Pulsing Xenia

[Roy G. Biv]

This sort of contradicts everything I know.

"Xenia thrives in pristine water conditions. The polyps pulse and pump, making them a spectacular addition to reef aquariums. Under ideal conditions, the colonies spread very quickly.

This is a Restricted item and is not covered by our Arrive Alive 5 Day Guarantee."

I pretty much can cut a frag of it, drop it on the floor, vacuum it up, wait an hour, and dump it back in the tank and it will still be alive

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/17732/product.web

 

[psteeleb]

Wow - learn something new everyday, not.

Who knows, maybe they kept getting newbees buying the stuff and it dies because their amonia levels are still high. Low amonia could be considered pristine. Right?

 

[MYDRAAL]

They're just covering their buts from the people that just don't seem to be able to keep Xenia:rollface:

 

[jonnydalejunior]

yeah xenia is crazy. sometimes it grows like a weed and then sometimes it just melts away.

 

[rigleautomotive]

actually they ship very poorly.probably the worse coral to ship period.thats why the pet shops love to get the stuff brought in by hobbiests.that must be why

 

[demonsp]

Are you saying that the ones you have can survive this ?MB if it goes in the same prestine tank.
These guys can actually do better in higher nitrate and phosphates.

 

[o.c.d.]

I read on RC that in nature there is a seasonal die off that occurs with xenia and I have had and heard many people having a die off for no apparent reason

 

[rigleautomotive]

i have had a crop of elongata that i harvest 20 or so colonies off a month for about 8 years.it is a constant source of store credit for me so i am not sure how true that is

 

[rbursek]

I heard they like dirty water, nitrates and stuff, never had good luck with them or my mentor but we run 0-5 trates.

 

[Larah]

I have a small frag, did real well for about a week...
It's all balled into it'self now... my params are "pristine" so I dunno what the heck is wrong with the dam thing!
Gettin' ready to throw it out....

 

[willewonka]

I had some when my nitrates were a little high. Slowly just dissappeared.

 

[rigleautomotive]

i am surprised so many people have trouble with xenia.i grow it in nutrient poor and lps tanks like weeds.it grows great in my sps tank that is o phosphates and non detectable nitrates as well as my lps tanks with some nitrates.the main thing with xenia is they like to be swaying in the flow.not pinned one direction and not sitting still.i uses high random flow and they bend to and fro in both tanks and thrive.if they do not get enough flow they rot quickly.also they do not like high temp.over 83 to 84 hurts them.but most important is lots of random flow.once established they grow like a weed,doubling every two to three weeks.

 

[spazthecat]

I'd agree that Xenia is funny. I had great luck with it for the first 2 years my tank was up. Then one day it all melted for no apparent reason. Everything else in the tank was fine. I've never been able to keep any alive after that. It's weird. Zoas and Xenia just don't do well in my tank.

Andy

 

[Roy G. Biv]

Somebody here was going to put some xenia in a blender and try to paint it on liverock like moss. I don't know how that went.

 

[austinvanover]

It grows like a weed in my tank and helps support my hobby. I make about $100 every two weeks on selling the stuff and cannot even tell it has been cut back. What I have found is that it will melt down it the alk. is low.

 

[styndall]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11970209#post11970209 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by demonsp
Are you saying that the ones you have can survive this ?MB if it goes in the same prestine tank.
These guys can actually do better in higher nitrate and phosphates.

I think all evidence of this characteristic is anecdotal. I've never seen a solid study demonstrating healthier xenia in nitrate- and phosphate-heavy environments.