Laurie, I think Kira is right. Maybe too much water, or not enough
drainage, or both.
The best figs I ever had were in Turkey--lovely red-brown ones, but
also a big lovely green variety that were like ambrosia. I am hoping
the Green Ischia fig tree that I ordered from Paradise Nursery in VA
this spring will someday produce fruit like that--only a few on the
3-ft tree at the moment. Can't get good fresh figs in markets
here--they must be picked very ripe, are delicate, and so do not store
or ship well. Even in Turkey the vast majority are brown figs that are
dried for the international market. Those tender fresh green figs are
only shipped locally to market and consumed immediately.

Anyway, the area where they grow is rather dry and HOT in summer, with
crumbly soil that's been plowed and tended for centuries. My husband's
family has a summer house surrounded by huge, ancient, gnarly fig
trees that produce lots of the little red-brown figs, sweet as can be.
Ohmigosh I can hardly wait for MY figs to ripen--my 5-year old tree
was pruned SEVERELY to about 4 feet tall last fall and it is right
back to 15 feet tall and loaded with fruit.

Keep your fig tree pruned so you can reach the fruit, and maybe cover
it with a net!

I bet if you email Paradise Nursery they'll help you with anything
else. Their web site is full of info. www.paradisenursery.com/

And you might be inspired to order a fig tree from them too. I got 4
different kinds this year, plus a couple of muscadine vines, all doing
great and filling me with hope for next year.

I got no interest in the company--just think they're nice folks with
great product and customer service.

Cheers
Sue

On Mon, 31 Jul 2006 23:46:39 GMT, Jo wrote:

Kira Dirlik wrote:
On Tue, 25 Jul 2006 01:12:03 -0400, "laurie \(Mother Mastiff\)"
wrote:


I am still a fig novice, and although the tree is getting HUGE this year and
has a lot of small fruit (the size of a big man's fat thumbs), despite
watering in hot spells, the largest fruit nearest to ripening falls off.

I put more pine straw mulch under it today to try to keep roots cool and
moist. Haven't fertilized since once lightly in early spring.

Is this early fruit drop a symptom of a particular problem that is curable
or at least treatable? A giant magnolia tree shades it in the morning but
it gets full sun from noon onward.

We have been awaiting our figs very eagerly, imagining the wonderful
clafoutis (fruit puddings) to be made.... Would hate to see all the fruit
drop off, since there was NO fruit to be seen last year.

Thanks for any practical advice,

laurie (Mother Mastiff)


I've had celeste (?) figs (small) in Durham, and now in Chatham have a
brown turkey (huge.. size of small peaches). I never watered either.
Maybe you are giving it too much water. I have had a huge first crop
of figs this year (usually only get a few on the first crop), and the
second crop is coming in big.
Last year August was dry, and I had a bumper second crop. But for
three years prior, it rained a lot in August, and the little holes
would open in the end of each fig before they got ripe, and bugs would
get in and the fruit would rot before it got ripe. You'd get drunk
just walking by that tree, if you inhaled.
I think all the figs originated in arid lands, no? I think the trees
themselves like water (mine is now a giant octopus, and I will need to
alter my stone walkway this winter to allow for it), but the fruit
doesn't.
Kira



Thanks Kira! I was having similar troubles and that seems to be what I
was doing.

Jo