Fair comment Jim, I see various other articles I find via google seem to use the term "spore elements" though I scanned them only briefly. Those articles appear to have German or Dutch origins too. A quick search of the term "spoor elements" did not reveal, for me,the term in connection with what I am used to calling "trace elements". However incorrect -the use of the term "spore elements" seems to be around, albeit through mistranslation, and I admit that I have not heard it before. When I read the term first, I expected it to refer to something mycorrhizal. Peter (UK) On Thu, Aug 23, 2012 at 7:49 PM, J.E. Shields <jshields@indy.net> wrote: > I think I see the tracks of this usage. In German, Spur means track (e.g., > bear tracks in the woods) and trace (very small amounts). Spoor is > Afrikaans for track, from old Dutch "spor." > > The article cited by Peter seems to have been translated from a German > original, and contains numerous mis-spellings and incorrect usages. It is > not a suitable reference for English usages or spellings. > > Jim Shields > > > At 07:35 PM 8/23/2012 +0100, you wrote: > >Rolands use of the term "spore elements" seems to be confirmed here, no > >language confusion! > >http://www.arts-info.eu/en/fertilizing.html >