and said someone did it.

 

[chilli_reef]

I am regretting picking up Monti Caps. They simply take up so much space. But the encrusting and branching are lovely. This one is really nice. Started out as a nub.

M. Setosa

Minature brittlestars love to hang out inside and on the branches.

That is sweet

 

[maoiwowie]

Thanks Matt. The Hyperberry is an awesome SSC. Its a nice steady grower too. I hope your tank is coming along well.

Thanks Chilli. The setosa is probably the nicest monti out there.

Happy New Year to both of you and everyone else reading this thread! Goodluck with your tanks in 2016!

 

[Goldtorch]

I absolutely love this tank and corals one day I will have this

 

[maoiwowie]

Goldtorch - I appreciate the kind words. Im not sure where your tank is at, but im sure you will get there.

 

[jsnrho82]

Great stuff! I also echo your sentiment found earlier in the thread, some of the real gems brown significantly and take months to color back up and start growing. Totally worth the wait if left alone, but I see many would be SPS keepers get nervous about the lack of color who take drastic measures when all they need to do is wait.

Thanks for sharing this inspiration!

 

[maoiwowie]

Thanks! If you have a brown coral that is growing with nice healthy skin you are much better off than that paling stick that is close to STN. It is a matter of time before the coral colors up, so have patience. Colors themselves can be manipulated by nutrients and light. These are a few things ive learned after failing many times because I just tinkered too much too soon.

But there are times when healthy corals seem to go dormant. Its like suspended animation; they are frozen in time. They neither regress nor grow. Ill show you two pieces in my tank that are in this state. They are almost a year old from my last BattleCoral purchase. If "Glass Slipper" and "Skinny Love" were the only two frags in my tank I would indeed think there was something wrong with the tank. But my tank is fine, and these frags are jerks.

 

[jsnrho82]

Do you have any other smooth skinned (perhaps deep water) acros in the tank? Those seem to be quite similar, and I wonder if the slow growth for those two could be the result of their needing something that your tank isn't providing? Have you tried repositioning them?

At any rate, your thread inspired me to set up the 30ish gallon frag tank I bought a few months back. I had intended to wait until I moved to my "forever home" but after seeing your success, I am going to set it up and start growing nubs. Hopefully I will have some good colonies going by the time I have my dream tank ready! Keep up the awesome work!