This picture shows some the most beautiful Zoanthids in our collection. The blue purple and green Zoanthids in the top of the picture came from the collecting station that was doing research in the Sea of Cortez, and they had one of the rare permits that allow these beautiful Zoanthid to be sent to the United States.

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We have been growing these wonderful Zoanthids for several years here in Boise. This type of Zoanthid grows very rapidly, and it is a very aggressive feeder. The colonies of these Zoanthids arrived mixed with the large beautiful pink Protopalythoa. It is amazing to watch these Protopalythoa eat flake food because there are very very good feeders.

The multicolored Zoanthid rock came from the new coral farm in East Timor. We are always amazed at the variety of different Zoanthid strains that have colonized the man-made reef rock that is growing in the new live rock farm. We have been able to separate out many beautiful strains of Zoanthids, and they will be attached to reef plugs.

With the ending of one school year and the beginning of another, there is great sadness about our intern Curtis leaving for Hawaii, but there is great excitement about our new intern who will be returning from the Caribbean to resume studies this next week.

One of the first projects that we will be doing will be the propagation of hundreds of Zoanthid plugs. These combination plugs will be placed in the greenhouse that we are constructing to cover the reef tanks Curtis helped us set up outside. By using a combination of nutrient rich water and frequent feedings of live food we will have many of these plugs ready before the start of the winter season.

The grow out tanks in this new system are 6 inches deep. Each tank is 2 ft. wide and 4 ft. long. The system they are attached to has three 6 foot diameter 400 gallon sumps.

The sumps are heated with coils of one quarter inch plastic tubing that contain one hundred and forty degree geothermal water. We are able to regulate the temperature of the system water by turning up or turning down the flow of geothermal water.

During the next four semesters we will be building some large grow out systems. Each of the system will hold approximately five thousand gallons of water. We will be posting the progress of each of these systems on our web site during the next two years.

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For the last few days I have been taking an inventory of all of the brood stock corals that are ready for propagation. Our great new employee Norman has been rewiring the entire laboratory, and he has designed some unbelievable new light racks. Norman and Lionel have been changing water in all of the tanks getting them ready for the new season.

This summer I have been able to spend a lot of time outside gardening. Many of the people who visit our web site do not know that there are many other projects that GARF is involved with. We have constructed a large ornamental wetland on one half acre of the foundation's property.

This summer I have been building a beautiful Victorian style Herb Garden in the shape of a four-leaf clover. This garden will be one of Sally Jo's Gardens of Hope and it will have dozens of different exotic and fragrant herbs. Sally Jo's has dreamed of having a garden that could be enjoyed by people with impaired vision.

This garden will have a raised stone wall around four heart shaped gardens. I will be able to heat the soil with geothermal pipes that I have buried 3 ft. deep.

This is the largest concrete job that I have ever done, and I was just telling my friend Jerry in Hawaii that I have been coming home sunburned, scratched up, and my back has been aching - I loved it!