Not directly pertaining to figs, but after this rough winter in Pennsylvania I'm learning time and again to not give up hope on plants, they just need some extra time. I've been seeing massive mimosa trees just leafing out the past week, crape myrtle and buddleia sprouting from the ground, and lots more that needed a little extra time.

For example: I have 3 seedling PawPaw trees of varying age in my lower yard. 2 broke dormancy roughly on time (well over a month ago I think) and are growing beautifully; amazing how much growth they can put on. The most recent addition, a struggling seedling when I planted it late last summer (I got it for free), seemed dead despite it being green under the bark. But behold! This morning the buds are finally swelling and I see green! It made me quite happy, I hate replanting things.

So the moral of the story, don't give up on those figs either! Might not be unwise to hold onto them through the summer to be sure, especially for varieties that are important.

Thanks Kelby.  I have a few that are questionable at the moment.  Struggling to decide if I want to move on or wait.  You've given me some hope.

You're right, Kelby.  I actually threw away a few small year-old paw paw seedlings in the compost bin late last week because I did see green underneath but no evidence of growth, so I thought "okay, it is June tomorrow, time to give up hope."  I noticed it this morning, I thought a weed was growing beside them.  Wrong.  A few of the seedlings finally starting to leaf out.  I would never have guessed it.  I am learning a lot from this past brutal winter. 

Definitely. It truly is an exercise in patience...and almost forgetting. I was just trying to get everything going again - I lost beehives - as well as the veg garden and figs and thought my hydrangea had died. It sprouted from the roots just recently, which was nice. My butterfly bush is toast. The purple comfrey shook off the snow and ice as if it were nothing, but in her own time. The asparagus - much later than usual, but going strong now. Good luck to everyone as the dust settles.

Don't give up. My fig tree, which was started from a cutting from my Grandparent's tree, looked like it had died. I scratched some bark and it was green underneath, some branches brown. I was very sad about it. Today, there are two tiny leaves growing off the bottom of the branch. So, don't give up. After the harsh winter we had, the plants are late this year. It will be interesting to see how the quality and quantity of fruits will be affected. Good luck!

Similar experiences here.

We purchased a neglected (5 years worth) overgrown, horrible property last year.  We cut the vines back, and hit them with roundup.  This spring it's amazing what is popping up!  We did turn on the sprinklers and drip systems... all in disrepair.  JD doesn't want to discuss that!  But, we found a hidden lemon tree, a hidden orange, and so much more... There is a beautiful lily out front that is just so pretty!  We are sort of in a conundrum about fertilizer.  Grape vines are showing signs of stress from this poor soil, but it's hilly, rocky, and when you water, it all goes down hill.  We need a way to fertilize that won't go to the bottom of the hill.  Things on the bottom are doing great!!

Suzi

Suzi, try Jobe's fertilizer spikes, or some other brand. You drive them in the ground around the plant and they slowly release without runoff.

Suzi, can you topdress the soil with compost and then mulch to help catch water/nutrients? Creating small swales or terrraces would help as well.

I would also suggest trickle watering to maximize water penetration to the soil and reduce runoff. You can buy GatorBags that work quite well, or my cheap way is a 5 gallon bucket with a couple small holes drilled in the bottom. Takes 15 or 20 minutes to drain and the water goes deep into the soil. You can add liquid fertilizer when you do this if you feel so inclined...compost tea or some sort of fish emulsion/kelp is good to feed the soil life as well as the plants.

All my potted figs that over-wintered in my garage leafed out a month or 2 ago except for 1. I kept it on the driveway intending on throwing it out but just this week it started budding. My 5 year old protected in-ground tree seemingly died back to the roots but at least 2 of the 5 main trunks are budding about a foot off the ground and there are probably another 4 or 5 new trunks growing from the roots. I'll probably lose 3-4 feet of top growth but at least it's not a complete loss!