Gonna try some shrooms

[Daddy-o]

Been reefing a couple years and most of the mushrooms we had were "pests" This kinda made me hate shrooms. The ones we had were ugly and prolific. I steered my reef to stix. Several months ago I started a zoa tank. It is at the point where it is populated and I am just watching it grow.
Now I think I am going to do a tank focusing on "nice" mushrooms. We do have a couple mushrooms in our 8 reef tanks and one of those tanks has only an eel in it and has elevated nutrients. This should be a great shroom tank. I have never fragged a shroom and know very little about them. I am always looking for good advice and the input of other reefers. Let the journey begin.

My first mushroom is this Jaw Breaker. It has been alive but not thriving and dropping babies everywhere. I have had it 15 months and as I look at it closely, it has formed a second mouth and I am guessing it will split. I have no idea if this takes a long time or if I should just scalpel between the mouthes?
Cheers! Mark

 

[Daddy-o]

Shroom #2 is a WWC OG Bounce. We got it several months ago as a frag and it has grown to about 1.5 inches. It is really nice with some big bubbles.

A friend of mine came over yesterday to give me a fragging lesson. We cut the OG into 3 "LiL" OGs. I was really nervous watching the scalpel go through them. I guess now we just wait and hope they make it?

 

[Daddy-o]

Shroom #3 is also a WWC OG Bounce. It is a frag that we got a week ago. The bubbles are crazy big.

 

[Daddy-o]

The 3 that we cut yesterday are looking good. A little deflated, but good.

 

[LRT]

Very cool following along to see how your OG cuts do. Ive had mine awhile now and have been wanting to cut it the whole time just haven't gotten the guts to do so since I had a bad experience cutting my JF Minecraft shroom.
From my understanding and after lots of research. Jawbreakers are hit or miss for people and considered for more advanced reefers. I personally believe they thrive and do better in an older well mature, super stable, low nutrient system as opposed to what I'm finding bounce shrooms either like or are able to tolerate.
That being said I think people would freak out when I told them along this past year. I've had tons of issues. Building new system, getting things dialed, stupid human reefer mistakes ive made along the way.
I've seen salinity swings between 1.023-1.028. Temps swings from 68f -86f. Nitrate swings from 0 to astronomical off the chart readings from Nitrate overdose incident. Phosphate swings from 0-.15- .2. Alk swings from 8-15 due to bad rodi.
Through all this I believe my biggest issue to date was when my Nitrate OD bottomed out my Phoshates.
I'm finding bounce and most shrooms do better in higher Nitrate system for sure.
That along with ive been playing with a slightly increased UV schedule. Not much higher than reccomended just slightly elevated.
Ive also been playing with pedal/foot laceration and having good success in making babies.
Your Jawbreaker don't look too bad to me. Haven't seen much on fragging them but in theory they should do pretty well with it. I used to chop discos up like pizzas back in the day and sell them back to lfs for reefing gear.
But as said Jawbreakers are cut from a different cloth in my opinion.

You can check out my shroom garden in build thread link im my avatar as well.

 

[Daddy-o]

Very cool following along to see how your OG cuts do. Ive had mine awhile now and have been wanting to cut it the whole time just haven't gotten the guts to do so since I had a bad experience cutting my JF Minecraft shroom.
From my understanding and after lots of research. Jawbreakers are hit or miss for people and considered for more advanced reefers. I personally believe they thrive and do better in an older well mature, super stable, low nutrient system as opposed to what I'm finding bounce shrooms either like or are able to tolerate.
That being said I think people would freak out when I told them along this past year. I've had tons of issues. Building new system, getting things dialed, stupid human reefer mistakes ive made along the way.
I've seen salinity swings between 1.023-1.028. Temps swings from 68f -86f. Nitrate swings from 0 to astronomical off the chart readings from Nitrate overdose incident. Phosphate swings from 0-.15- .2. Alk swings from 8-15 due to bad rodi.
Through all this I believe my biggest issue to date was when my Nitrate OD bottomed out my Phoshates.
I'm finding bounce and most shrooms do better in higher Nitrate system for sure.
That along with ive been playing with a slightly increased UV schedule. Not much higher than reccomended just slightly elevated.
Ive also been playing with pedal/foot laceration and having good success in making babies.
Your Jawbreaker don't look too bad to me. Haven't seen much on fragging them but in theory they should do pretty well with it. I used to chop discos up like pizzas back in the day and sell them back to lfs for reefing gear.
But as said Jawbreakers are cut from a different cloth in my opinion.

You can check out my shroom garden in build thread link im my avatar as well.

I made it over to your build thread but only to the pics on the last page - very nice!! I will read it from the beginning when I get some time.
I am fairly confident in the OG Bounce fragging. My buddy has a method and has fragged a lot of them (I dont think he has lost one) He showed my son and I his way of fragging and it is super simple (I just need more scalpel practice) I will have to learn more and get a bunch of practice before I put the Jaw Breaker under the scalpel. But it looks like it is going to split on its own.
Cheers! Mark

 

[LRT]

I made it over to your build thread but only to the pics on the last page - very nice!! I will read it from the beginning when I get some time.
I am fairly confident in the OG Bounce fragging. My buddy has a method and has fragged a lot of them (I dont think he has lost one) He showed my son and I his way of fragging and it is super simple (I just need more scalpel practice) I will have to learn more and get a bunch of practice before I put the Jaw Breaker under the scalpel. But it looks like it is going to split on its own.
Cheers! Mark

Lol right on. Would love to hear detailed break down of your friends frag method.
And don't worry about getting all caught up. Just started getting good last 3 pages or so.

 

[Daddy-o]

They say practice makes perfect. So I fragged a couple of Yumas today. Not a pricey mushroom but it will help me learn. This one looked like it was just one mushroom but when I got it on the cutting board, it had 3 very tiny babies. I separated the babies and cut the Yuma in half. It was really easy for my first frag! The base was half on the disc and half stuck to a piece of rubble. I just sliced between them. Does a Yuma have to have a mouth on each half to live?

 

[F i s h y]

Interesting thread. I've never fragged my shrooms by cutting. I may have to give this a try.

 

[Daddy-o]

Interesting thread. I've never fragged my shrooms by cutting. I may have to give this a try.

That is exactly my thinking!!

 

[Daddy-o]

Well if we call the Yuma shroom #5, then this is #6. It is a Jersey Bounce. It is about the size of a dime. We picked it up last night, so it is going to need to grow a bit before we cut it. I wish I could get a better pic. but this is the best I can do for now.
Cheers! Mark

 

[LRT]

They say practice makes perfect. So I fragged a couple of Yumas today. Not a pricey mushroom but it will help me learn. This one looked like it was just one mushroom but when I got it on the cutting board, it had 3 very tiny babies. I separated the babies and cut the Yuma in half. It was really easy for my first frag! The base was half on the disc and half stuck to a piece of rubble. I just sliced between them. Does a Yuma have to have a mouth on each half to live?

They say its best to get a piece of mouth on cuts. I think this belief makes people feel better in fear of shroom melting down the road before it develops a mouth. And that may be true for a shroom healing trying to develop a mouth it may be much undue stress needed for the process.
What I'm finding with pedal/foot laceration. It may take longer to develop a mouth but they eventually do. Within 1-4 weeks depending on species.
And from what I'm seeing are nice replicas forming mouths that will eventually grow into full size shrooms in no time in the right environment.

I just cut a tiny piece of one of my green Jawbreakers that had walked off its original perch onto rock its glued on.
Will be interesting to see what happens with the baby if anything.

 

[LRT]

Well if we call the Yuma shroom #5, then this is #6. It is a Jersey Bounce. It is about the size of a dime. We picked it up last night, so it is going to need to grow a bit before we cut it. I wish I could get a better pic. but this is the best I can do for now.
Cheers! Mark

You are a very brave man cutting a Jersey. Beautiful shrooms. Much nicer than WWC OG IMO. Ive got some kind of Jersey morph growing in my system and its by far nicest bounce ive seen.
Please do post your findings lol.

 

[Daddy-o]

They say its best to get a piece of mouth on cuts. I think this belief makes people feel better in fear of shroom melting down the road before it develops a mouth. And that may be true for a shroom healing trying to develop a mouth it may be much undue stress needed for the process.
What I'm finding with pedal/foot laceration. It may take longer to develop a mouth but they eventually do. Within 1-4 weeks depending on species.
And from what I'm seeing are nice replicas forming mouths that will eventually grow into full size shrooms in no time in the right environment.

I just cut a tiny piece of one of my green Jawbreakers that had walked off its original perch onto rock its glued on.
Will be interesting to see what happens with the baby if anything.

I have no clue what pedal/foot laceration is

You are a very brave man cutting a Jersey. Beautiful shrooms. Much nicer than WWC OG IMO. Ive got some kind of Jersey morph growing in my system and its by far nicest bounce ive seen.
Please do post your findings lol.

I havent cut it yet - you are making me nervous

 

[LRT]

I have no clue what pedal/foot laceration is

I havent cut it yet - you are making me nervous

Pedal/foot laceration is simply cutting a piece of foot. Clean cut through foot. I look for areas on the foot that are well established and beginning to stretch and walk on rock and rubble.
You will probably be fine cutting the Jersey. Id wait to see how OG does though. Def use a clean knife and dip in iodine. Cutting stresses shrooms. Leaves them open to bacterial infections.
If your OG makes it I think it safe to say your Jersey will.

 

[Daddy-o]

Pedal/foot laceration is simply cutting a piece of foot. Clean cut through foot. I look for areas on the foot that are well established and beginning to stretch and walk on rock and rubble.
You will probably be fine cutting the Jersey. Id wait to see how OG does though. Def use a clean knife and dip in iodine. Cutting stresses shrooms. Leaves them open to bacterial infections.
If your OG makes it I think it safe to say your Jersey will.

So you just slice the foot? Do you break what the foot is attached to and move the cut piece away or just let it stay where it was?

 

[LRT]

So you just slice the foot? Do you break what the foot is attached to and move the cut piece away or just let it stay where it was?

Yessir I just slice the foot and leave them to heal.
Here's one of the first ones I did.

A picture and refference of foot walking on rock that im targeting to cut on this particular shroom-

And a baby bounce shroom I tore a tiny piece of foot off rack that formed a mouth in about a week-

 

[Daddy-o]

The Lil OGs made it through nite #2. Anybody know how long until they are healed enough to say the are "out of the woods"?

 

[Daddy-o]

Well I guess the Bounce bug has bit me. I just ordered:
1 - Sunkist Bounce
1 - Frankenstein Bounce
1 - Neptune Bounce
1 - Dragon Lady Bounce
5 - Gonzo Golden Dragons
Cheers! Mark

 

[LRT]

Hahaha you got the shroom bug for sure!
Don't think you have much to worry about here with the OG frags. They look healthy, inflating still. You will first begin to see new growth that will come in after they heal. Will most likely be clear with some color and back to normal after all healed up and grown back after a cpl months tops. That usually when they melt if there's any issues you will know.
Looking forward to seeing new haul.