Well I put in an order for next March as well... kinda like being in a "fig of the year club" I have some coming this July and then some more next March. I ordered early because I was concerned some of theing varieties I wanted like ponte tresa would sell out. With the affordable prices this was a great opportunity and I figure just a great way to build a collection in the future without going broke buying on ebay. Thanks again and I look forward to building up my collection of varieties!!!

Don't know how you do it, but at these prices and despite running out of space, I could not resist ordering a Martinenca Rimada, Ponte Tresa and Galicia Negra. This should complete my collection for now, unless...
Thank You

Jodi, The fact that some varieties are rare or new does not mean that they are the best. They are just hard to get. By the way your Brown Turkey is showing some green!
Of all my humble collection I still have to find a bad tasting fig. If you are a collector, it's a different story, you could never have enough varieties, but when you run out of space or can no longer take care of them then the culling will begin. Some figs are on top of the scale when it comes to taste but unproductive in pots while some others are very productive with very little flavor punch. Some varieties such as Martinenca Rimada perhaps would make a great piece of conversation if they make it in your yard.
Some varieties are hard to get results out of and I'm not sure why.For example my Panache did not produce a single fig in three years despite taking care of it. Perhaps it needs more time.

After growing figs mainly in pots for the past three or four years, I'm finding out that output  = input. The ones that I care for more than others deliver better quality fruit than the ones I neglect due to lack of time or energy, over/under-watering, root overheating etc... The neglected ones will produce a lot of leaves.
From one year to the next I keep discovering a top tasting fig that I didn't know about in my own yard:)

Very cool Sas. It is such a journey! So much variation from one stick to the next even from the same tree! I can't wait till I have the chance to compare a few in my yard, hopefully this year. I am afraid that by the time I really know my Figs I will be a very old woman! And I am glad Daisys twig is growing for you. I saw her tree just yesterday and I can not believe how it is growing and all the huge Brebas on it! Cheers, Jodi Not sure why it is sideways;-)

good evening, im looking for martinenca rimada fig cutting, do you have it?

Sas, i agree...never enough!

I started work on expanding my in-ground outdoor fig orchard this week, I think the tilled area will provide around 12,000 square feet for additional figs.  I'll cover it in landscape fabric, bury it in thick wood mulch, and add some irrigation, hopefully all in the next couple of weeks.

 
 

The trees for the propagation project continue to grow, and I'll be busy unpacking them over the next week.  I just bought 30 more 5' diameter hard plastic wading pools; I'll set many of them outdoors to hold up-potted figs now that our last frost is probably past, and the rest will go in another tunnel greenhouse to hold the youngest trees.  After all the older trees have been moved out of the floating wading pools pictured below, I'll probably reload the floating pools with another generation, too.

 
 
 

BTW, I picked and ate my first bananas of the season over the past couple of days :)  The variety is possibly/probably Manzano.  The finger I tried yesterday was good but still slightly chalky; the one I ate today was nicely ripe and very good, maybe the best flavored banana I've ever eaten. 

 

Alan & Meg,I have more pots than I could handle. It all happened during the early stages of my fig craze as I was collecting varieties for my own research. Had I known what is involved, I would've taken it easy. The list of top figs kept growing and growing, until I became convinced that I almost had everything I need including the ones promised over here. Then I realized I had to get a couple more...
You should see my porch, it is standing room only. My initial aim was to have enough for my fig forest, but with delays and setbacks it is still a dream.
I planted 22 fig trees last spring at my wildlife property. They made it through the whole summer without irrigation only to die off during the fall. Some were obviously damaged by deer and other critters. That was a loss of almost 22 different varieties for me. I'm still hoping for some to come back. In the end no one needs so many trees unless you're going commercial or doing it for wildlife.
I agree that they are much easier to care for in the ground and that was my plan all along. Then I realized that there are all kinds of wonderful fruit other than fig trees such as jujubes, persimmons, pomegranate etc..and must have room for those ones too.
I keep saying that I have enough, then a variety such as Galicia Negra or a Martinenca Rimada becomes available and you know the rest.
Despite making new discoveries and still waiting for many varieties to fruit, I almost know which names I would want to keep. They'd have to be exotic and rare. Especially after I taste the fruit. The main reason for wanting to keep those ones and not the common varieties is not because they are necessarily better, but because of the fear of not being able to easily replace them. Ideally I wish to keep 10 to 12 varieties at most which is more than enough to satisfy my taste buds, but as long as I have room, I will keep them all.

James what spacing are you going to use for your in ground orchard?

I'm working on an update, I'll post it in a few minutes.

Sorry about the lack of updates lately, this is a really hectic time of year for me on the fish farming side of things.  I raise blue tilapia that I deliver all over the state (in the morning or at night, so I can be home during peak heat to care for the figs); here's a video of me netting some out for a client who lives about 2 miles from me:

When I took some soft green cuttings and put them in the cloner, I got roots, but they were much smaller and weaker than the roots I got from hard green or lignified cuttings.  Here's a pic of a soft green cutting with some lignified cuttings to show what I mean:

 
The soft green cutting produced lots of really thin roots that never grew past an inch long.  Eventually it withered and died.  I tried the same thing with 3 soft green cuttings, and got the same result with all 3.  I think that if I had added some nutrients and better light the soft green cuttings might have eventually flourished, but I don't know, and I don't want to take risks with your root systems. 

So to try and ensure that everyone gets trees with good strong root systems, I've decided to air-layer the mother trees rather than trim and root green cuttings from them.  That way the established roots of the mother trees can help power good root growth for the new trees-to-be.

what a wonderful post   wow   i am impressed   beautiful job.

green fin    thanks for the spacing posting    just what I was looking for.

It's so cool to go back to some of James early January pics as see how his fig dream has come to be reality. Great job James.

Hi, James: You do an amazing job!!!  How do you ever have so much energy?  Do have help on your farm?  Your banana trees look really great!  I have some banana trees growing now but I think I need to really work on the soil so they will fruit next year.  The Tilapia do look beautiful.  Thanks for all of the updates and photos and congratulations on your new SunBlocker Pro Shade!  Love it!

Woe is me.  I think that I have failed with all of the cuttings that I bought in Dec.  It looks like they tried to root and then just quit.  Too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry???  I am aggravated with myself.  I thought that I was doing everything right.  I guess that I "loved on them too much".  

Is it too late to find more cuttings?  Any ideas or help will  be appreciated.

Sooo looking forward to Spring 2017...it will give me just enough time to prepare for all the wonderful cuttings I ordered from you. Thanks again!

Grace Martin
SE Michigan

Am I the only one wondering how you are going to consume all the delicious figs from your forest at harvest time? Do you need help?

Never seems to be an issue of what to do with them, more of an issue getting some for yourself. 

It's always nice to see how our "fig-babies" are doing!  Can't wait to get them in about a month!  I'm putting together a 2017 order, too.  Those bananas are just too cool, though.

Great work James, always look forward to your update. You get amazing growth in your hoophouses, i think 95% of us are jealous. Great job!