Allotments 4 All

Hi!
all being well im getting a fig tree (or trees, the chap isnt sure?) tomorrow, have snooped on the web and they appear failry easy to look after so long as theyre kept warm (lots of random ways of doing that such as digging up and burying?) but i was wandering if anyone has any experience of figs and what i should do with the tree so i dont kill it??? i might take clippings/root shoots if theres any and cultivate indoors just incase (conservatory) but id really love to hear about anybodys experience, dont know the variety but maybe someone will know how to find out??? i lurve fresh figs and even my mums jealous! please help! lou xx and many thanx! xx

We bought a fig tree from Wilkinsons for 2.00 i think. It looks good
Planted it in a pot for now and plant down allotment later when it looks stronger

Good luck with yours i guess we just have to wait and see

Rob

Figs need to have restricted root growth and planting them in an old leather bag was the old method. If you use a bag like the ones that councils gave out to collect green waste, it would do. Tou can always dig a hole 18 inches square and line with small paving stones instead.

Around the Mediterranean they grow on waste land rather like our buddleia,
in other words in poor soil, hence the theory of restricting the roots.

http://www.allaboutliverpool.com/allaboutallotments1_homepage.html

I have never heard of any one managing to get a decent fig tree around  here. Just as patio plants.

May be I am too far North.

we have 2 figs, both brown turkey, one's in a large pot, against the greenhouse wall where it's warm, lovely figs last year, the other one we got last year, trained as a fan, waiting to see what happens  ;D

I got one from Wilkies and its been outside since I got it. Seems to be doing ok. I'm gonna keep it in a pot on the patio in the sunniest spot and see how it does. Nothing ventured nothing gained eh

Getting a fig tree to grow isn't hard, not even this far north (Derby) LoopyLL the trick is getting the fruit to ripen... which requires restricting the growth and some well timed pruning...
;D

Untill they developed the land there was a fig tree growing wild not to far from me,, TeeGee will know where Milnesbridge is,There was the road a reasonably big stone wall a small river  that ran alongside the other side of the wall and the fig grew on the far bank ,it was as large as the other trees if not bigger maybe 15 to 20 ft high

The mills down the valley had water rights so back when the tree was young i would assume that the river ran warm summer and winter but as i said along came the developers and another curiosity bit the dust

mrf94

Theres a fig tree growing on the Glasgow clydeside near Rutherglen. A big one.
I've got my two small ones I bought from lidl in pots in my greenhouse. Dont feed it well and constrain its roots if you want fruit, or give it lots of manure and just have it as a nice tree.

Harry Dodson on the victorian kitchen garden video has lots to say on figs.

brilliant thanx guys, would love to know what well times pruning is tho? does breaking bits off to get it in the car count??? lol! we made a mess and its all wonkey growing to the side and has some small unripe figs on it and nothing else, ive planted it in haste and not restricted the roots but my mum was cold! weve got a few baby bits of tree and my mum had some and i got a big long stick with roots on to try (its in the conservatory but not potted or anything yet) so may put that in a pot and bring it in and out the conservatory as and when to see if i can get some fruit, fingers crossed! will go and  have a look at that website you mentioned... and mrf94 sorry that fig you mentioned went, its such a shame that developers remove trees often without thought :(  fortunately the one ive gots only about 4/5ft so not as big as could be by the sounds of it! either way it should give the kids a bit of shade for theyre plot all being well, many thanx everyone! will let you know how we get on lou xx

Having done a lot of visiting around the Mediterranean in Winter I noticed that  every year they cut back the Fig trees in February to almost nothing. I thought at first they were dead because all the other trees were in leaf/blossom in February.

I asked about this and was told that the new branches give them better figs and that they are fast growers.

I know that they probably have different varieties and that they get hotter longer summers but I thought I would mention it anyway.

Thats some very useful information purple heather. the sort of thing you only hear from the people that really know.

That also gets rid of the small figs which are killed by a drop in temp... Figs can bear three crops in frost free areas but the winter one is always smaller figs..
:)

I brought a Brown Turkey fig tree home from Florida this winter which still has about 5 small figs clinging. It lost some leaves until I treated it to a chemical bath. It has been in the house with limited light and limited water. Just waiting for things to warm up outside. haven't decided whether to dig a hole and bury it next winter or not.

Manics- do you leave yours in the greenhouse year round??

thankyou purple heather! yes as has been said thats something only people who really know know if you see what i mean? i might get mean with my fig... seems you treat them mean to keep them keen? phew!!! if it was a tlc job i may aswell have made a bonfire with it, lol!! will definately chop its bizzarely shaped branches back, hopefully it isnt too late as it has just about got the odd potential bud on it... and i guess its colder here than in the med so it may still be dormant?? heres hoping! im so chuffed, i knew you guys would know! thankyou again! lou xx  :-* and yes the figs still in place most definately look dead so will pull those off... no point wasting any more energy on those methinks...

Quote from: GrannieAnnie on April 21, 2008, 19:24:54
I brought a Brown Turkey fig tree home from Florida this winter which still has about 5 small figs clinging. It lost some leaves until I treated it to a chemical bath. It has been in the house with limited light and limited water. Just waiting for things to warm up outside. haven't decided whether to dig a hole and bury it next winter or not.

Manics- do you leave yours in the greenhouse year round??

sorry, grannieAnnie, me not explaining it properly  :)
it's outside the greenhouse, against the panes of glass, it's looking good this year, lots of new growth, we haven't even protected it against the frost :o

Quote from: manicscousers on April 21, 2008, 20:02:54

Quote from: GrannieAnnie on April 21, 2008, 19:24:54
I brought a Brown Turkey fig tree home from Florida this winter which still has about 5 small figs clinging. It lost some leaves until I treated it to a chemical bath. It has been in the house with limited light and limited water. Just waiting for things to warm up outside. haven't decided whether to dig a hole and bury it next winter or not.

Manics- do you leave yours in the greenhouse year round??

sorry, grannieAnnie, me not explaining it properly  :)
it's outside the greenhouse, against the panes of glass, it's looking good this year, lots of new growth, we haven't even protected it against the frost :o

Aren't they frost sensitive?? How low a temp. do you get next to your heat-sink-of-a-greenhouse?

we have the normal frosts here, I don't know the lowest temperatures but brown turkey is bred for cooler temps, I don't baby it, we get figs, don't know how  ;D

Brown Turkey Figs are supposed to be frost tolerant to -10 celcius according to the label on one of mine.

My larger fig tree has several small unripe figs which overwintered, it sounds like I should remove them to make way for a better crop?

This far North Organic artist you would do well to knock off any immature figs that have hung on all winter, they will drop later anyway, not the little swellings which will make an August crop but the ones that actually look like small figs....
:)