Finessing the fig

You too can enjoy figs from a garden I am famous for adopting unusual trees. Each spring I attend a local tree auction and carry home some young, woody plant to find a place in my garden borders. I've grown heartnut hedges that have soared more than three metres in a season, architectural ginkgoes (used as a trellis for climbing roses) and rooted Japanese maple cuttings now grown to specimen size. But none was more wildly optimistic on my part than the little common fig (Ficus carica) I successfully bid for two years ago.It was clear from the start that my frosty Zone 6a garden would be an inhospitable winter climate for figs. Only gardeners in Zone 8 in southern British Columbia have the slightest chance of overwintering a fig tree without protection. In colder zones they won't survive below –10°C, so they need substantial winter protection. But they're worth the effort. Their semi-tropical foliage lends an exotic touch to less-than-tropical Canadian patios, and the fruit is such a sweet treat.My Italian greengrocer supplies ripe figs from his own tree, each carefully wrapped in tissue paper and saved for me behind the counter. But the potential for my own crop of figs (relished with heavy cream for breakfast) elevated the anticipation to new levels of hope and pure joy. Such an overwrought emotional state is not unlike the sentiments of Alexis of Thurii, the fourth-century BC poet of comic Greek theatre, who claimed the fig as “that god-given inheritance of our mother country” and the “darling of my heart.” Along with the olive, the fig is the world's oldest fruit, much appreciated by ancient Egyptians, Hebrews and Persians. The satiny green, purple and almost black fruits were valued for their succulent sweetness and mild laxative effects to “free the stomach.”Many Canadian gardeners of Mediterranean heritage cherish fig-growing traditions. Some dedicated few build fig houses out of plywood hoardings (complete with roofs) around their trees. These structures are quickly erected in late autumn, when the trees are bare of leaves, and are removed in early spring, just as buds begin to swell.But the more common method of frost protection is to keep the tree small with yearly pruning, so the plant and its root ball can be carefully dug up in late autumn. It's then buried on its side in a shallow trench and stuffed all around with lots of straw or leaves. Several layers of old carpeting are then laid overtop and covered with plastic held down by bricks. It's not pretty, but it does the trick and, insulated with a thick blanket of snow, safely carries many fig trees through a Zone 5 or 6 winter. For colder zones, you must grow the tree in a container and store it in a shed, cold basement or garage, where the temperature stays between –6 and 9°C.I decided not to take any chances planting out my fig and kept the 60-centimetre cutting in a container on my back porch, where I could appreciate it every day. I overwintered it in my attached garage. Put a plastic bag over the plant and its container to help conserve moisture, and water occasionally throughout the winter. A 14-litre pot is a good first home for a young fig tree; after another year it can be potted up into a 23-litre one. The tree can eventually be moved into a 45-litre container. An annual autumn pruning will keep it under control; roots can also be pruned to keep the tree comfortable in its pot. Trim long shoots in July to stimulate branching, thereby increasing the amount of fruit-bearing wood. They'll tolerate some shade, but full sun in a warm location produces the sweetest fruit.Figs prefer a light and nutritious soil mix composed of two parts pine bark mulch to one part composted cow manure and one part perlite. Clay-based potting soil can be added but isn't necessary. Apply slow-release fertilizer pellets (14-14-14) at the rate of 30 millimetres for a 14-litre container once a season, or water-soluble fertilizer with a similar nutrient ratio two or three times while the plant is in leaf. (Too much nitrogen can result in excessive leaf growth and less fruit.) Keep the soil mix evenly moist, never water-saturated; drought will slow down fruit production. What figs you can grow in Canada FIGS TO GROWAll figs are adaptable to containers; the following cultivars are particularly recommended for short northern growing seasons:‘Bifara' Five-centimetre, purple fruit.‘Brown Turkey' Cold-tolerant, large purple-brown fruit, pink flesh.‘Celeste' (‘Blue Celeste') Cold-tolerant, light purple skin, intensely sweet, good for drying, ripens early.‘Desert King' (‘King') Green-yellow skin, pink flesh, sweet and rich.‘Italian Honey' (‘Italian Golden Honey', ‘Lattarula', ‘Blanche') Medium to large, yellow-green skin; very sweet honey flavour.‘Kadota' Large, yellow-green skin, amber flesh.‘Marseilles' Five-centimetre fruit, slightly ribbed skin, yellow-white when ripe.‘Natalina' Abundant small purple fruit, very sweet.‘Osborn Prolific' Bronze-brown skin, amber flesh, sweet and rich, very productive.‘Peter's Honey' Two crops per season, very productive; amber fruit.‘Violette De Bourdeaux' (‘Negronne') Cold-tolerant, purple-black skin, light pink flesh. One large crop in early fall.‘White Fig' (‘Golden Alma', ‘Alma', ‘Italian White') Cold-tolerant, upright form, good patio plant. Resistant to rust and fungus. Lemon-sized, gold-green fruit; amber-pink flesh. Troubleshooting figs A happy fig tree loves to produce fruit, as my little specimen quickly demonstrated. Some bear fruit in spring (called the breba crop) on last season's growth-with a larger main crop being borne in autumn on new growth-while others save all their fruit buds for the later main crop. In cold climates the buds of the breba crop can be damaged by late spring frost, so I'm careful not to put my plant out too early. There are no blossoms to watch for; the tiny flowers of the fig are out of sight, clustered inside the green fruits (technically a syconium). But one morning I discovered miniature figs emerging from leaf axils in a stiff 45-degree angle from the main branch.This was an impressive display of fertility, and I was delighted to watch the little fruits emerge, swell and colour with passing days. Figs must be allowed to ripen fully on the branch. Mine grew larger and began to droop from their weight, following the old Spanish proverb-a fig is ripe when it has a hangman's neck (droops), a mourner's eye (oozes honeydew from the eye at the fruit's bottom) and a penitent's robe (slight skin tears). The skins were so fragile that I hesitated to pull off the fruit, using instead a pair of garden scissors to cut them from the branch. Figs ripen in sequence so, with careful monitoring, it's possible to pick ripe fruit for each day's breakfast over three to five weeks.Why is it that gardeners sometimes pin all their hopes on an improbable plant? Perhaps because we want to taste the sweetest fruits in the coldest climate! I celebrated the first crop from my little tree by presenting several fruits to the greengrocer who has so generously shared his tradition with me.TROUBLESHOOTING FIGSFigs are relatively trouble-free, but there are a few problems you should watch out for.• Excessive moisture can cause fruit to sour and split on the branches. If this happens, pick remaining immature fruit for use in jams and preserves.• Prolonged hot, dry weather can cause fruit to toughen and fall prematurely. Supply adequate water and, if in a container, move the tree to a cooler location with some shade.• Figs need as much sun as they can get, up to eight full hours of direct light each day. Less sun means fewer fruit that won't ripen as quickly.• Trees grown in the ground can be affected by root nematodes, causing stunted growth of woody branches and galls and knots on roots. Move infected trees to another location in the garden.• Tree borers seriously damage fruit-producing wood. Prune out infested branches.• Mealy bugs and scale insects can drain vigour and reduce fruiting. The tree can tolerate small infestations, but spray larger colonies with a pyrethrum-based insecticide.• Leaf rust is a fungal disease characterized by small yellow-green spots that eventually turn brown; the disease is triggered by excessive wet weather and causes leaves to drop prematurely. Remove all diseased leaves. If weather remains wet and spots persist, spray with a copper-sulfate fungicide such as Bordeaux mixture.• Mosaic virus causes leaves to become mottled and dwarfed, although the tree will continue to produce fruit. The virus can't be treated but is seldom a reason to discard the tree. It will produce less fruit but still may be worthwhile. Propagation tips, where to get them PROPAGATINGTo propagate figs, take cuttings whenever the plant isn't actively growing-early spring, just before buds open, or midsummer, after the spring growth spurt is over. The cuttings should be 15 to 30 centimetres long, with some two-year-old wood at the bases. Make a straight cut just below a node and dip the bottom end in rooting hormone. In a cool place, lay a sheet of waxed paper on a table or shelf, put the cuttings on the paper and place another sheet overtop. Let the cuttings callus (form protective tissue over the cut) for one week; then dip them in rooting hormone again and plant into containers. Keep the cuttings in a cool, shady location and maintain even soil moisture. They will initiate roots in six to eight weeks.SOURCESNote: ‘Marseilles', ‘Osborn Prolific' and ‘Violette de Bourdeaux' are difficult to find. Please check specialty nurseries.Amsterdam Garden Centre, 19100 Dewdney Trunk Rd., Pitt Meadows, BC V3Y 2R8; 604/465-6614: ‘Brown Turkey', ‘Desert King', ‘Italian Honey'.B. Dinter Nursery Ltd.: ‘Brown Turkey', ‘Desert King', ‘Italian Honey', ‘Peter's Honey'.Campbell River Garden Centre, 673 Old Petersen Rd., Campbell River, BC V9W 3N1; 250/287-7645: ‘Brown Turkey', ‘Desert King'.Le Coteau Farms & Garden Centre: ‘Desert King', ‘Italian Honey'.GardenWorks, 6250 Lougheed Hwy., Burnaby, BC V5B 2Z9; 604/299-0621: ‘Brown Turkey', ‘Kadota', ‘Peter's Honey'. Grimo Nut Nursery: ‘Bifara', ‘Natalina', ‘White Fig'.Humber Nurseries Ltd.: ‘Brown Turkey', ‘Celeste', ‘Desert King', ‘Italian Honey', ‘Kadota', ‘Peter's Honey'.