New England Frag Farmer's Market - 3/3/18 - Storrs CT

[fitch4]

It's back again! Often imitated, but never duplicated, this will be the 11th annual New England Frag Farmers Market! It has become the biggest single day show in the Northeast, and maybe the country. It will once again bring together 60+ coral vendors, a larger number of "dry goods" companies, and provide a HUGE raffle with great prizes. It has become the event not to miss for the reefing groups all around the Northeast. To make it even better, all of the proceeds from the event go to help run the E.O. Smith High School Coral Propagation Project!
If anyone needs any other info, or you are interested in becoming a part of the FFM, just shoot me a pm!
Thanks-
Jon

 

[JerSaint]

This show is EPIC !!!!!!

 

[fitch4]

Biggest one around!

 

[JerSaint]

New England is a hot spot for reef shows! Frag Farmers Market , Keep on Reefing and Fragtoberfest !

 

[usernam invalid]

Can’t wait for this show my favorite by far. Have some really great stuff that will be bringing this year.

Jay

 

[fitch4]

Looking forward to seeing you there again! Here is the preliminary list of coral sellers for the 2018 FFM:
AC Corals
Alex's Advanced Aquatics
Aquadreams
AZNnutty's Saltwater Connections
Blake’s Aquaden
Blastomaster
Blue View Aquatics
Captain Cook's Corals
Cherry Corals
Coral Reef Connection
Credable Coral Labs
Dirk’s Aquatics
Dr. Salomon Corals
Elmafioso52988
E.O. Smith Coral Project
European Aquatics
Exotic Fish and Corals
Fins Aquarium
Frag Freaks
Frank180Reef
FUPA
Gotham Aquatics
Greg Polec
Greg Demos - Aquacultured Acropora
Greg Hiller
Green Mountain Corals
gsxr750
Headie Corals
Jason Foxx
King Pin Coral
Kwong1998
Kyle Lanoue
Manny Cabral
Marine Science Magnet School
MO~Idol
NY Coral King
Ocean State Aquatics
Pablo
Paulywalnuts
Pacific East Aquaculture
Pieces of the Ocean
Reef Creations
Rick W.
Rock Hard Reefs
RTMA Corals
School of Fish
Sheltered Reef
Shoreline Pet
Sick Twist'd Corals
Son and Sand
Speedy Corals
SteelerMike
Supreme Reefs
Talon's Cove
Tank Breakers
TJM Corals
TSM Corals
The Coral Reef
The Reef Shoppe
Triggreef
Ultimate Corals
Underwater Bliss
Usctom
Wet Pets
Zooanthids.com

 

[fitch4]

Big Pre-Frag Farmer's Market giveaway thanks to Red Sea and the FFM. Many of the local shops will be participating. I'll post a list of the stores in a few days as they get in touch!

 

[fitch4]

Wow, my bad on the Red Sea Reefer Contest. I never posted the stores that were participating! Here are the shops that you can visit to enter to win:

Wet Pets - Vernon CT
Shoreline Pet & Aquarium- Old Saybrook CT
Ocean State Aquatics - Coventry RI
Credible Coral Labs (Justin Credabel) - New London, CT
Aquadreams - Feeding Hills, MA
Colchester Pet – Colchester, CT
School of Fish- Springfield, MA
Blake’s Aqua Den – Meriden, CT
Aquatic Creations – Nashua, NH
Coral Reef Connection - Sinking Spring PA

If there are other shops that would like to take part, just shoot me a PM and I can add you to the list of participating stores!

 

[fitch4]

Here is the updated list of vendors for the FFM this year. All I can say is WOW that is a lot of corals under one roof! If you have never been, it is definitely worth the trip!



Coral Vendors - my apologies to anyone whose home state I incorrectly labeled!
AC Corals -CT
Alex's Advanced Aquatics - CT
Aresangel -MA
Aquadreams -MA
Aquaspaces - NY
AZNnutty's Saltwater Connections - OH
Blake's Aquaden -CT
Blastomaster -CT
Blue View Aquatics - MA
Cherry Corals -MI
Colchester Pet - CT
Coral Emporium - VA
Coral Reef Connection - PA
Credable Coral Labs -CT
DBReef - MA
Dr. Salomon Corals - RI
Elmafioso52988 - MA
E.O. Smith Coral Project - CT
European Aquatics - CT
Exotic Fish and Corals - CT
Fins Aquarium - NY
Frag Freaks - MA
Frank180Reef - MA
FUPA - CT
Gotham Aquatics - NY
Greg Polec - ???
Greg Demos - Aquacultured Acropora - ???
Greg Hiller - MA
Headie Corals - CT
Jason Foxx - MD
King Pin Coral - NY
Kwong1998 - NY
Kyle Lanoue - ???
Manny Cabral - ???
Marine Science Magnet School - CT
Matt Spaulding - VT
Micheal Reeve (Underwater Bliss) - CT
NY Coral King - NY
Ocean State Aquatics - RI
Pablo - NY
Paulywalnuts - CT
Pacific East Aquaculture - MD
Pieces of the Ocean - NY
Pop Corals - NY
Reef Creations - NY
Rick Correira - MA
Rick W. - ???
RTMA Corals - CT
School of Fish - MA
Sheltered Reef - NY
Shoreline Pet - CT
Sick and Twisted Corals - CT
Son and Sand - ME
Speedy Corals - CT
SteelerMike - RI
Supreme Reefs - VA
Tank Breakers - CT
TJM Corals - NJ
TSM Corals - NJ
The Coral Reef - CT
The Reef Shoppe - NY
Triggreef - CT
Ultimate Corals - NJ
Usctom -NY
Wet Pets - CT
Zooanthids.com - UT


Non- Coral Vendors
AquaFx
Aquatic Creations
Boston Aqua Farms
Brightwell
Champion Lighting
Dirks Aquatics
ESV
Fritz
Hanna Instruments
Mike’s Phyto
Neptune Systems
Polyp Labs
Red Sea
Reef Breeders
Reef News Network
Reef Nutrition
Reef Rax
Reef Trends
Reef Weeds
Rock Hard Reefs
Rod’s Food
Tropic Marin
Tunze

Clubs
CTARS
BRS
ARKSC

 

[fitch4]

I just realized that I hadn't posted this other FFM contest in this forum yet. So here it is!

I have three corals that need names (so I can charge twice as much for them when I sell them...). I am not looking for the scientific names, something a little more fun! Here are quick descriptions of each to compensate for my poor photography skills:

Coral #1 is a Neon green Leptoseris (maybe?) with a purpleish growth rim

Coral #2 is a Light, mint green Acropora with big "bulby" coralites

Coral #3 is a deep purple Rhodactis mushroom with neon green fringing tentacles

Email your names to me with the subject "2018 FFM Coral Name Entry" by Thursday March 1st to be considered. The email is in the image above and it is swansonjL (not a 1 - sorry for the font!). Winners will be announced on the FB page and at the FFM. Winners MUST pick up their salt buckets at the FFM on March 3rd- just another reason to go to the biggest event on the East Coast! Thanks to Lou Elkus and Tropic Marin for sponsoring this FFM contest!

 

[fitch4]

Here are the speakers for the FFM this year!

 

[fitch4]

Here is the floor plan for the FFM this year:

 

[fitch4]

One week to go!

 

[fitch4]

Only a few days to go before the biggest single day swap in the whole US! Anyone even close to CT should give the Frag Farmer's Market a shot. If you have never come out, you will not be disappointed. With close to 70 coral vendors, there are more corals at the FFM than at any other swap or show. If you have come out in the past, you are already coming out, so I will see you there!

Here are some more questions that I have gotten on forums, PM's, emails, etc...


"I have to drive 3 hours to get to the Frag Farmers, is it really worth it?"

-I always look at a big show this way; I drive an hour to go to some of the shops I like best. What if I could drive 3 to see all of the fish stores in one place. With almost 70 coral vendors this year, this is the single largest grouping of corals you can find anywhere. No conference, no show, no swap focuses on just corals and has this many vendors. The room after room of corals at the FFM is overwhelming, even to me and I have been at them all!


“How do I get tickets?”

Admission is $5 and spouses and kids under 12 are free! All sales are at the door for the FFM. There are no advanced sales.


"Will there be high end Zoas and SPS at the FFM?"

-Yes, there are a TON of high end Zoas and SPS at the FFM, sold by many of the vendors.


"Can I find easy to keep corals? I have a new tank and am just looking to fill some space."

-Yes, that is there too. Lots of the hobbyists farm easy stuff, GSP, mushrooms, leathers, xenia, etc...


"What are the typical prices at the FFM?"

-The prices here are better than you will find anywhere for three reasons. One, the shops always stock up to sell at shows and give better pricing than you would see in their store, or online. They often do package deals, 5 for $50, etc... Secondly, the buy-in for shops is so low, they don't feel the pressure to make back their set-up fee. Typical shows this size charge $100's (or $1000’s) just for the space, mine is still well under $100, and only $30 for hobbyists. People always ask why don't I charge more, and the answer is I'm not in this for the money. I just want to be able to run my coral project with the kids at the school. Lastly, with so many vendors, you can find the same coral at multiple stations. That competition causes better prices. Frags range anywhere from free (yes that happens!) all the way up to $1000+.


"Do vendors accept credit cards?"

-Some do, some don't. Most of the shops do but some of the hobbyists do not. I always suggest cash, its the sure thing.


“How much money should I bring?”

This is a tricky question. Let me give you a word problem to describe it (sorry it's a teacher thing):


When you leave home, you plan to spend $X. You will spend that much and then see three other things you want. You will visit the ATM across the street and take out more $Y, which you also spend. You leave having spent $X + $Y, and wishing you had bought that one frag for $Z that you had never seen before. How much trouble are you in with your wife?


“Should I bring a cooler?”

Yes, bring a cooler. The good news is that you don’t have to lug it around all day. The FFM has added a FREE cooler check station. The volunteers at the station will watch your cooler for you all day. If you need to drop something off, just stop by the table and throw it into your cooler!


"Is there a raffle?"

Yes there is. It is one of the biggest you will see at a swap with anything from rock to supplements, fish to coral, controllers to pumps, AIO tanks to 100 gallon reef ready set-ups, and a TON more! Raffle tickets are for sale all day at the FFM.


"Where does all the money from the FFM go?"

-ALL of the proceeds go to support the E.O. Smith High School Coral Project. I teach my students about corals, aquaculture and conservation by having them help me run the schools coral farm. The FFM has become so successful that I have been able to start helping other schools get going with similar projects in their classrooms. I have also used the proceeds from the FFM to give out $3000 in scholarships over the last three years.


See you all in a few days!

Jon

 

[fitch4]

I know if you watch the national weather reports it looks like the world is about to end but the local weather report for the area around the FFM looks like we should be good. Rain on Friday, a little snow overnight (a couple inches?) and then it is out for Saturday morning. We are good to go with the FFM- FRAG ON! Everyone drive safe!

 

[fitch4]

Well, I'm back up again after a long night of set-up. Despite the weather, more than 1/2 the vendors came to set-up last night and the other half, minus one or two, will be here this morning. We got no weather, other than rain yesterday and the school is all set to host the 11th annual FFM today! I got a chance to look over some of the set-ups last night and there is some AMAZING stuff at the FFM as usual. The FFM is definitely on for today so clear out your driveway and make the ride out to E.O. Smith in Storrs and be a part of it!