When do fig trees produce fruit?
One of the biggest appeals for growing common figs besides their delicious flavor is the fact that many varieties can give you great figs on their second a year, and top-quality figs on the third season. Fig trees typically begin producing fruit in late spring and continue through early fall, depending on the variety and local climate. Once the figs ripen, they can be harvested when they feel soft to the touch and have a slightly sweet aroma. Some the early varieties include Campaniere, Byadi, LSU Hollier, and De Tres Esplets. These varieties produce figs on mid-Summer with harvest time extends well into September. Complex berry type varieties ripen late on the season typically mid to late September or even early October. In our zone 6a, we manage to ripen very late varieties by leveraging various techniques. Late varieties are kept in containers which are exposed to warmer temperatures and light on early April. These trees are placed on the sunniest spots and pinching of the trees is done early June.
It only takes a couple of seasons to start enjoying amazing figs. When you root cuttings, the young tree will focus most of its energy on getting established on its first season. Liquid fertilizer rich in nitrogen is good early on while the young tree is developing new leaves. Then it is recommended to switch into a good quality organic fertilizer rich in phosphorous and potassium to help develop and nourish the root system. The second year is when the tree starts to really grow. We dont advice trimming the tree the first or second year, let the tree grow and flourish. As the tree grows on its second season it will put on some figs which are good but might not reassemble the true form of the variety. Nonetheless, many of these figs surpass the quality of any storebought fig. The third year is when the quality of the fig really shows up, you start to notice development of more complex flavors enabled by the nutrition the stablished root system can capture. You also can observe how the plant has adjusted to its spot in the garden by producing additional branches, a denser foliage, and higher number of figs per branch. On their third season the trees have an increased in production and it is vital that you do not stress the tree by reducing watering to much. Keep the tree hydrated and only lower the watering routine on the colder autumn months.
Some of the varieties that have produced great figs on their second year in our case have been LSU Hollier, De Tres Esplets, Sister Madeleine Green Greek, Belleclare Sport, Grigio, Dolce Cuore, Petite Negri, Cavaliere, Cul Noir, Del Sem Jaume Gran, Byadi, and St. Anthony. Other trees do take longer about 3-4 years to really put out excellent quality figs. Some of such varieties include Coll de Dame types, Sao Miguel Roxo, Colonel Littman’s Black Cross, Rubado, Bordissot Blanca Rimada, Bourjasotte Grise. It is possible that the rich complexity of the previous varieties is only attainable once the tree has been well-stablished, and the root system can properly support the harvesting of nutrients necessary to endow the fig with sweetness and masterful flavor.
Some varieties can drop most of their figs even until their third season. We have found that patience is key for unlocking the flavor of such varieties. Some that come to mind include Souadi, De S’Avenc, Oro Bianco, Motoso Preto, Belmont Beauty, and Valoze. For instance, Souadi produced beautiful figs each season, but we lost most of the crop as the figs were not strongly attached to the branches. Only after its third season we were able to truly appreciate its flavor, which is excellent. Figs such as Oro Bianco have figs that looked well but were eventually ejected by the tree. Only after its third year we were able to obtain a consistent harvest of its breba and main crop. On our personal experience only Partridge Eye and Dwarf Gold failed to produce viable figs even after their 4th season, ultimately, we removed those from our collection.
