Guide to Fig Trees

Figs (Ficus Carcia) belong to the family Moraceae, which includes over 1,000 species. It is native to the middle East and western Asia, though many varieties have become naturalized in North America.

The common fig is a deciduous tree/shrub cultivated for its delicious fruit, but also makes an attractive small, ornamental tree for yards, gardens and landscapes. Fig trees typically reach a height and width of 10-20', thriving best in well drained soil and full sun exposure.

An important factor in the care of your fig tree is Winter protection, particularly in areas where temperatures will drop below 25 degrees F. Whether your fig is planted in a container or in the ground, proper winterizing is the key to success.

In-Ground Planting

For cold climates, we suggest selecting a cold hardy variety:

• Chicago Fig: Produces plenty of fruit during the growing season even if it freezes to the ground in Winter.
• Celeste Fig: Also known as Conant, Celestial or Sugar Fig, this fast-growing cultivar has a shrub-like habit, reaching around 15' at maturity. Like the Chicago Fig, Celeste will also freeze to the ground in low Winter temperatures but will rebound in Spring. 
• Brown Turkey Fig: This prolific bearer of large fruit is known to occasionally produce two crops in a single year in addition to lasting through the cold Winter months.
• Ventura Fig: More cold hardy than most, this compact variety reaches about 13' at maturity. 

These are just a few examples of cold hardy figs-- planting one will greatly increase your chances of successfully wintering your tree!

Winter Your Tree in 7 Steps

Implement your fig tree Winter protection after all the leaves have dropped in Fall.

1. Start your tree's Winter care by pruning away any branches that are weak, diseased or crossing other branches.
2. Tie the branches together, forming a column. 
3. Add a thick layer of mulch over the roots.
4. Wrap your tree in several layers of burlap, leaving the top open to allow moisture and heat to escape
5. Build a cage around the tree-- chicken wire is a common choice, but any material that is somewhat sturdy will work.
6. Wrap the whole tree in either plastic insulation or bubble wrap.
7. Place a plastic bucket on top of the wrapped column.

Remove the Winter protection in early Spring when night temperatures consistently stay above 20 degrees F.

Container-Planted Trees

This method is much easier and significantly less labor intensive than what is required for trees planted in the ground.

Wintering Your Container-Planted Fig Tree 

• Once all the leaves have dropped, relocate your tree to a cool, dry place-- in the garage, basement or even closets are great spots.
• Water your fig tree once a month. Figs require very little water while dormant and overwatering during this peropd can actually kill your tree!
• In early Spring, you will see the leaves beginning to emerge. When night temperatures stay consistently above 35 degrees F, you can bring your tree back outside.

You don't want to bring your fig tree back outside before frost has passed...This will result in the new leaves getting burned or damaged from exposure to frost.

Fertilizing 

These low maintenance trees are great for many reasons, a major point being that they rarely need fertilizer. In fact, giving a fig tree fertilizer when it doesn't need it can actually damage the tree-- a fig tree that gets too much nitrogen produces less fruit and is even more susceptible to cold weather damage. 

Additionally, figs are naturally slow-growing trees and giving them fertilizer may cause a growth spurt, resulting in splits and cracks in trunks/branches.

How & When To Fertilize Figs

The most important thing is to know what to feed fig trees. It's easy to overdo it with stronger fertilizers, so a general-purpose fertilizer with an analysis of 8-8-8 or 10-10-10 is what we recommend. 

The best time to provide fertilizer for your fig tree is only when it shows symptoms of either slow growth or pale leaves, however there are a few exceptions:

• If your tree is planted in a sandy location
• Fig trees surrounded by other plants compete for nutrients

You also need to know when to fertilize figs. It’s best to split the feeding over several months so the tree doesn’t get too much nitrogen at one time. Feed one- and two-year-old trees an ounce of fertilizer a month, beginning when the tree starts to put on new leaves and stopping before the end of July. Give older trees one-third pound of fertilizer per foot of bush height three times a year in late winter, mid-spring and mid-summer.

Harvesting Figs

Figs are easy to harvest when they are ripe-- An essential rule for fig tree harvesting is to handle the ripe fruit as little as possible to avoid bruising. Pull or cut the fruit gently from the stem, leaving some of the stem attached to the fig to help delay fruit spoilage. 

Wait until the figs are ripe to harvest. Figs will not continue to ripen after they are picked like many other fruits. You can tell that it is time for harvesting figs when the fruit necks wilt and the fruits hang down.

Guide to Staking and Guying Trees

Staking your tree ensures stability until the tree is able to support itself-- read on for some helpful tips on how to support your tree's growth.

Is Staking Required For Every Tree?
More often than not, trees will establish and thrive without the help of stakes or guying. 

We recommend taking these steps if:
-There is excessive bending of the trunk

-The tree has unusually small root systems that cannot support any of the above-ground growth
-Planting site has a lot of wind exposure

Proper Staking Technique

If the staking period is prolonged or done improperly, you run the risk of causing stem breakage on your tree!

Staking & Guying Materials

• Staking materials vary depending on the situation and size of the tree. For small to average-sized trees (up to 10-12 feet in height), wooden stakes are sufficient. They should be at least 2" x 2" x 5' long. For larger/heavier trees or those planted in windy areas, metal fence stakes are recommended. 

• Guying anchors are typically shorter and stronger, since they are driven deep into the ground and exposed only a few inches above the soil surface. Stout wooden stakes (at least 3" x 3" x 24"), duck-billed soil anchors, or reinforcing rods (minimum of 5/8" in diameter) are most often used.

Attaching Wires/Ropes to the Trunk

Whether you are are attaching the tree to stakes or guying anchors, it's crucial to keep in mind that any rope, wires or metal cable should never be touching the trunk or branches.

Utilize any material that has a broad, flat surface as this will assist in preventing abrasion and compression of the stem.

Additionally, it's good to keep in mind that attachments should only be made 1/3 or 2/3 up the trunk--never attach directly below the first set of branches.


In attaching too close to the branches, you run the risk of potentially snapping the trunk in heavy wind-- the cause of this is a rigid hold on the trunk paired with a loose canopy.









Placement of Stakes/Anchors & Stem Attachments

As a rule of thumb, use as few of these as possible. 

In most cases with smaller trees, one stake is enough to keep the tree both vertical and stable. It's important to place your stake upwind from the direction of prevailing winds. Drive the stake into the outer edge of the planting hole, safely away from the root system.

If one stake is not sufficient, place two that run parallel to the prevailing winds.

For guying straightened, wind thrown trees, use three stakes or anchors equally spaced around the tree.

Always remember to attach the stem to stakes or anchors loosely!

Leave room for some flexibility at each point of attachment-- trees need to be able to move a little during windy periods in order to develop flexible strength and stem diameter. With only rigid support, this will result in tall trees with weak trunks.

Windthrown Trees

On occasion, windthrown trees can in fact be straightened and saved-- the success of this technique depends on several key factors:

• It must be a true wind throw meaning the roots are pushing up through heaved soil. If the tree is leaning/horizontal but the roots aren't pushed up, unfortunately the tree stem has likely broken off in the ground.
• This technique work best on trees that are relatively small (15-20' high; stem diameter of 6" or less). Larger trees can in fact be straightened, however it takes a skilled tree care company with special equipment to perform the operation.
• The roots must be alive-- if they have been exposed for even a couple days, the roots have likely begun to dry out. This will reduce your chance of success in saving the tree.
• The soil must be moist--successfully straightening a tree in dry soil conditions rarely happens.
• Most shallow-rooted species (such as maples) stand a better chance of being straightened rather than deep-rooted varieties (like walnuts).

Straightening the Tree

If the tree cannot be straightened immediately after the wind subsides, keep the root system moist.
This can be done with irrigation and a mulch such as loose straw or burlap.

Excavate under the heaved-up root system to the depth of the lifted mass of roots and soil.
This allows the root and soil mass to settle back to a normal depth once the tree has been straightened.

Never pull or winch a tree into an upright position without excavating under the heaved up roots. Without that cleared area for the root and soil mass to settle in it will be pulled from the ground, resulting in more broken roots on the opposite side.

Install a triangular guying system, water thoroughly, fill with loose soil, water again and mulch the entire rooting area. Remember to inculde guying anchors within the mulched area.

Stake & Anchor Removal

Your stake or guy attachments were likely installed at the time of the initial planting, or shortly after. These should be left in place for one growing season.

After you remove the attachments, check your tree for stability; if the tree's root system still moves in the soil when the trunk is moved or whether the trunk still bends excessively, reattach the connections to the stakes loosely, to accommodate new growth.

Leave the stakes or anchors on for one more season.