Neptune Aquatics

Fragging a leather coral, anyone want a large show piece?

gmdcdvm

gmdcdvm

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Hello,
I haven’t done any fragging of corals in the past (at least not intentionally). Mostly it is because my corals have been growing slowly.
I have a nice large long polyp leather coral. Unfortunately it is getting to big for my tank and starting to cover up the rest of the corals nearby.
I was planning on cutting it off at the very base of the stock, and then cutting a small frag to regrow. That will leave me with a large 8-10 inch across leather.

Does anyone have advice about fragging it? I have read to use a sharp blade and just cut it off.
For my frag I read you just cut a piece off the top, glue it down, and start over.

Anyone want a nice large size long polyp leather? Or should I cut it up into smaller pieces and pass them out?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Gerry

Here is a pic of the coral: it is about 8-10 inches long by 5-6 inches wide.
8a122d4a4b317c7035796aacfa51a566.jpg



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Ill be happy to grow it out in my tank :D For fragging, you could just use a sharp razor blade and cut pieces. Supposedly, the stalk grows into another toadstool so you can cut disks from the stalk and it should grow to another toadstool (i have never seen that done yet).
 
Cut the cap off the top and then chunk the cap off into multiple pieces as frags. Glue doesn't work too well since the frags will slime up and detach. Better off using a light rubberband that doesn't have too much tension so that it doesn't cut into the tissue (zip tie works as well) or place a net over some rubble for it to attach over time.

The stalk will regrow its own cap over time.
 
Ibn said:
Cut the cap off the top and then chunk the cap off into multiple pieces as frags. Glue doesn't work too well since the frags will slime up and detach. Better off using a light rubberband that doesn't have too much tension so that it doesn't cut into the tissue (zip tie works as well) or place a net over some rubble for it to attach over time.

The stalk will regrow its own cap over time.
Click to expand...
If you follow lbn and create multiple frags, I would love a frag :)
 
Toadstool is looking good Gerry!
Fragging it is super easy, cut around the rim of the crown. Then cut it into smaller 1” pieces. Attach it to rock rubble with a rubber band and wait two weeks for it to attach. Run carbon when you place it back in the tank because the toadstool will release some chemicals.
 
Ibn said:
Cut the cap off the top and then chunk the cap off into multiple pieces as frags. Glue doesn't work too well since the frags will slime up and detach. Better off using a light rubberband that doesn't have too much tension so that it doesn't cut into the tissue (zip tie works as well) or place a net over some rubble for it to attach over time.

The stalk will regrow its own cap over time.
Click to expand...
You alive!
 
I glue them to frag plugs and just leave them in a mushroom bin for low flow until they grow attached to the frag plugs. No need for bands. Works great for me every time.


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I'd be interested in either the entire thing or a frag; looking for a nice long polyp leather for my tank and wouldn't mind something larger to immediately fill in space.

In my experience, a happy leather can be borderline invasive. The leftover tissue can/will grow into more leathers.

I cut a large one off a rock and a few months later had about 6 more growing.
 
So,
Essentially just use s sharp blade, cut it off at the base, and then cut it into frags for everyone? I think I can manage that. Should be fun to try it out. I will let you all know how it goes and when I have frags available.

Gerry
 
The hard part with toadstools is getting them on a frag plug since they are slimey.

Also run carbon when you chop it off.
 
gmdcdvm said:
So,
Essentially just use s sharp blade, cut it off at the base, and then cut it into frags for everyone? I think I can manage that. Should be fun to try it out. I will let you all know how it goes and when I have frags available.

Gerry
Click to expand...

Cut around the cap, not the base of the stalk. Then keep the remaining stalk so it'll grow back for you. It has a higher chance of survival. Leathers are pretty resilient though.
Here's a good video
 
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