Fig Tree Progress Report.

Vancouver Brunswick Fig Tree

Brunswick ("vancouver" because the source tree was here in Vancouver) - survived move to Battleground last Dec.  New growth was damaged by late frost.   Growth this year was 7".  No figs this year.  No concerns about green twigs.  This tree is mature, all growth is well lignified.

LSU Champagne.  Height now 4'8", all of which is new, grown from cutting this year.  Rapid growth due to fertigation while grown in container.  Also chickens were housed in this spot for a few weeks.  I had pinched the top to stop growth / encourage branching.   Today I picked the first two ripe figs.  Sweet.  Concern:  About the top foot is green with minimal lignification.  Will the top survive freezing?

Atreano.  Height now 5', all of which is new, grown from cutting this year.  Rapid growth due to fertigation while grown in container.   Also the chicken issue, above.  I had pinched the top to stop growth / encourage branching.   There are 2 large figs, still green.  Will I get ripe ones before frost?  Concern:  About the top foot is green with minimal lignification.  Will the top survive freezing?

Champagne and Atriano fig trees.

Row of fig trees.

Carini.  Height now 3'6", all of which is new, grown from cutting this year.  Rapid growth due to fertigation while grown in container.  I had pinched the top to stop growth / encourage branching.   There are still 2 large figs, still green.  I have eated a few from this tree.  Early starter.   Will I get ripe ones before frost?  Concern:  About the top 6" is green with minimal lignification.  Will the top survive freezing?

Petite negri.  Did not measure.  Knee high, new growth about 6".   Planted 2012.  Slow grower, had chewing animal damage last winter.  New figs did not have time to mature.

Smith.  My fastest grower this year, although Champagne and Atreano were close.  Since I pinched the tops of all three to encourage branching, comparison is difficult.  4' Tall.  Did not grow as much after planting as those other 2 listed so far.  No figs this year.  Some concerns about  lack of lignification but not as much as those two listed.

Front - Back:  Carni, Petite negri, Smith, Sal's, Tiger.

 Sal's.   Now 3'9", of which 9"  is new.  Same frost problem as Brunswick.  Planted last summer.  About half dozen new figs this year, some of the best tasting.  It should be well established now.  I thought it might take off and grow faster, but this is a more difficult site and it was not fertigated.  No frost concern, the growth is well lignified.

LSU Tiger.  3'5", all of which is new, grown from cutting this year.  Same fertigation as the other new fig trees.  Competed with Carini for the first ripe figs on new trees.  Lignification looks better than the other new trees.

The containerized trees are spares - go keep in garage as replacements, in case the in-ground trees don't survive the winter.  They can be give-aways if the in-ground trees do survive.  They are smaller than the planted ones.  I chose the biggest ones for planting.

The potted trees did not get watered in the past 2 weeks, and are entering dormancy.  Brunswick is also entering dormancy, and the others are beginning to lose leaves / yellow leaves as well.

Container fig trees.

Carini Fig

This was the first ripe Carini fig.  A fig forum member in the East Coast sent me cuttings from his family's heirloom variety.  I started the cuttings in Jan or Feb.

This tree is one of only 2 that produced main crop figs in their first year from cuttings.  The other was LSU Tiger.  That one was half eaten by some animal, and spoiled before I could taste it.

This is not a known variety for the Pacific NW.  That it grew in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, which become colder than here, gives me some confidence.

I intend to protect the tree from some of the winter weather this year.  The new growth is greener than growth on older fig trees, so might be more frost tender.  Plus, there are animals that eat the bark, during the winter.

Nice, big, juice fig.  Mild sweeet flavor, somewhat like Lattarula.  I like this fig, and have big hopes for it next year.

Smith Fig Tree Graduation. Now into the real world of in-ground FigTrees.

Smith Fig.  View of roots.

Too many trees on the deck.  With 2 Smith Fig trees, about equal size, I decided to plant one at the Battleground place.  Original plan was overwinter and wait until Spring.  However, by planting one in-ground now, I have a chance to see if it will survive winters here.  If not, I can keep the other in container and overwinter in garage.  Or not - might be too much trouble.

If it has a chance to harden off, I think it will survive the winter.  No "TLC" plant food now.  Just water to keep it alive and let roots grow into surrounding soil.

Root close-up

It is not root-bound.  Some winding roots.  This is one of the few cases of my planting without slicing into the root ball, or teasing them apart.  Fig roots are aggressive, so will have no problem growing outward.  Some references recommend intentionally confining the roots, to restrict growth.  I don't want to reduce feeding roots during Summer planting.  I did the same procedure with Carini fig.  It wilted a little.  Not much.

Smith Fig.  Now in the ground.

Fig Grove #1

I mixed a little homemade compost into the fill soil.  Not much.  I poured 2 gallons of water into the hole to soak in.  Then placed tree into hole, filled in with mildly amended original soil, watered in, and mulched with straw.

Smith is an old heritage family variety in Louisiana.  Some wriers state Smith is the best of all figs.  Some of that could be variety, soil, climate....  Will it do well here? Survive winter here?  This is an experiment.  Buff or yellow skin, red inside.

The little fig grove.  From close to distant (front to back), Carini, Petite negri (possibly re-identified as Aubique petite - via Figs4fun website), Smith, Sal's.  Behind Sal's, not visible, is truncheon cutting, now growing, Lattarula.  I may add one final tree but the spot is not perfect due to shade via a growing cherry tree on neighboring property, south of the fig grove.

This is a nice spot.  Mild grade, down-slope to west and south.  South of house, so warmer in winter.

Edit 7/25/13:  Planted LSU Tiger fig tree in the location where I had the Lattarula truncheon starts.  My goal was to dig up the Lattarula starts and give them TLC for faster growth.  However, they do not appear to have roots.  I can do much better with fresh starts, can think about that next year.  Meanwhile, the row is completed, with 3 new fig tree starts, and the 2 existing small trees started previous years.  LSU Tiger is usually just called  "Tiger".  Since Panache is also sometimes called "Tiger" - incorrectly -  it's less confusing to add the "LSU".  Which also designates the origin for this variety.

Carini Fig Update

This Carini fig tree is knee height now.  It wilted a bit after transplant but perked up with watering.  

This is the "backup" Carini fig tree.  It will stay in th garage over winter.  Next year if the in-ground tree survives winter, this tree may be a gift.

This one has been given to a gentleman in Washougal.  One less to take care of.  I'm a  bit overwhelmed by keeping them watered now.

The Carini figs are from Frank in New Jersey. A family variety, having been passed down generations.  Originally from Carini, a town in the Palermo region of Sicily.  Has not been tried in Pacific NW before.  All grew of the cuttings grew nicely, no evidence at all of FMV.  All have some small figs.  Maybe there will be a taste of these in a month. or two.

Carini Fig. Planted in-ground.

Carini fig

This is one of the Carini fig trees.   I started them from cuttings this winter.  I planted it in-ground today.  Most of the cuttings will remain in containers until Fall or Spring.  This start is knee-high.  I planted in the native soil, mulched with an ince of home made compost, then mulched with home made grass straw.    Watered deeply.

Since this grew nicely, but the growth looks like it will harden off before Winter, I think it's OK to plant it in ground.   This location is South of the house.  Full sun. There is room for a row of about 6 fig trees.  So far the row has a Sal's, Petite negri, and 2 other starts.  I plan to move those starts out, and replace with a Smith, Atreano, and Champagne.  Plan subject to change as seasons pass.

Fig Trees - started from cuttings this winter.

Atreano

 These are fig trees started from cuttings this winter.  These are among the fastest to grow.  I have some under 1 foot tall.   For the most part, all have been getting 1/4 teaspoon Miracle Grow for Tomatoes.  Not organic, I know.  A temporary measure to get them up and growing faster.  The idea is similar to fertigation.  Sort of.

Carini

 There are several Carini starts.  This is one of the smaller ones.  May be a bit stunted due to the figs already growing.

Another Carini

 Another Carini, also with some early fig formation.

Champagne

 Champagne fig.  This is the larger of two.  There are tiny figs forming in leaf axils.

 

North of house on hot day

 There are potential disadvantages to the fast growth.  They may not be hardy for winter.  They are also not durable for hot summer days in full sun.  So I moved them to the North side of the house.  They need daily water.

Lattarula

 I don't need another Lattarula but I have someone in mind who would like to have it.  Once we are past the hottest part of summer, I plan to give it away.

Smith

The Smith cuttings surprised me and took off like the others.  I thought they would be slower.

The other Smith

This Smith tree needs a larger container.  I'm concerned it will dry out if I don't water dailyh or twice daily.

Tree starts. Figs. Wild Plums. Apples.

Fig, Wild Plum, Apple, starts

Current status of mostly fig starts.  These were cuttings starting in Jan and Feb, some from my trees at home and some from exchanges on gardenweb.  Fig varieties Carini (New Jersey), Ronde de Bordeaus, Black Marseilles, LSU Champagne, LSU Tiger, Panachee, Smith, Hardy Chicago, Lattarula, King.  The apples are two that I grafted at the Home Orchard Society grafting workshop. The apples are Spitzenberg and Sutton's Beauty.    The plums are grown from seeds from a neighborhood wild plum tree.