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I received those VdB cuttings 16 days prior to the first photo below, and the photo shows it after 11 days in the cup, if I remember right. It had roots showing the day after they arrived, and rooted vigorously as most all of the cuttings I've gotten from ejp3. I had an issue with one cutting drying out (user error!), but it still seems to be coming back alright, we will see, damn good cuttings, I highly recommend.

The last two went into cups tonight, and had several 1" rootlets formed already.

Those roots do not like that cup. They are trying too hard to get out.

They're just taking the path of least resistance & least concentrated moisture. I did a piss-poor job of mixing for this cup.

I usually do a dry mix, and I mix it in a big rectangular container, get it to the consistency and color I want before scooping it out in a temporary cup. I then take my target cup, fill it about 20%-25% up, wet it lightly, place my cutting in, hold steady, and fill the rest of the way, then wet again, and set out to drain for 20-30 mins.

You can tell in this cup how I set my mix ... first 25% or so is straight silt...and top 75% is mostly perlite. It's not gappy perlite like this all the way around, it's just chunky voided this spot. I've adjusted my mix since...at this point, I'm at 25% potting mix and 75% coarse perlite.

If nothing else, I think the pic proves a point that a lot of people who know best tell folks time and time again: roots want AIR (!), they want chunky material that promotes air, and they don't like a lot of moisture. The picture says it all. This thing is rooted all the way around, but the abundance of roots is right here ... in the place with the least fine soil and nutrients, the section with the most breathing room.

I know some folks like to pre-wet their mix, I have found it more problematic and time consuming than helpful. If I did, I wouldn't have these mixing problems. But I don't like the repercussions and time consumption that comes with wet mix.

Jason, its funny that I agree with you for the most part but think that pro mix/fafard3b/whatever that other mix is is just too moisture retentive for me. I like 75% coarse perlite and 25% sphagnum moss. I cant believe how heavy my container gets when I add water to the mixes I referred to above.

More photos, taken last night. Not a ton of progress, but you can at least check out the rooting you can expect from a lot of these cuttings.

Hi EJP3, I would love to get cuttings from your White Genoa (from Belleclare) and violette de bourdeau. I just received some Italian Honey Fig cuttings today that I have'nt planted yet but my other trees are all dormant.
I have Brooklyn White Fig,Peters Honey Fig,Brown Turkey,
Celeste Fig, and "turkey fig, fig newton, old timer fig", Is what the grower called it but I have know idea what it is, hopefully It will give me some figs this year so I can
guess what it might be.I am new to figs and this group.
So how does this work now ?

Satellitehead, at what point would you repot that cutting?

I put most of my cuttings in 2 gal pots (I got a bunch of them free) way before I saw roots like those. Also, I am losing a few. (Too much moisture I think).

So how much rooting do you guys like to see before you repot?

I like for my cutting to have enough roots that I can easily remove it and the potting medium in one fell swoop, if possible.

If I just see good roots circling the bottom, which seem to be lignifying, using a loose mix gives me the leisure of easily removing and repotting when you see such a thing. But, as I found with a recent unexpected (premature) repot, pay close attention in the first 12-18 hours after repotting. If you see your leaves drooping at all, try putting the plant back into your (closed) greenhouse container after repotting, where it will keep some humidity, seems to make all the difference in the world. You may need to keep it there for a week or two for it to start sending out roots again for more water uptake.

The key is to be careful and use your best judgement, really. If I've realized anything, it's that judgement is learned, and learning usually happens from mistakes and near-mistakes-realized.