My giant toadstool

[PCKRAJ]

http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz240/PCKRAJ/th_100_0267.jpg
http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz240/PCKRAJ/th_100_0277.jpg
http://i831.photobucket.com/albums/zz240/PCKRAJ/th_100_0270.jpg

It's gotten bigger since these pics. To frag this, would I just cut a piece off the end? I've never fragged anything before. Also, how do I make the pics smaller?

Thanks

 

[PCKRAJ]

This is getting aggravating. Trying to put the pics in body of post, not link.

 

[PCKRAJ]

 

[PCKRAJ]

OMG - now they're giant size pics- I give up. At least you get the picture (pun intended)

 

[EllieSuz]

Carol, you can edit (resize) pictures in Photobucket. Click on the little box of the picture you want to edit and it will take you to the Edit Function. The easiest way is to choose a pre-set resize. I prefer the medium size. Be sure to save the picture when you're done editing it. You can save a copy or replace the original. You're already on the right track. We can see your Toadstool just fine.

BTW, Jason, who bought your 90 gallon has a Toadstool at least that big sitting front and center just like yours. I once saw one at Marine Oasis that must have been 18 inches across. They can get huge, for sure. I hope someone will chime in with fragging instructions because I can see mine getting too big also.

 

[Henry Colf]

That thing is Huuugggeee!!!!

 

[PCKRAJ]

Ellie, I read they can get 3 foot, this one is close to 2 foot, so I'm hoping to frag it and give a piece to the wonderful man that sold it to me for $25.00. He has a 75 gallon and it took up way too much space.

I'm hoping I can cut a piece off with scissors while it's in the tank. Anyone know if that's okay to do?

 

[REGGAEX]

very interested in how to frag it mine is getting big also.

 

[TruReef]

Yeah you can just cut a piece off & tie it to a rock. Just a half dollar size off the cap, no stem needed. Put it in a low flow/light area for it to heal. Mine drops pieces all the time, you have see it before it falls off or it will blow around the tank till it finds a hold somewhere & starts to grow.

 

[TruReef]

I forgot to mention it will slime from the cut for awhile. Dangerous for sps & some other corals. If u run GAC you'll be fine. If not, put in another container to frag & then back to the tank.

 

[pascal32]

You can cut the polyp areas, use a very sharp razor blade or sharp scissors, try to make quick clean cuts. If possible do outside the tank. Replace your carbon to deal with toxins.

If you are having sps issues the large toadstoal might be part of the problem. I have a small one in my sps system with no issue, when they start getting larger that changes.

Carbon helps manage them in a mixed tank

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

I forget the fancy biologist's word, but this species are able to regenerate an entire colony from any living fragment of flesh, regardless of if it comes from the stalk or cap. That said the big "if" associated with that statement is that the frag has to be healthy enough to survive. :lol:

In the past I've had large colonies where I hacked and slashed the entire thing into tiny bits and zip tied each bit to a piece of rock. I'd get maybe 2/3rds of them growing into new colonies, the rest died from various causes.

The safest way is probably to wait until it buds (it'll look like a tiny cap growing from the side of the stalk) and hack the bud off. The buds typically fall off on their own after a while anyways. But if you're in a hurry I'd take a slice off the side of the cap and cut it into three or four small squares, then tie each square to a bit of rock. Even if you only want one frag, cutting a few gives you better chances that one lives, and if you luck out you'll have some extras to trade.

And yeah, run carbon!

 

[tmz]

I agree buds are the safest and easiest. I frag mine off just before they are ready to fall off. Forthose who haven't seen them they are small circular clones of the colony that separate from it at the edge often form ing a small stalk before separation.

Alternatively, , you can just slice off a section with a razor from and edge, say 1 inch wide and 3 inches long ,for example, then slice that into 3 1 inch frags.

Piecing the frag with a wooden toothpick, attaching the toothpick to a piece of rubble or frag plug with crazy glue or a rubberband ,and sliding the impaled frag down to touch the rock surface, almost always gets a nice new specimen nicely attached,ime Put the frags in nice light and flow and the coral should attach in a week or two.. You can nip of the excess toothpick or leae it to degarade.. The part inside the coral tissue will degrade and disappear over time

 

[Eastamherstbias]

I frag my ORA neon green toadstool all the time. Every 6 months, I cut the top off and split the crown into 5/6 pieces. No deaths. I leave them in a low current environment for 2-3 weeks until they graft onto some rocks.

 

[mr86mister]

http://youtu.be/5ES8VEEaNIk

HTH!

 

[PCKRAJ]

Thanks for all the suggestions, that video is awesome. I should have done that before I put it in the tank.

I'll try using sharp shears to cut a chunk off while in the tank.