When to frag?

[biggie4jets]

Hello,

So this might have been answered before, (I’m sure it has been) but I can’t find anything on it. how do you know when to frag corals? The only reason why I ask when is, I am compeltely new to dragging corals and nervous I will mess up and kill the coral. I have a RBA and mushroom that probaly should be fragged, but wondering when do you know to frag corals? I have done a lot of researching about dragging both, but no one ever really talks about when to do it. Is there even a time period where you can’t?

Pics are attached for the RBA and mushroom.

 

[biggie4jets]

Sorry for the bluish look, took these pics last week.

 

[ToesInTheSand]

I'm not sure that you can frag a RBTA I would let it naturally split, but we are testing a few different methods of fragging mushrooms. Right now we are having 100% success with the 3 different methods we are trying on the mushrooms.

But your mushrooms look like they are ready if you want to frag them.

 

[muzikalmatt]

That looks like a ricordea mushroom on the left and they will generally split on their own if you give them enough time. However, I imagine you can speed up the process by cutting them through the mouth if you want to.

 

[Gw2kpro]

That looks like a ricordea mushroom on the left and they will generally split on their own if you give them enough time. However, I imagine you can speed up the process by cutting them through the mouth if you want to.

Yes you can. Have had good success doing that, one clean cut through the mouth. Let them slime for awhile in a container of tank water then put them in some rubble so they can reattach. Last time I did that I didn't get a clean cut and a very, very small piece from the edge of the ric tore loose. No piece of the mouth. I put it in with the rubble anyway, it attached, and eventually grew a whole new ric. It's still pretty tiny (the other halves grew pretty quickly) but it's pretty cool what those things can do.

 

[K95ranger]

I had the same results as GW. I moved a piece or rock and a piece ripped off without the mouth on my ric. I put it on a rubble piece and it grew a mouth too. I have seen people split the mushroom in half thru the mouth and they seem to do fine. But I have never split a bubble tip, mine just split naturally. Why do you want to frag them? Sell? The rba looks great.

 

[Carter's Reef]

I generally frag things either when it grows too big and out of control (shading and stinging other corals) or when another reefer is intrested in a peice. I honestly would let the mushrooms divide on their own. They multiply quickly once established. The bubble tip will also most likely split on its own if it is in shock. It differs from reefer to reefer, but that’s how I am!