Ken, to answer one of your questions, 1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons so use 1 1/2 teaspoons per gallon for 1/2 strength. Hope this helps.

Thanks all, for the dosage info. Hopefully it will help those of us with less experience avoid the same problem Joe had with his VdB cutting.

Here are pictures of 2 plants that I saved from drowning by burying the pot in floor dry. The little one is my black maderia and the other is a J.H. Adriatic. As you can see the J.H. Adriatic is doing much better that the Black Maderia. I also had another one but evidently it's doing so good that it blends in well with the other young trees.  By the way the sawdust looking stuff on that one leaf is snail bait.

Tom, I have used azomite on all my rooted cuttings and purchased plants at the advice of Richards Watts. It is full of trace minerals including iron. I've done no iside by side comparisons but I must say all my yearling plants are doing well and many have set fruit. See the link below for complete info. I bought mine of of ebay.
"gene"
http://www.azomite.com/

Thanks for the link, Gene.  Which kind do you use and where do you get it?

Vivian

Vivian, do an ebay search for azomite and then look for the seller by the nane of "wheatgrasskits". They were the cheapest. As usual shipping in rather steep but I bought two (2) pound bags for the same shipping price. Search around and you might find a better price.
"gene"

gene -

Thanks for the tip on azomite.  I found it on ebay and I'm ordering a 5 lb bag.  I'm always looking for natural and organic ways of fertilizing plants.  The analysis of azomite looks very interesting and it has many minerals.  I think I will still need to add limestone to my plants because I don't see that much calcium in azomite, and there is no nitrogen in it, so I'd have to supplement it with extra compost or blood meal.  I usually add manure tea to all my potted plants for a quick shot of food and along with the minerals makes for a well balanced meal, and I don't worry about burning the plant roots.

I use Azomite as well. The best price that I have found is at Fedco Seeds (Organic Growers Supply).

$5 for 5# or $25 for 44# for Coarse Azomite and
$5 for 5# or $27 for 44# for Micronized Azomite (powder/200 mesh)

JD

J.D. thanks for that source. I've purchased seeds from them before but didn't noticed that they sold Azomite. I'll check them our, price seems good. Their web site stinks.
"gene"

One can always learn so much from this fig forum...
I certainly will buy some Azomite.
Previously,for trace elements/minerals, I had purchased some "Greensand"
and "Glacial Rock Dust" from planetnatural.com.

*******
Law of the Minimum
The “father of fertilizer”, Justus von Liebig, developed the “Law of the Minimum” which is
important in understanding what AZOMITE® does. The Law states that plant growth is determined
by the scarcest, “limiting” nutrient; if even one of the many required nutrients is deficient,
the plant will not grow and produce at its optimum.
-----
Conventional fertilizer programs focus on macro-nutrients like
Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P) and Potassium (K).
[Remember the familiar NPK ratio 3:1:2?]

However, if one of the many essential trace elements is deficient in the
soil, the plant will not perform at its optimum, affecting yield and immune function.

AZOMITE® contains rare and abundant trace elements present in volcanic ash in addition to
rich minerals present in rivers – a unique combination found nowhere else on Earth.
-----
Typical Analysis - Compiled March 17, 2005
Mineral Analysis

Alumina (Al2O3)  11.43%
Barium oxide (BaO)  .09%
Calcium oxide (CaO)  3.67%
Carbon (C)   .61%
Chlorine (Cl)  .22%
Ferric oxide (Fe2O3)  1.37%
Hydrogen (H)  .38%
Magnesium oxide (MgO)  .78%
Manganese oxide (Mn2O3)  .02%
Nitrogen (N)  .15%   
Oxygen (O)  .73%  
Phosphorous pentoxide (P5O5)  .15% 
Potassium oxide (K2O)  5.23% 
Silica oxide (SiO2)  65.85% 
Sodium (NaO2)  2.07%
Strontium oxide (SrO)  .03% 
Sulfur trioxide (SO3)  .21% 
Titania (TiO2)  .20%
------
Trace Elements (below) 0.38%    LOI @750o C** 6.43%
 
*The alumina is not biologically available. It is bound to the silica and is an aluminosilicate. 
   Sand, clay, most rock deposits, and soil deposits are primarily aluminosilicates.
**LOI - "Loss on Incineration" during the trace analysis by Spark Source Mass Spectrometry.
Underlined = essential for most living species of plants and animals.
------
Element Analysis (PPM):
 
Antimony (Sb)  0.4
Arsenic (As)  1.1
Beryllium (Be)  3.3
Bismuth (Bi)  3.5
Boron (B)  29
Bromine (Br)  6.6
Cadmium (Cd)  0.3
Cerium (Ce)  230
Cesium (Cs)  21.7
Chromium (Cr)  6.1
Cobalt (Co)  22.3
Copper (Cu)  12
Dysprosium (Dy)  2.7
Eribium (Er)  1.7
Europium (Eu)  3.7
Fluorine (F)  900
Gadolinium (Gd)  3.7
Gallium (Ga)  15
Germanium (Ge)  6.1
Gold (Au)  .005
Hafnium (Hf)  21
Holmium (Ho)  0.6
Indium (In)  .010
Iodine (I)  2.2
Lanthanum (La)  220
Lead (Pb)  6.2
Lithium (Li)  859
Lutetium (Lu)  0.5
Molybdenum (Mo)  12.6
Mercury (Hg)  0.01
Neodymium (Nd)  5.1
Nickel (Ni)  2.6
Niobium (Nb)  40
Palladium (Pd)  .008
Praseodymium (Pr)  27
Rhenium (Re)  .011
Rhodium (Rh)  .002
Rubidium (Rb)  325
Ruthenium (Ru)  .013
Samarium (Sm)  6.2
Scandium (Sc)  2.7
Selenium (Se)  0.7
Silver (Ag)  .005
Strontium(Sr)  380
Sulfur (S)  240
Tantalum (Ta)  2.7
Tellurium (Te)  .022
Terbium (Tb)  0.8
Thallium (Ti)  5.9
Thorium (Th)  180
Thulium (Tm)  0.6
Tin (S)  2.9
Tungsten (W)  26
Uranium (U)  6
Vanadium (V)  7.8
Ytterbium (Yb)  1.4
Yttrium (Y)  23
Zinc (Zn)  64.3
Zirconium (Zr)  62.7 
*******

Bump for Azomite information

I understand that soil testing is a good idea before adding soil supplements. With that long list of substances in Azomite, how would one know, based on a soil test, if Azomite is appropriate? Is it one of those things that couldn't hurt so do it just to cover all the bases?