How to kill Montipora

[Peter Houde]

OK, I take it for granted that everyone knows how weedy encrusting/plating Montipora is. Trimming is usually manageable where it's plating out and not too thick. But I have a bigger problem. It has started to grow up the main stalk of one of my gorgonians, which itself is relatively fragile. Is there anything I can apply to the monti to kill it and keep it from advancing further? Kalkwasser paste? I'm hesitant to try that because I'm concerned it will float off and land on corals I don't want to kill. I'm also concerned about how it might screw up the tank chemistry. Reef glue? I have a hard time getting glue to stick unless I remove the items to be glued from the tank and pat them dry. That isn't an option. Popular wisdom is to never remove gorgonians from the water. Besides, it's on rock work that can't be moved.

I really like my gorgonian and I don't want to lose it. But it's inevitable that the monti is going to completely overtake it if I don't do something - and fast. I'm all ears.

 

[Battlecorals]

They said I was crazy

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/think-of-it-like-berghias-but-for-montis-yes-im-serious.1144091/

 

[ThisIsTheWay]

What kind of gorgonian do you have? Got any pics?
Depending on size, might you be able to snip it off near the base and re-attach it elsewhere on your rockwork?
This would make it easier to do something like kalk paste over the monti.

 

[Peter Houde]

What kind of gorgonian do you have? Got any pics?
Depending on size, might you be able to snip it off near the base and re-attach it elsewhere on your rockwork?
This would make it easier to do something like kalk paste over the monti.

It was sold as "purple frilly", but so was another that I got from a different vendor that doesn't look quite the same. I'm afraid I don't have any recent pics. It's small. I once tried gluing one of about the same size by the stem - unsuccessfully. But it might be the only thing I can do at this point.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I've tried glue, putty, I've put rocks on top of it, I've scraped it all away...... but it always grows back. The only real solution I ever found was to just remove the rock altogether.

 

[ThisIsTheWay]

It was sold as "purple frilly", but so was another that I got from a different vendor that doesn't look quite the same. I'm afraid I don't have any recent pics. It's small. I once tried gluing one of about the same size by the stem - unsuccessfully. But it might be the only thing I can do at this point.

I have heard that the trick to gluing gorgonians is they apparently have a stiff stem in the middle, so you have to scrape/cut back the flesh around the end you want to glue to get down to that stem so you can glue the stem itself. I have not personally tried this yet, but it may be of use to you.
If you do try it, it might be a good idea to do that in a separate container of water.