Fast growing acros

[VR28man]

Good thread!

For those who keep green slimers (A yongei) about what PAR would you recommend for best/fastest growth?

I ask because these don’t seem to be corals that directly need a lot of PAR to thrive, since they don’t grow in their highest density at the surface.


Though I’m not familiar with typical Pacific reef zonation, this looks parallel to the Acropora cervicornis (A very similar branching species) zones in the Caribbean. That is, they live in thickets several tens of square meter in size, from about 10 to 25 m in depth.

ref: http://www.mesophotic.org/system/publications/pdfs/000/000/191/original/Kinzie-1973a.pdf

 

[MadCityReefer]

Double post

 

[d0m1n4t3]

Bonsai grew pretty fast for us. Always like the blue/purple with green polyp contrast.

2nd this... mine is growing like crazy.

 

[MadCityReefer]

WWC Yellow Tips grows stupid fast and Cliff’s Acro

 

[reefkeeperCOL]

Red dragon, grows too fast for me

 

[jdota]

WWC Yellow Tips and WD have been my fastest growers.

 

[TexasTodd]

VR, I'll try to measure, but Slimer grows well at many different PAR levels, but, does do very well still in lower PAR. I think the base of my current smaller colony is under 200 PAR. I just raised my lights so it's getting more than it was.
I purchased a used system last March that needed a lot of upgrading. In it was a single branch 2.5" Slimer on plug. I'd say it has grown into about 75" total since then, adding up base and all branches.

 

[VR28man]

I'd say it has grown into about 75" total since then, adding up base and all branches.

Thanks!

75 inches in a year???!!!!!

 

[TexasTodd]

Total, yes. Including frags I've cut that I'm sure are much larger than the length I cut them at and counted them at.

As it grew I cut branches and glued them down on the same piece of rock which has now grown all together with lots of branches growing up.

 

[jwshiver]

WD at 11 months from 1 inch frag

 

[VR28man]

WD at 11 months from 1 inch frag

Nice. What are your parameters? (PAR, flow, alk, ca, no3, etc.?)

 

[Javamahn]

California Tort and Miyagi Tort are fast growing for me. Not so much Blue Oregon Tort. Love my Torts

 

[madweazl]

Yellow tip austera is a quick grower and some are quite beautiful.

 

[Reefpuck]

Any digi grows fast for me. Birdnests too.

 

[jwshiver]

Nice. What are your parameters? (PAR, flow, alk, ca, no3, etc.?)

PAR at the WD is 375 (measured with a LI-Cor 250A) If I run the Reef Brites with the halides the PAR increase to almost 500 and all of the corals at the top of the tank wash out.
Flow is three MP40's on sides and two MP10's on the back. Two MP40's at 100% sync the other at 70% anti-sync. One MP10 at 60% and one MP10 at 80% both syn to MP40's. Percentage is dictated by placement. From 7:00 am to 8:00 pm I run Reef Crest mode and at night I run Nutrient Transport mode. Four times per day I run all of the Vortech's at the same time at 100% constant for 15 minutes. Some of the fish head for cover during these times and others seem to enjoy the current. This helps stir up the detritus in the tank. Flow = ridiculous for a 120 gallon but the SPS seem to love it. This is a SPS dominate tank and running this kind of flow can be a challenge for placement of anything not an SPS.
dkh around 8.5, NO3 around 2.5 to 5 and PO4 around .02 to .05

 

[TexasTodd]

JWshiver, dang, that is impressive!
I placed a WD and a JF SF in my system last April and something just went bad with them. I'm now thinking it may have been when i stuck a freshly sun blocked arm in without thinking (I was heading out to float a river and a coral had just fallen into another) Other corals are fine and anything new after grows like crazy, but those two have done nothing in 10 months.

 

[ReefAddict16]

I wish my wd grew that fast. Too bad it started to stn so I had to frag it up.
Here’s a year worth of growth from an inch frag lol.

 

[ReefAddict16]

WD at 11 months from 1 inch frag

Are you dosing any aminos? Heavy fish load? What kind of lights?

 

[jwshiver]

View attachment 982715

Are you dosing any aminos? Heavy fish load? What kind of lights?

48' Giesemann Spectra Halide with two 250W Radium's, 2 ATI Blue Plus, 2 ATI Coral Plus and 2 Reef Bright Actinic Blue XHO. My growth and color have never been better sense switching from Radions.
I just started experimenting with amino's and I have 15 fish.
View attachment 982716

 

[jwshiver]

Tried to attach to last post. (I no longer have the Sea Swirl)