Chalice, Do NOT Grow List...who has em'

[Viva'sReef]

Not sure if its ever been discussed on here before, but what is everyones take on UN-proven chalices that just DO NOT GROW?

It seems that the chalice craze has really taken off lately. Some of us who have been collecting for awhile have seen many morphs come and go. Some that do really well ie. BGM, Miami Hurricane, OME, Various WM etc.

Lately though people have been buying up chalices and chopping little frags and selling them for high $$$ amounts before the chalice ever earns a track record. They are brought in from trans shipments, put under actinics, photographed, chopped, and sold for 20x what they are purchased for. Does anyone else have a problem with this? I understand that you can't stop it all together, and people will still try to take advantage of people not in the know. I have a couple myself that I thought were amazing looking, and figured screw it, I'll take a chance, maybe it will grow well, NOT!

So whats your opinion?

 

[mpoletti]

People come over and tell me that the Bazooka Joe is a very slow growing chalice.

 

[Ultimateaquariums]

I personally think it's nuts. Everyone is trying to get the next coolest thing. I was one of them until the prices just got out of hand. I think the draw with chalice corals is their survival and growth rate when you get a healthy one.

 

[SaraB]

My Peppermint Chalice just does not like to grow at all!

 

[Ultimateaquariums]

It would be nice to know the conditions of where these are collected. I'm sure like most corals the conditions vary and a coral not doing well may require something different..

 

[SDguy]

I have a green with yellow eye frag that has been the same size forever now Came off a wild large colony....

Is the slow groth genus/species related?

 

[Nanofins]

I dunno, I've got a number of chalices; some "designer", and some not. I have several maricultured pieces I've bought from a local lfs, and many of these have turned out to not only be beautiful pieces, but solid growers once they acclimated. I've bought "wild" colonies of Mycedium, Oxypora, and Echinophyllia genus, and they've all put on observable growth. Of course, I didn't try to hack them up right away after I got them and make money on them. Perhaps this is partly a factor? I'd venture a guess that a newly imported chalice just isn't going to be up to putting on huge growth right away, especially if it has to deal with being fragged right away too.

I get coral I like and want in my tank. Usually they grow well and I end up having the luxury of pruning, which I can then use to help pay for something new that catches my eye. I guess there aren't any chalices I've had that don't grow, though, like I said, some take a little while to get going. None of them are super-fast, but it's observable. My ECC Hybrid Watermelon didn't seem to do much of anything the first couple months (which I fully expected), but now, about six months later, it's tripled in size and grown from two eyes to seven. I haven't bothered it though, and it's been in the same spot in my tank the whole time. It seems to grow in spurts.

 

[Dace]

My Peppermint Chalice just does not like to grow at all!

and I've been patiently waiting for it to grow to get a frag of it :tongue:

 

[SaraB]

and I've been patiently waiting for it to grow to get a frag of it :tongue:

I think it receeds more than it grows actually! I've moved it into another system and hopefully it will grow so you get your frag!

 

[Dace]

My Bazooka Joe Has has doubled in size in 3 months but still only has one eye. My flame thrower is the one thats taking forever

 

[Dace]

I think it receeds more than it grows actually! I've moved it into another system and hopefully it will grow so you get your frag!

Is it still holding that nice color

 

[SaraB]

Is it still holding that nice color

Yes, the color is the same.

 

[Dace]

thats great, i'll be waiting.

 

[mpoletti]

Lately though people have been buying up chalices and chopping little frags and selling them for high $$$ amounts before the chalice ever earns a track record. They are brought in from trans shipments, put under actinics, photographed, chopped, and sold for 20x what they are purchased for. Does anyone else have a problem with this? I understand that you can't stop it all together, and people will still try to take advantage of people not in the know. I have a couple myself that I thought were amazing looking, and figured screw it, I'll take a chance, maybe it will grow well, NOT!

So whats your opinion?

So true. I am glad that I am not the only person to feel the same way. I recently saw a beat up chalice on a website for $4500. I really hope they just accidentally put an extra zero on it
The whole thing is a joke and luckily I do not feel the need to support the prices which are taking us to the bank. I have no problem paying good money for corals I want, but within a certain reason. The whole lets chop it up and pawn it off before we can even see what it does is what has drove me away from a handful of vendors.
And no its not just the vendors, I have seen plenty of "so called hobbyist" try to sell some average pieces for more than top end proven pieces just to capitalize on the way the market is going.

I sure hope it changes, but its doubtful

 

[miyags]

I have a PPE alien eye chalice frag with two large eyes. but it"s a vary slow grower for me. it has not changed much in over a year.my miami hurricane has covered the plug in the same amount of time.

 

[wishntoboutside]

Lately though people have been buying up chalices and chopping little frags and selling them for high $$$ amounts before the chalice ever earns a track record. They are brought in from trans shipments, put under actinics, photographed, chopped, and sold for 20x what they are purchased for. Does anyone else have a problem with this? I understand that you can't stop it all together, and people will still try to take advantage of people not in the know. I have a couple myself that I thought were amazing looking, and figured screw it, I'll take a chance, maybe it will grow well, NOT!

So whats your opinion?

+1 on this. yea so true and when it is cooler to have a frag of something instead of an entire colony or something similar. corals once the arrive need to aclimate and adjust to conditions stress and so forth. giving the corals a chance before cutting them up will make them gorw a lil faster for sure. on very rare occasions do i cut a new coral up. mostly site in my system a few months at least and kept under close watch.

 

[Viva'sReef]

I just want to be clear here.....Slow is one thing, I can live with SLOW!! Even if it only grows 1/2" a year.

Its the ones that do not grow at all.......or slowly recede and disappear.

 

[dieselab]

So true. I am glad that I am not the only person to feel the same way. I recently saw a beat up chalice on a website for $4500. I really hope they just accidentally put an extra zero on it
The whole thing is a joke and luckily I do not feel the need to support the prices which are taking us to the bank. I have no problem paying good money for corals I want, but within a certain reason. The whole lets chop it up and pawn it off before we can even see what it does is what has drove me away from a handful of vendors.
And no its not just the vendors, I have seen plenty of "so called hobbyist" try to sell some average pieces for more than top end proven pieces just to capitalize on the way the market is going.

I sure hope it changes, but its doubtful

starting trouble again huh Mark? I do agree with this nonsense and if you pay attention closely, you will notice that most online retailers are overstocked with recent wild chalice colonies. looks like we will be going through another craze real soon.

 

[MarvinsReef]

I just want to be clear here.....Slow is one thing, I can live with SLOW!! Even if it only grows 1/2" a year.

Its the ones that do not grow at all.......or slowly recede and disappear.

it's the Tyree Pink WM for me... my first one didn't do anything for 2 years... actually it did, grew, then receded back, then grew and receded back... vicious cycle for two years even putting it friend's tanks... my last one did good for a few weeks and started receding... brought it to Junior's and dunno how it's doing now... hopefully better than when I left it... believe it or not, I also lost a BGM frag that did well for a few weeks as well...

I'm done collecting for now... I'm just gonna keep what I have now and let them grow... I think I still have a decent collection so I can trade later on...

 

[dieselab]

molasses slow would be Tyree Pink Watermelon which hasn't grown much over 3 years. second to that is the Bazooka Joe. I was told that it grows much fast after it reaches a certain sizes. still patiently waiting for it to reach that sizes.