hey my GSP dont grow like that!?

spamreefnew · 01/11/2009, 10:01 PM

i had just read about 10 posts talking about how GSP grow like crazy and cover all surfaces... huh,,,i have had the same half dozen polyps for years now. the gsp moved to to the back glass from a small rock and never grow/spread. does this make you think something is wrong? all my corals look healthy and some of them grow well. this is making me ask myself...."are my coral growing like they should?" below i will list my corals and how much they have grown over the last 3 years....maybe someone can tell me if they are growing ok.

green branching hammer-1 branch to 30 branches
hairy mushrooms-1 to 15
zoas(yellow)-50to8

zoas(brownish)-30to30
toadstool-1"to15"
regular mushrooms-6to10
paylays-10to10
lettuce/cababge leather-6"to2"

BTA-1to2

tank params= ph8.3,alk9,ca460,temp79,sg1.025,trates0-15ppm(mostly 5ppm)

lighting=2x150w hqis one 14k and one 20k +actinics

Moonstream · 01/11/2009, 10:33 PM

the trates are high (should be 0) but if they stay under 5 then it would be okay, IMO. the lighting is great.

what fish do you have? skimmer? water change routine?

msobon · 01/12/2009, 12:22 AM

IMO you should be happy that the GSP doesn't spread like wildfire, I've been battling it for over a year now and well so far GSP is winning!

Mojo Jojo · 01/12/2009, 12:33 AM

They will never grow man. For some reason the things you hate grow. The ones you like most will grow slower. Funny how that works! On the flip side how fast do your zoas grow? Why not place on the back wall looks pretty cool and better than GSP IMO.

TellyFish · 01/12/2009, 12:51 AM

Is the base of the GSP on a rock? Once surrounded by fine sand, that seems to slow them down if not stop the spread...

On the other hand, if they are on a rock and don't spread at all over years, I would find that pretty strange. Especially if they get reasonable light and some flow. Perhaps you have something other than GSP?

My GSP mat is a menace (but i like it anyway). I have to be very diligent in my gardening tactics.

smsreefer · 01/12/2009, 05:54 AM

It seems to me that some types of GSP grow and spread like crazy and others don't .
I have had that happen in the same tank with different color variations of GSP . So, I know it was not lighting or tank parameters in this case .

redfishsc · 01/12/2009, 06:44 AM

I have two kinds in my tank. Both are green, but one has much longer tentacles than the other.

The longer-tentacled one grows like crazy.

The shorter version does not grow one iota. Same tank, nearly identical placement, yet it does nothing.

spamreefnew · 01/12/2009, 11:56 AM

i change 5% water every sunday. aqua-c urchin skimmer with mag 5 pump skims kinda wet all the time. the GSP are the green long tentacle type. do you guys see slower growth when you trates are more than 0? i have never been able to get trates lower than 5ppm,,,thats even with vodka dosing and large water changes and heavy skimming.

i only have 5 small fish a manderin,3clowns,and blue chromis

seapug · 01/12/2009, 12:33 PM

it's probably just a light issue. Give it more light and it will take off.

Eel-byte · 01/12/2009, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by seapug
it's probably just a light issue. Give it more light and it will take off.

Nooooooo!!!!!

You're lucky its only a small patch. GSP will take over everything. I thought having the patch between my hammer and frogspawn would keep it in check, not the case. It killed my hammer and many other sps's i HAD.

ps. just to let you know gsp can explode, it may be small patch today, but look out for tomorrow.

conorwynne · 01/12/2009, 02:38 PM

I started off with a colony on a single LR piece about two years ago, I've since had it cover a massive LR entirely, and still have room for creating another LR piece like the original. Also gave away loads.

It didn't grow at all when the same piece was on the sand with no surrounding rock for it to attach to. It was funny watching it reach and then give up. Try placing another rock in it's proximity and watch it take it over.

I'm now down to the two same size pieces which will sit on their own thanks very much. :-)

hapka16 · 01/12/2009, 04:53 PM

I agree that you don't want them to grow fast. I had a 4" colony that spread to cover a 12" by 12" area. It literally covered almost half of the live rock in my 30 gallon tank. I eventually got rid of them by taking each piece or live rock they were on and scraping them off with a butter knife. Now I loathe GSP's

hapka16 · 01/12/2009, 04:54 PM

By the way, they grew that much in 4 months

redfishsc · 01/12/2009, 05:36 PM

^ hapka is NOT exaggerating! Personally I LOVE the look of a GSP garden, but not everyone does.

I have a piece that was 1" wide and about 3" long, two months ago and it is NOW about 4" square.

I also saw an LFS that went from a 4" piece to a huge "slab" of it that is well over 18" long and 8" wide, all in about a 5-8 month span.

mmenz22779 · 04/06/2010, 01:39 PM

i too enjoy the look of GSP, I am considering it as a back drop on my back wall of my biocube.

Bontrager · 04/07/2010, 07:40 AM

OK, from a newbee; what is GSP?

Jesus is coming; look busy!

Amoore311 · 04/07/2010, 08:28 AM

Green Star Polyps.

I'd just get rid of the GSP now man. Could be a flow issue, I doubt it's light.... and it definitely isn't nitrates.

For what you're keeping 0-15 nitrates is completely fine. I've seen GSP grown under crappy PC bulbs before as well, so I don't think thats the problem.

A nice substitute for GSP is Clove polyps. They grow fast, the polyps stay close to the rock, and mat out like GSP does, but due to the non-aggressive nature of the coral, very rarely will it ever out compete neighboring corals for space.

The only way I've gotten rid of GSP without manually or chemically (kalk paste) removing them, is basically running an ULNS (Carbon Dosing + Heavy Skimming). My gsp is starting to recede on it's own now. Which is nice b/c the rock they have overtaken is a really nice, and large piece I did not want to get rid of.

01/11/2009, 10:01 PM	#1
spamreefnew Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: rhodeisland Posts: 1,491	hey my GSP dont grow like that!? i had just read about 10 posts talking about how GSP grow like crazy and cover all surfaces... huh,,,i have had the same half dozen polyps for years now. the gsp moved to to the back glass from a small rock and never grow/spread. does this make you think something is wrong? all my corals look healthy and some of them grow well. this is making me ask myself...."are my coral growing like they should?" below i will list my corals and how much they have grown over the last 3 years....maybe someone can tell me if they are growing ok. green branching hammer-1 branch to 30 branches hairy mushrooms-1 to 15 zoas(yellow)-50to8 zoas(brownish)-30to30 toadstool-1"to15" regular mushrooms-6to10 paylays-10to10 lettuce/cababge leather-6"to2" BTA-1to2 tank params= ph8.3,alk9,ca460,temp79,sg1.025,trates0-15ppm(mostly 5ppm) lighting=2x150w hqis one 14k and one 20k +actinics

01/12/2009, 12:22 AM	#3
msobon Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 80	IMO you should be happy that the GSP doesn't spread like wildfire, I've been battling it for over a year now and well so far GSP is winning! __________________ 75G Starphire 24X30x24 Coast to Coast Overflow Current Tank Info: 75G Starphire 24X30x24 Coast to Coast Overflow

01/12/2009, 12:51 AM	#5
TellyFish Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Chicago 60607 Posts: 1,130	Is the base of the GSP on a rock? Once surrounded by fine sand, that seems to slow them down if not stop the spread... On the other hand, if they are on a rock and don't spread at all over years, I would find that pretty strange. Especially if they get reasonable light and some flow. Perhaps you have something other than GSP? My GSP mat is a menace (but i like it anyway). I have to be very diligent in my gardening tactics. __________________ ...and life spirals into astonishing diversity. Current Tank Info: Hawaiian inspired 109g Miracles Rimless - 100g Prop Tank - 300g total system volume

01/12/2009, 06:44 AM	#7
redfishsc Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Wake Forest, NC Posts: 3,696	I have two kinds in my tank. Both are green, but one has much longer tentacles than the other. The longer-tentacled one grows like crazy. The shorter version does not grow one iota. Same tank, nearly identical placement, yet it does nothing. __________________ "The measure of a life is not its duration but its donation." Corrie Ten Boom “The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins” -- Søren Kierkegaard Current Tank Info: ghetto grad school reef.....11g rimless tank, 36X9X9, lit by Cree and Rebels scobbled together. Stocked mostly with free stuff I got from panhandling my fellow reefers.

01/12/2009, 12:33 PM	#9
seapug Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: 4980 ft. Posts: 7,954 Blog Entries: 1	it's probably just a light issue. Give it more light and it will take off. __________________ insert clever saying here. Current Tank Info: 200 gallon custom Marineland DD peninsular tank. LPS dominated mixed reef. Previous 90 gallon mixed reef TOTM April 2009.

01/11/2009, 10:33 PM	#2
Moonstream Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: NYC Posts: 2,581	the trates are high (should be 0) but if they stay under 5 then it would be okay, IMO. the lighting is great. what fish do you have? skimmer? water change routine?

01/12/2009, 12:33 AM	#4
Mojo Jojo Moved On Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Chicago Posts: 2,495	They will never grow man. For some reason the things you hate grow. The ones you like most will grow slower. Funny how that works! On the flip side how fast do your zoas grow? Why not place on the back wall looks pretty cool and better than GSP IMO.

01/12/2009, 05:54 AM	#6
smsreefer Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Trussville,Al Posts: 329	It seems to me that some types of GSP grow and spread like crazy and others don't . I have had that happen in the same tank with different color variations of GSP . So, I know it was not lighting or tank parameters in this case .

01/12/2009, 11:56 AM	#8
spamreefnew Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: rhodeisland Posts: 1,491	i change 5% water every sunday. aqua-c urchin skimmer with mag 5 pump skims kinda wet all the time. the GSP are the green long tentacle type. do you guys see slower growth when you trates are more than 0? i have never been able to get trates lower than 5ppm,,,thats even with vodka dosing and large water changes and heavy skimming. i only have 5 small fish a manderin,3clowns,and blue chromis

01/12/2009, 02:38 PM	#11
conorwynne Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Dublin, Ireland Posts: 433	I started off with a colony on a single LR piece about two years ago, I've since had it cover a massive LR entirely, and still have room for creating another LR piece like the original. Also gave away loads. It didn't grow at all when the same piece was on the sand with no surrounding rock for it to attach to. It was funny watching it reach and then give up. Try placing another rock in it's proximity and watch it take it over. I'm now down to the two same size pieces which will sit on their own thanks very much. :-) __________________ New tank (468L or 120G) has salt and rock, just add coral and fish! Current Tank Info: New tank in progress....

01/12/2009, 04:53 PM	#12
hapka16 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: dallas, Texas Posts: 169	I agree that you don't want them to grow fast. I had a 4" colony that spread to cover a 12" by 12" area. It literally covered almost half of the live rock in my 30 gallon tank. I eventually got rid of them by taking each piece or live rock they were on and scraping them off with a butter knife. Now I loathe GSP's

01/12/2009, 04:54 PM	#13
hapka16 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: dallas, Texas Posts: 169	By the way, they grew that much in 4 months

01/12/2009, 05:36 PM	#14
redfishsc Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Wake Forest, NC Posts: 3,696	^ hapka is NOT exaggerating! Personally I LOVE the look of a GSP garden, but not everyone does. I have a piece that was 1" wide and about 3" long, two months ago and it is NOW about 4" square. I also saw an LFS that went from a 4" piece to a huge "slab" of it that is well over 18" long and 8" wide, all in about a 5-8 month span. __________________ "The measure of a life is not its duration but its donation." Corrie Ten Boom “The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins” -- Søren Kierkegaard Current Tank Info: ghetto grad school reef.....11g rimless tank, 36X9X9, lit by Cree and Rebels scobbled together. Stocked mostly with free stuff I got from panhandling my fellow reefers.

04/06/2010, 01:39 PM	#15
mmenz22779 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Northern California Posts: 210	i too enjoy the look of GSP, I am considering it as a back drop on my back wall of my biocube. __________________ 2 Pwrheads, 75 W Heater, 60 lbs total LR & live sand Coral Neon Torch, Polyp (button, GSP, Purple Death, Blue Clove) Red/Blue Mushrooms,Xenia,Purple Death Polyp, Frog Spawn, ToadStool, Red People Eaters, birds nest, hynaphora esesa,horn coral Live Stock Shrimp (coral banded, cleaner), Damsels, blue/red hermits, Snails (Nass, turbo,certih), Harlequin SS Current Tank Info: 29 gal BC

04/07/2010, 07:40 AM	#16
Bontrager Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 123	OK, from a newbee; what is GSP? Jesus is coming; look busy!

04/07/2010, 08:28 AM	#17
Amoore311 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Ulster County, NY Posts: 2,521	Green Star Polyps. I'd just get rid of the GSP now man. Could be a flow issue, I doubt it's light.... and it definitely isn't nitrates. For what you're keeping 0-15 nitrates is completely fine. I've seen GSP grown under crappy PC bulbs before as well, so I don't think thats the problem. A nice substitute for GSP is Clove polyps. They grow fast, the polyps stay close to the rock, and mat out like GSP does, but due to the non-aggressive nature of the coral, very rarely will it ever out compete neighboring corals for space. The only way I've gotten rid of GSP without manually or chemically (kalk paste) removing them, is basically running an ULNS (Carbon Dosing + Heavy Skimming). My gsp is starting to recede on it's own now. Which is nice b/c the rock they have overtaken is a really nice, and large piece I did not want to get rid of. __________________ 30 Gallon FOWLR 2004-2006 90 Gallon LPS Reef 2006-2008 180 Gallon SPS Reef 2008-20012 100 Gallon Custom Rimless Mixed Reef 2012-2014 29 Gallon Biocube Reef! Current Current Tank Info: 29 Gallon Biocube, StevesLED Upgrade, Neptune Apex