Flowerpot coral (Goniopora lobata) care guide

Group
Corals
Other names
Flower pot coral, Daisy coral, Goniopora
Family
Poritidae
Origin
Indo-Pacific and Red Sea, typically turbid, nutrient-rich lagoons and inshore reefs
Water
saltwater
Temperature
22–26°C
pH
8–8.4
Hardness
dKH 8–12
Care level
intermediate
Reef safe
with_caution
Lighting
Moderate
Flow
Medium

Care

Goniopora lobata is a flowerpot coral, a stony coral whose long, flower-like polyps (each with 24 tentacles) extend from a rounded skeleton to look like a pot of daisies. Colours include green, brown, red and pink. Wild Goniopora come from nutrient-rich, often murky inshore waters. Historically flowerpots rarely survived long in captivity; aquacultured pieces and better feeding have improved this, but they still need an established, well-fed system. Placement: middle to top of the rockwork in moderate light and medium flow. Water: alkalinity dKH 8–12, pH 8.0–8.4, with calcium, strontium, magnesium, iodine and trace elements kept up. Stability is important. Selling: this is a CITES Appendix II coral. Frags grown in the UK can be sold freely; wild-collected or imported pieces must have been legally imported with CITES paperwork. Sources: LiveAquaria (liveaquaria.com/products/flower-pot-coral-metallic-green). Checked October 2026.

Diet

Photosynthetic, but regular feeding with fine foods (micro-plankton, phytoplankton, filter-feeder foods) is important for long-term health.

Breeding

Colonies can be fragged by cutting the skeleton into pieces with a saw or bone cutters and gluing them down; it is more difficult than for most LPS and best tried on healthy, well-established colonies.

Compatibility and tank mates

Aggressive: at night its sweeper tentacles reach well beyond the base and sting nearby corals and animals, so give it ample space (at least 15 cm). Clownfish may host in it if there is no anemone, which can stress the coral.

Last updated 8 October 2026. Community-edited care guide on Aquatic-Auctions.

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