Growing out SPS to cultivate frags can be both a rewarding as well as a frustrating experience. Most of my farmed Acros have thrived while a few have sputtered. Quit frankly, it is a mystery to me as to why a few have been dormant. But that is part of the game, I guess. I recently took inventory of my 75 gallon frag tank, which is lit by two 400W 20K Radium bulbs. The corals in this tank are a mixture of mature colonies, some not so mature and others that are tiny frags.
ATL Strawberry Fields
The ATL Strawberry Fields is a classic SPS coral from Atlantis Aquariums that has been a favorite among SPS enthusiasts for a long time. This Acropora florida sports a vivid green base and branches that are bunched together with strawberry tips and greenish polyps. It is a stunner to say the least and is a hardy coral. Mine has tabled out.
Crayola Plana
I love my Crayola Plana. It is another classic with a cream-colored base, purple tips and green polyps. And it is a table! This piece has been a fast grower and flies under the radar versus other, more hyped pieces.
BC Cool No Name
I received this a few years ago from Adam at Battlecorals and, yes, it is really cool looking 🙂 The BC Cool No Name is a stag that has florescent green branches with purple highlights, a pretty neat combo of colors. It just radiates and has been a fast and hardy coral in my frag tank.
Pearlberry Knockoff Table
This piece was actually sold to me as an original ORA Pearlberry but unfortunately it is not the same coral. I originally named it a Pearlberry Knockoff but recently changed it to Pearlbery Knockoff Table since it tabled out. It does have some of the same pearlescent coloration in the tips as the ORA piece. The branches and polyps are primarily forest green.
Blue Boy Table
Yep, another table, but this one is blue! This frag puddled out at first and then started to sprout some branches. The Blue Boy Table sports orange polyps that contrast nicely with the blue. This coral can withstand lower light versus other SPS.
CQuarium Unknown
The CQuarium Unknown is another piece I acquired a few years ago from Adam at Battlecorals. This stag has purple tips and green polyps and corallites. My colony has grown out like a tulip with a single solitary branch supporting the rest of the branches. It too is a classic SPS coral but these days it is a hard one to find. A truly unique Acropora.
Walt Disney
The Walt Disney is a very well known tenuis that has a bunch of cool contrasting colors. It is pricey, although not as much as when it first came out. My colony is hardy and a very fast grower that has done well under halides.
ACI Dragon Fruit
Chris Meckley from ACI Aquaculture sent me a frag of the ACI Dragon Fruit this past summer. It is deep red with white polyps, an eye catching encrusting montipora. My piece has puddled out nicely.
ACI Light Brite
Another frag I received from ACI Aquaculture. It has bright yellow tips, red polyps and pinkish branches. This one is quickly becoming one of my favorites! It has been a fast grower and is very hardy.
BC Hyperberry
The BC Hyperberry is perhaps one of the nicest strawberry shortcakes available today. Bright green branches, with red tips and polyps. My colony is a fast grower and has been very resilient.
Jackson’s Rainbow Tenuis
These days rainbow Acropora tenuis are very popular among SPS collectors. Many of these corals are shown under blue lights to highlight their florescent colors. Furthermore, some vendors will “photoshop” their pictures to create even more unrealistic images of the corals. The Jackson’s Rainbow Tenuis is the real deal. When happy, this blue-colored tenuis will develop striking red and pink corallites. I have several colonies and it took time for the red and pink colors to emerge on each piece, but it is well worth the wait.
Jason Fox Frankie’s Kryptonite Acro
The Jason Fox Frankie’s Kryptonite Acro has purple tips, green polyps and a cream base. An eye catching piece from Jason Fox. It appears to be an Acropora austera and my colony is a FAST grower.
Battlecorals Gilded Lilly
As Adam says on his website, “holy crap this thing is yellow!” I picked this frag up a few months ago and it has encrusted and is doing very well. You don’t see too many yellow SPS around and I can’t wait until this one grows out.
Tyree Superman Tenuis
I had a frag of this classic a few years ago and lost it but I was able to pick up another frag and it is doing very well. I have already fragged it and put the frag in my peninsula tank.
Tyree Purple Monster
You just don’t see this Acropora around too much anymore. Very rare. I had this coral in my 187 gallon display and all it did was encrust. It was eventually shaded out by other corals so I salvaged a couple of frags. One went into my peninsula tank and the other is growing out in the 75 gallon frag tank.
TGC Cherry Bomb
I acquired this bright red tenuis a while ago and just recently it started to sprout some branches. Sometimes it takes a while for a coral to take off.
RR Raven
This is probably the brightest pink millie I have ever seen. I’ve had this frag for a couple of years and I think it has only grown an eighth of an inch. Pretty frustrating but it should be well worth the wait.
BC Aquatic Man Table
This is a super nice red table with some other colors mixed in. I almost lost this coral a year ago but I was able to salvage a frag that is doing very well.
JF Flame
I have not had much luck with this coral as I have lost a few frags. This particular frag went through a rough patch but has rebounded.
Upscales Microclados
This beautiful coral has bright green branches with purple tips and polyps. Considered a classic, old school coral, the Upscales Microclados really stands out when it is grown out. The colony in my 187 gallon aquarium was getting crowded out so this pieces was rescued and is doing well in the frag tank.
Pro Corals Superman Table
A very well-known classic SPS table that is deep red with some hints of green at the base. Who doesn’t like a red table 🙂 I have been growing this out for a while but it recently had a growth spurt.
Greg Hiller’s Aqua Delight
Another classic SPS. This piece has vivid purple tips and aqua branches that glow. I lost my colony in my 187 gallon tank a while ago but this frag is doing extremely well and growing fast.
Jason Fox Homewrecker
I acquired a frag of the Jason Fox Homewrecker a couple of years ago and it has been very happy. Yes, it was not cheap but it is a very cool looking tenuis, even under more full spectrum lighting. I did take a frag from my mini colony and put it in my peninsula tank to serve as a backup.
Pink Millie
This is another frag that has barely grown since I acquired it a couple of years ago. I almost lost this piece as well but it rebounded. It is holding good color so hopefully patience pays off with this frag.
BC Schizopolis Sunset
This coral also encrusted like crazy in my 187 gallon display. It too was eventually crowded out by other corals so the piece in the grow out tank is another rescue frag. Fingers crossed that it will eventually take off.
RMF Lucky Charms
This Rocky Mountain Frags piece was acquired this summer and is off to a good start, as it has started to encrust.
RB Gold Medal Millie
I am a big fan of millies and the ReefBum Gold Medal Millie is quite unique. It has gold corallites and a hint of green on the skin and tips, a very cool color combination.
Wet Thumbs Mother of Pearl
The Wet Thumbs Mother of Pearl is a very hard to find OG SPS. This coral has vivid purple branches with a cream colored base. I have had this eye catcher in my frag tank for a while and it is starting to take off.
Additional Resources
If you would like some help with a new tank build, including help designing a custom aquarium, or help re-configuring your current setup then you can visit this page for more information. And if you are looking to add some equipment, I do sell GHL, Pax Bellum, Reef Octopus Calcium and Kalk Reactors and Royal Exclusiv products, including Dreamboxes, which is the equipment I use and recommend. I also sell Reef Brite metal halide and LED fixtures as well as Maxspect & IceCap Gyres.
As for additional insights and information, please explore my many other reef tank and SPS related articles as well as my YouTube channel. For an even deeper dive into reef tank care you can check out my Reef Keeping Master Class. This online course is an immersive and one of a kind educational tool designed to help reef aquarium hobbyists build and maintain a beautiful SPS reef tank. The course is a series of video presentations with some supplemental video from my YouTube channel. There are also quizzes to help students retain and understand the information presented in the course.
Need some frags…..I can help with that as well 🙂 Please visit my SPS Frag store to see what is available.