Here is what the male fig looks like now, close to year end.
If weather keeps mild as we expect, it will be another good year for Caprifigs as well as to all other F/Carica types and varieties.
These pictures,  taken this morning, show the 3rd Caprifig crop (Mamme), no pollen yet.

With most of the leaves gone now, it is easy to spot these wild figs in Nature.

Francisco

Lampo, thanks for showing us these pics.

rofig,

Thank you . Will keep showing the following crops of this male fig as I understand some members are looking for them around their whereabouts.
So I may contribute to alleviate the amount of legwork required.

Francisco

Hello Francisco,

Today I went for a ride with a fig friend and while riding as passenger, I scouted for more caprifigs in my area.  This particular specimen appears to be very fruitful/productive (at least the mamme crop), so I grabbed some cuttings and hope to root them with the figs intact.  I had an interesting time telling friends that I came across what I was up to and explaining the story of fig sex, etc.

 

What a beautiful picture HarveyC :)

Nice photo, Harvey!

Francisco, may I ask a question.

In my neighborhood I can see some black and green caprifigs. If a black capri pollinates a green common fig (for instance, Kadota or Peter's Honey or LSU Gold), will the color of the pulp change? What if a green capri pollinates a black common fig?
I know the texture / fullness of the pulp may change after a pollination, I am curious about the color.

Thanks!

Igor, I will share some thoughts on your comments for Francisco in a follow-up to another thread once I get 15-30 minutes to write down something that might seem intelligent.  Stay tuned, lol.

:)
No sleep?

Hi,

Nice tree Harvey! You are now building up a bank of Caprifigs and this is good!
Along the season, sometimes, they do not behave the same way..an entire Capri crop from a given tree may be missing.. ! and we wonder what will happen next.. Will I have my Profichis ? A difficult crop to observe is the Mammoni, the one following the Profichi..Seen trees without one single fruit.. but 3 months later that same tree may be full of growing Mamme full of larvae.

If you have various trees,  somehow, you better, if one fails, there is always another one.. and another one! and you can test the effectiveness of pollinations from different trees, etc.. remember those Zidi's ?
With that particular Caprifig they grow better, bigger, tastier, etc..


Igor, I am afraid to say that to my limited knowledge, the fruit genes will not change, regardless of the Caprifig colors
You may certainly see  better characteristics  (weight - size- pulp- crunch-) would result.
Some Caprifigs give better results than other.

Francisco

Yes, Francisco, I now remember your email about the Zidi results.  I don't know that I'll have the patience for formal testing, just will be hard to find the time for that.

I'll give a hint here on genetic transfer I learned yesterday for the sake of Igor - will write more in another thread.  In fig breeding, the caprifig is found to be critical in the transfer of genes for offspring characteristics of tight eye, size, color of skin and pulp.  A breeder works on breeding lines of caprifigs along with the process of developing new common figs.

i would imagine reproduction will result in genetic expression like any other organism. meaning some traits from male and female parents will be there with dominant characteristics supppressing recessive. question is which phenotype is dominant and which is recessive.

francisco,

that last pix of the caprifig looks wonderful. i read caprifigs got the name since they were fed to goats. does that mean they are edible? i don't know much at all about caorifigs. then again, goats will eat just about anything :)

Francisco, can't get enough of these information, Thank you so much. I have been learning about Caprification thanks to you.

My comments came from discussion with someone working as a professional plant breeder since 1961.

harvey, that would be a very valuable info. knowing what characteristics will dominate. makes breeding much less unpredictable.

   

 Hi Pete,

Yes the name comes from the Latin root 'capra' > goat. The meaning being ..'only goats mat eat them'
You right, they eat anything.. seen in the middle of the Sahara, goats feeding happily on used empty cardboard boxes on the back of the spare parts Depot.
Pete, the last picture on this thread is Harvey's not mine.

Igor, I don't know if my previous answer did satisfy your question.
Different Caprifigs, may give diff results and sometimes... very different.
Will try to illustrate what I am saying by showing  pictures of the Smyrna variety 'Inchário Branco', 30 miles apart and certainly pollinated by different varieties of Caprifigs.
You may then ask..What varieties of Caprifig ?  and my answer shall have to be negative - I don't know - because there are so many around both Smyrnas.. I can only guess but with a strong probability of error!

Francisco

Franciso,
Thank you for the photos, they are beautiful as usual and answer my question. So, I guess, the only way to find out how the white and black caprifigs influence the color, is to make a controlled test. Of course, it is easier to say than to implement. In your case, you have shown a Smyrna type, they do require caprification. I do not have a large enough Smyrna to try anything within the next year but I do have a common white fig. As far as a capri goes, there are plenty around, I will just have to collect them and make sure they feel home in a pot.
Let me think how to setup the experiment and I may ask your opinion later on.

wow... those pictures are amazing. definitely looks edible, or at least i'll eat them. i bet they taste good.

So you're saying Zidi is a caprifig that makes the female figs taste better than most other caprifigs?  I'm going to start a new thread because I now need to know these things   :)

Francisco these caprified fig pictures are nothing but torture to my tastebuds , please stop!, LOL
...I want them, I want them, I want them...

Bob,

I think I have responded to your doubts on Zidi... on your recent topic -Best Caprifigs for seed production ...-

Francisco

Igor,

The contrast is even more marked when looking at several Common figs with various degrees of pollination..

Not long ago have shown a cutaway of a potted Black Bourjassot (a Common) subject to wasp action.

Now let me show you the Common variety 'Bebera Branca'  from two different places  -15 mile apart- (grounded)..

One probably with poor caprification or none at all

The other  (very big) and fully exposed to nearby Caprifigs. These figs here, if all goes well may go up to 200 gr.
(the Caprifig variety on this example will not be too difficult to identify - just 2 varieties on this site)

Francisco