A Hardy, Fast Growing, Pretty & Inexpensive Coral...Does it exist?

[walloutlet]

Long tentacled neon green and pink Sarcophyton. Inexpensive, fast growing, almost unkillable, wavy tentacle action, and it GLOWS, even in daylight

I love this one... One of the first corals I put in my tank for all the reasons you mentioned!

 

[Tonycass12]

Birdsnest corals, hardy and inexpensive. I feel like these corals get overlooked but they are my favorite.

1 month of growth tank is only 4 months old.

 

[hhaase]

There's plenty of corals that fit this category. The problem is that any which fit this category are quickly shoved out as a 'weed' or 'invasive' or a 'pest' that's only for beginners or people that can't afford REAL frags. Usually after a couple years guys start to say "I wish I never put it into the tank, I can't get rid of it, it grows too fast and it grows everywhere".

Be careful what you wish for.

Kenya tree
pulsing xenia
pocillipora
Green star polyps
montipora spongodes

 

[Timfish]

Purple Stylophora pistillata, Var, Milka. It does well in every system I put it in and I've even had a frag survive ~55°F in a bucket overnight.

 

[Townes_Van_Camp]

Many Reefers LOVE it and many Reefers HATE it but my vote goes to GSP (Green Star Polyps)
Yes they can be very invasive but you have to admit, a back wall, tank bottom, or even a rock island covered with GSP and waving in the current is a beautiful thing.

Love them on a flat rock island with an octospawn or frogspawn. Like a little lawn with a tree

 

[Gtinnel]

I saw a nano tank in an LFS once that had GSP completely covering the substrate. Had a few rocks poking out with zoas and LPS. Looked kinda like a meadow with the grass swaying in the breeze. It looked amazing, but I'm sure it required a lot of trimming.

There is a lfs that I go to sometimes and they did something similar. It was barebottom and they were growing gsp to look like grass, but it still had a lot of area that hadn't been covered yet. It was a big tank (several hundred gallons) and I'm sure will be impressive looking when it's done.

 

[shartpants007]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder! I'm sure there are some who find Kenya Tree pretty. I know in talking to an LFS owner a number of years ago, I asked why he didn't have any Kenya Tree. He told me he couldn't keep it in stock....it quickly sold out. So folks are looking for, and buying, inexpensive corals which some might consider pest-like.

I agree with @Mike from TN and @fachatga , I always liked my GSP, watching it wave back and forth in the motion of the tank, and I'm also not a "name-freak" when it comes to buying corals. There are many no-name corals for very little that, by my eye, are beautiful. I just like to watch them grow.

I have a Kenya Tree as one of the few corals in my tank and I quite like it. I honestly didn’t know what it was until just now, it was just labeled as ”small leather coral” in my LFS. It’s a nice purple color, and when the polyps are fully extended and it’s waving in the current, it looks pretty cool.

 

[MaxTremors]

GSP
Green Nepthea or Sinularia
Duncans
Mushrooms/Ricordea
Sarcophyton (I think even the brown/flesh colored ones are pretty)
Zoanthids/Palythoas (if you don’t buy into the name game there are plenty that are pretty and inexpensive)
Xenia

I think a lot of these get a bad rap, but if you plan their placement and prune them back before they become a problem, they’re not too difficult to manage or keep manicured.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

I'll throw my hat in with Duncan. Cheap, easy to care for, tolerant of my errors.

 

[Azedenkae]

CR’s Mandarin Firework Cloves – Cultivated Reef

To me this fits the bill perfectly.

 

[MERKEY]

Zoas would have to be my top dog in this fight.

The amount of color variety is by far larger than any other coral.

Majority are inexpensive and majority grow fast and take over.

These golden variety have grown the fastest in my tank, someone here will know the name hahah

 

[Tmrvstyle]

Green Birdsnest bought small piece for around $10 and have to trim at least every few weeks.

 

[BradB]

What doesn't exist, at least for very long, is Hardy, Fast Growing, Pretty & Expensive Corals. When that's the case, the price goes down until no one wants any. Xenia, green toadstools, superman montipora, acans, M. setosa, red planet, and most recently beach bum - all commanded high prices. As supply increases, and demand actually decreases as coral becomes less exclusive and 'special'. Corals that stay expensive, such as bounce and space invader pectina are slower growing or like ice fire echinata, not hardy. "Pretty" is subjective, but unless someone thought it was much prettier than the other corals nearby, it would never have left the ocean.

 

[M Stein]

Anything labeled invasive.

Xenia
Kenya tree
Green star polyps (GSP)

Some zoas
(I say some because IMO the cheap ones aren't worth it. Even if you only but one polyp it can take months before it grows a new head and starts spreading. Also if you only buy a single polyp often it'll fall off the plug and get lost.)

Most other soft corals are easy too, but these fit the criteria best.

 

[theocorals537]

I have a darth maul zoa bright metallic red that will not stop growing. Grew from 1 poly to 42 in 5 months and will takeover any soft coral in the vicinity. Anyone want some let me know

 

[Nick Steele]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And inexpensive is also very personable. Inexpensive to me is $50 or less for a decent frag. I won’t mind spending $150 of a good frag but that’s a little more expensive.

A few of my favorites that I currently own
Pink caddy ($50)
scrambled egg zoas (free)
Starburst monti cap (free)
Frogspawn ($20)

 

[Alex Cataldo]

Gsp, mushrooms, LPS, and an easy SPS is probably montipora or birdsnest.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Right off the bat I would say xenia. super cheap, new polyp everyday, I love mine. I like having my tank full of a few large corals.
Zoas can be cheap, are hardy, but frankly they dont grow that fast. A new polyp every week to 1.5 weeks. but they are pretty so I love them.
Discosoma shrooms are probably the quickest growing and reproducing, whilst being very cheap yet quite pleasant.
My duncan is one of the only corals I've never had issues with, along with my bridsnest and green torch.

 

[Alex Cataldo]

Aptasia. Usually get it for free (unknowingly), requires no maintenance, spreads everywhere, and loves to be the center of attention to the owner...

That’s a “great addition” *wink* *wink*

 

[JCOLE]

For SPS, I would go with Green Slimer. It is still one of my favorites alhough it is often looked upon as a beginner coral. I have already broken it in half and made 50 frags of it. Still have a couple large pieces in my frag tank.If I leave this one unattended then in a year it will grow out of the tank. Which is the plan.