Weather-wise, the 2008 & '09 years have been very similar in our NW AR area: a couple of weeks of July heat & way above normal spring, summer, & fall rains.
In late July '08 in the withering heat, I set up about 4 dozen air-layers on my 18 or so trees of various kinds. I had root formation on almost every single one--including: Petit Negr, White Russian, Black Mission, Celeste, White TX Everbearing, TX Blue Giant, Brown Turkey, and Encanto Group.
(This is not to say that they all survived to be planted out in Spring '09. I lost approx. 10 to panic'ed over-watering after they dried out in our sunroom).

This year, I spent way too much time struggling with my new HoopHouse (poor OKie design, long story) I did manage to transplant 45 trees therein. But I felt less ambitious in the air-layering department & did not set them up until late August. My results: maybe 1/8" of root formation on a Celeste, ZERO on my ever-trusty petit negri INCLUDING the usually fail-safe method of burying a couple of low branches in the soil, covering them with plastic & weighing it all down with a stone. For the record, we had one sunny day in the month of October.
Do we love variation in our fig experience or what?
Signed,
Still Learning.

Do we love variation in our fig experience or what?

For me the varieation is always a challenge which i do enjoy with figs you know in rooting them, sometimes growing them as well .

Air-layering, in general, is best done when there is active growth, which indicates good sap flow. I am sure a Google search will provide way too much info on air-layering - also called marcotting, if I remember correctly.

I have found that the best time for air layering for me is in the early summer after the plant has started putting new leaves. This stage may vary from location to location. I leave the air-layered branch for about 6 weeks before separating from the mother plant. It gives plenty of time for the air-layered plant to well established after separation.
Having said that, I have successfully air-layered a couple of plants in late summer right in the middle of the trunk to divide the plant in two because the original plant looked like a palm tree with branching 4 ft above the soil. So, now both plants have branched out at reasonably  low heights (& some day they may look like dieseler plants).

I start air layering in late May(zone6/7). Usually by early August its ready. I have started them on 3rd week July too and they are usually ready by end Sept or early Oct.
I prefer starting air layering in late May to give the successful air layer a chance to be potted up & many times, by end Sept the mass roots are ready to be pot up again. After I cut the successful air layer, I usually take 75% leaves off & keep in 90% shade for at least 2weeks.

As usual, I appreciate all the good info.
Bottom line: I will get to it earlier next year.

sv
ps. I will also try to follow-up on what I call compost - rooting. I have noticed my prunings thrown *at the bottom* of a cold wet compost pile, unearthed the following spring have all kinds of leaf starts. Gotta be a way to get some roots going there. The rule seems to be: beware sudden changes of moisture / temperature.
For the record: no luck with rooting cuttings in baggies--too much mold in the native air methingks--everyone around here seems to have allergies!

I buried three branches in the early summer as suggested earlier.  Each of the three rooted quite well, but I did not cut them from the plant to put in a pot.  They are still in the ground with some leaves still on them.  I live in southern Middle Tennessee so have I waited too late to cut off and dig up??? What are my options??? Thank you - Don

BikeBoy--Just guessing here without the benefit of personal experience, but wouldn't it work to leave them attached, protect them from the cold, and then cut them loose in the spring when the buds are starting to swell?

Don:
Ken is correct. For *protection* I fashion a short teepee of hogwire shaped like this: ^ to contain a good six - 12 inches of straw--after pruning my shrubs back to 8 - 10 in. per stem, but before we get those 20 deg. nights in a row. Straw works great as long as it doesn't get super saturated--which knock on wood--has not been a winter problem here of late.

You could also prune off all the leaves but one or two & pot those turkeys up! A garage will work or a especially a sunroom will give them a head start on Spring!