Fig Trees

[Volvo]

Have tried to grow a fig tree in thebackyard some time back but gave up from the heartache of watching it continuousely getting its leaves eithe r eaten away or suffering from disease and came to the conclsion that Gladrock(Gladstone ) just wasnt ripe for Figtrees..
After having come to face with other BIG healthy fig trees locally i have just re-planted another Fig tree ..
Where would an Aussiegreek house be without its Fig tree outback ey??...
Sssssoooooooooooo, what i'm after is handy tips or advice in looking after a Fig tree and make sure it grows nice n healthy ..
Cheers

[cdntomato]

Can't speak for Aussiegreeks, actually can't speak for Canuckgreeks either, except to say that if they can grow them here then you should be able to grow them there...once you find the right technique.

Here in Ontario, everyone grows figs in pots (containers) and either brings the potted fig into the house over the winter or digs a trench and buries the entire thing underground until spring again. You have to see it to believe it. Amazing.

Jennifer, fresh fig lover thanks to living in Greece and determined to have a fig tree of my own sometime in this life...or get back to Greece...or both

[Volvo]

Jennifer, tell me?? do they fruit really well in Pots??..WE have this huge tree at work and grows heaps , also dont get attacked by either bugs or disease..
Now truth be told this tree is adjascent to quite some Coal stockpiles and aint short of coal dust over it so might be sumthin in the coal dust ey ..
Reckon there might be cause for a patent lol..
mindya the figs dont lack any taste either..

[michael johnson]

Figs actually do better in large pots -than in the ground, as they fruit much better if the roots are restricted in some way-pot bound figs always have more fruit on them,

To get over this in the ground- you can always plant them in a container to restrict the root growth and then bury it in the ground any other roots will eventually come out through the drainage hole at the bottom-but it helps them to fruit better.

As far as being hardy is concerned most figs can stand snow, frost, etc, outside in the garden, they usually look like a dead twig until the spring and then new leaf buds start to form and open, but any figs they produce eventualy will not ever ripen properly outdoors in a cold or cool area, they real need a warmer environment to finish ripening properly, you can always put them in a greenhouse-but they grow so well they soon take over the place.

The little tiny figlets about as big as a pea that come in the joints and on the stem right at the end of the season apart from the larger figs of the main crop, are in fact the next season fig crop waiting to happen, so care must be taken not to break of or disturb these tiny figlets otherwise you are ruining next seasons crop.

The best way to eat figs for maximum sweetness is when they are nearly rotten-black and splodgy, thats when the finest flavour is to be found, although having said that some varieties can be sweetish when they are green.

There is a fig tree special nursery here in the uk where they have been experimenting with various varieties to grow and ripen in colder countries, and they have found a very ancient roman variety with cuttings taken from the original old stock year after year, and it will actually just about ripen by late september over here, but the only snag is they want $50.00 a small tree for them in pots.

[Volvo]

Appreciated Miachel..Might just buy another one or two and try them in the pot like you say..
My Mother has this one Fig tree down south that grows Humungas Figs and tasty AS!!!..problem is a tad too far to go pick em ...

[michael johnson]

I would have thought that Australia was an ideal place with ideal weather conditions for fig growing, except of course the Snowy mountain area, .

Me and the wife love figs that much we always forget the strong laxative properties they have,-until its too late, whilst we were on holiday one year in the Island of Majorca, we went to a very large open air market and fruit market, one stall had some really nice small green figs that were delicious so me and the wife bought about three pounds in weight each, and sat on a wall and ate the lot,-what we didnt take into account was that we had a one hour coach journey back to the hotel again,- we only just made it back in time and it was a mad dash to the toilet straight off the coach- a fifty yard sprint, up two flights of stairs,- luckily our room had two toilets, one seperate and the other in the bathroom, otherwise one of us would have been in rather a pickle

[Volvo]

Appreciated..Have allready lined up my Mom to send me some more cuttings to give it another go as the daughter wants to plant some out also...
Pickers i have three when the trees grow and bare fruit lol..

[michael johnson]

I have suddenly realised- if figs in general reproduce from little figlets that form in the node joints etc, and dont have any flowers, how do they produce new varieties of figs if there is nothing to fertilise or cross with, and for that matter-how do the seeds inside the figs become fertile in the ripe figs if there are no flowers to pollinate with- its all a mystery to me.

[dcarch]

Originally Posted by michael johnson

I have suddenly realised- if figs in general reproduce from little figlets that form in the node joints etc, and dont have any flowers, how do they produce new varieties of figs if there is nothing to fertilise or cross with, and for that matter-how do the seeds inside the figs become fertile in the ripe figs if there are no flowers to pollinate with- its all a mystery to me.

Well, that's part of my question. I think they have flowers inside the fruit, a tiny wasp will get inside to pollinate the flowers then die inside.
Don't let your kids know about this, or they will never eat figs again.
How do they cross pollinate? I am not sure.

dcarch

[redbrick]

Some figs do need a pollinator. These are called Smyrna figs. They also need a pollen-parent, called a Caprifig. Caprifigs don't produce fruit, from what I understand. That being said, Brown Turkey, Chicago, and most other familiar fig varieties don't need a pollinator. I would imagine that new varieties either come from spontaneous Sports or Smyrna figs.

Here's a few shots of my fig (a Golden) going to bed for the winter. The big paper bags are filled with leaves, while the little one is filled with cat droppings to hopefully keep mice out of the bundle. Last year they ate off over half of the new figlets. The entire bundle is then wrapped in tarpaper, the kind used in shingle roofing. This is to keep excessive moisture out, while letting the tree breathe. I still have about a month before I can unwrap it.

[Spatzbear]

Redbrick, great set-up you've got there! And what dedication! I hope you get a good crop this season!

We've got it pretty easy here, compared with you. Our fig tree loses its leaves in autumn and goes dormant over winter. We only have light frosts which don't harm our trees.

These are my fig cuttings that I potted up about 7 months ago. I was surprised when the 2 on the right developed fruit.

Our tree is loaded with fruit at the moment. There are now at least 2-3 ripe figs every day. YUM!

[dcarch]

Originally Posted by Spatzbear

----------------------
Our tree is loaded with fruit at the moment. There are now at least 2-3 ripe figs every day. YUM!

Are those propagated from cuttings? What are their varieties? Can't believe they can bear fruits on so small a tree! Have to try to grow some!
Now tell the truth; You glue the figs on to make us jealous, didn't you?

dcarch

[Spatzbear]

Originally Posted by dcarch;49772[FONT=Arial

[/FONT]
Now tell the truth; You glue the figs on to make us jealous, didn't you?

dcarch

Yeah, sure! I'm the wicked witch of the east. Or something like that.

Well, the fruit bearing fig tree is in the ground and has been for the last 10 years or so. I just prune it once in a while, feed it, water it, nurture it, talk to it, threaten it. You get the picture.

The ones in the pot are the cuttings.

The one in the ground is a White Genoa, so I was told.

The ones in the pot are Malta Black, White Fig, Pollinator Fig (don't ask, I don't know, apparently you plant it in the same hole as any other fig. To aid pollination.), and I had Woodside Chocolate Factory Fig, but this one is struggling.

Do try fig cuttings. They are worth it.

[dcarch]

Originally Posted by Spatzbear

-------------Do try fig cuttings. They are worth it.

This can be tricky. I have to wait till after midnight after my neighbors have gone to bed.

dcarch

[redbrick]

Spatz, thank you so much! I think you just gave me the secret ingredient to the "Arcane Root Striking Spell"! I have so much trouble getting fig cuttings to strike it's unreal. Dormant cuttings, softwood cuttings, semi-hardwood cuttings, they all give up on me! Maybe this year... Thanks again!