How to frag Blasto's

RZ5T · Mar 14, 2011

I have a small colony of the PPE Blasto's and I'm wanting to frag them. They have lots of "babies" that are grown down on the plug, but is there a way to get them off without cutting the plug?

What options do I have to get these babies off the plug?

Here's a pic of the colony to give you an idea of what I have to work with.

fsu1dolfan · Mar 14, 2011

I hate to give a link to another forum but this one i have in my favorites.... Blasto Coral Fraggin Procedure - The Reef Tank
Dremel or bandsaw is the way to go!

I have also heard you could use a hammer, screwdriver or chisel if cant be removed from tank...But be careful as you can do some damage to the coral.

akabryanhall · Mar 14, 2011

The problem with the PPE blastos is that they are not the branching variety, so the polyps are quite a bit closer together. I have seen that variation cut with both a bandsaw and dremmel, with both being a success. IMO, it will not be possible to get the babies fragged off the plug, or even just fragged without committing to frag the whole thing.

Anthony Calfo · Mar 14, 2011

the key with them too is conditioning in advance. They dont feed as readily or easily as other Mussids (such as Acans. As such they are literally weaker and usually slower to heal (or even tolerate) aggressive fragging techniques. Be sure your specimens have been in the same place for a couple months and showing hearty polyp cycles. Then, to play it safe, cut between corallites. Normally you dont have to do this for hardy Mussids and Faviids; you can literally saw right through healthy polyps and they will be fine. Not so often with Blastos. Tiptoe to be safe.

RZ5T · Mar 14, 2011

So I'll probably just cut a small frag off the colony using a dremel. And allow the small frag to grow out on a large disk for selling/trading so I can allow the original colony to grow out onto the rock.

Thanks for the help guys!

benny z · Mar 14, 2011

they're just like zoas/palys... simply pluck em off at the base.

:D

(yes, i'm j/k)

RZ5T · Mar 14, 2011

LOL that's what I was thinking!

johnanddawn · Mar 14, 2011

i would def take care and use a dremel or better yet band saw. i would remove them from the plug before doing it and then reattach with superglue to new plugs

smpolyp · Apr 10, 2011

Good advice on the tools above. I will back up Anthony and say "conditioning in advance" or let the babies mature or grow to a stable level. Since I am not totally sure what you want. I with throw this in the wind and hope it helps. If the babies are mature enough break off the mother and remount it to another plug. You will keep your mother colony and give your babies more light so they can grow faster. Hope this helps.

Electrobes · Apr 10, 2011

I am not sure you can frag those things without losing a polyp or two. If I had to, I would use a dremel with a diamond saw (Thin blade). It requires a steady hand but I think that's your best option.