I am trying to figure out if I am doing something wrong with my trees or if there is just some variation among my trees due to age etc.  I dont want to start messing with something that is not broken or make a minor problem worse

I have two figs trees that I purchased earlier this year.  Both trees (VdB and Celestial) are from Dave Wilson.  Both of these fig trees have leaves growing very close together on stubby branches.  I have third fig tree (RdB) which I obtained through a member of the forums which has longer branches and what looks to me like more normal growth.  

Here is the difference between the trees:

The "stubby" trees are planted in Promix HP while the healthier looking tree in planted in another less expensive potting soil from Home Depot (dont remember which one).  The two stubby trees are planted in 1/2 wiskey barrel style plastic pots and the RdB is planted in a taller pot that isnt quite as wide.

The RdB with the longer branches and more open growth is younger than the stubby trees 

All three trees have received the same fertilizer (5-5-5 organic fertilizer and Espoma Garden Lime) and water.

The photo shows the VdB which has almost identical growth to the Celestial except the celestial has 5 or 6 figlets.  They both started leafing out the end of February

 

Shawn,

I doubt the difference is due to anything cultural, although it's possible.  I don't really see anything wrong with the picture. Yes, the nodes are a little close together, but sometimes this happens, and you can still have a good crop in this situation.  My advice is just to hang tight and not worry about it. 

Rob

Hey Shawn. This is a pic taken of my VdB last week. Super close nodes that just seems to be last year's growth, might spread out, might not, who knows. As long as it's productive, I wouldn't mind. I've also noticed that that little area is great for rooting or airlayering.
 

Thanks for the feedback, it is helpful.  Being new to this hobby/affliction it is sometimes difficult to determine what falls within the normal range. I wish I had all those fig on my VdB like you do Simon.  Right now mine has no fruit forming but hopefully soon.

Hi Shawn,
I don't see what your problem is . Can you show a pic of the "good growing" one ?

If your "problem" is the short internodal space, well, this is due to the volume of the pot IMO.
I have/had problem with underground rodents. So I started growing in 2012 some of my trees in 80 liters trashcan bottomless and buried in the ground.
The idea was that the roots would sink and reach the open dirt at 50 cm /2' of depth, and thus not be limited by the trashcan.
All those trees expose small internodal spaces which is not a problem since that gives me smaller trees. The main drawback is the lack of exchange of water with the open ground, which means a bit more watering for me.
That is a problem especially during my summer holidays :) .

If you want more growth and node spacing, I think a higher nitrogen fertilizer or supplement would do the trick.

I have a small VdB too (second year), and it has shorter internodal growth than my other varieties too. It is growing very tight, like  yours. But, it is still going to produce a nice bunch of figs.  But like eric11 said,  you could hit it hard with nitrogen if you want  to. I don't think I would because it might reduce its fruit production this year.

It is good to know that the node spacing on this age VdB is pretty normal.   Thank you for the feedback!

My observation is that branches with closer nodes means that the cuttings I've taken have all exhibited stronger root and growth when propagating.