Dry rock in new set up question

Ok I'm still in the planning stages of what will be a 20 reef tank. Pretty sold on an Innovative tank. A shallow sand bed (tropic Eden 30 lbs bag Miniflakes (aragonite crumbs, 2mm). And I think I'm going to start with dry rock, either reefsaver or pukani. My question is if you are starting a new reef is it necessary to run the rock in a separate container for a few weeks with a power head and heater? I know there is no escaping the cycle but would it be smarter to do that first or just stick it in and go from there. Once cycled I thought I'd seed with a few very small coraline encrusted rocks and some amphpods. I want to avoid the hitchhikers I've expierenced in the past. Thanks for helping the born again newb:agree: guys