Please note attached website with simple description and zoomable pictures for easy recognition of FIG RUST.

http://plantpath.caes.uga.edu/extension/plants/fruitandnuts/commonfigrust.html

Very helpful link for those (like me) who have never seen this.  I think it's too dry here.  I recently received a plant or two with those symptoms, but since I've read this forum so much, it didn't worry me.  The plants are healthy and showing growth already.

Suzi

Lucky you Suzi ! My trees are showing rust heavily on a few varieties and none /light on  others!
Our weather had been rainy, humid for days . Not good hair days either !!  ;-))

Suzi,  Thanks. Yes dry climates have less to worry about. Rust can spread in a controlled environment (green house) even in your climate, if not addressed. I have removed and discarded rust infected leaves on small starts that I have received, without negatively affecting the plants.

Pattee, Destroy or bag infected leaves, never compost. It will reduce or eliminate infection next year.

Thanks Pete , I have been doing just that . I've removed , picked up dropped and discarded a lot of leaves! Glad to hear that the removal of them on small starts did not negatively affect them , that eases my worry as I've just done the same.
Thanks...

Pattee, I have removed All the leaves on several small plants, and they have regrown new leaves and continued to flourish. There is documentation out there that states that figs can produce three (3) sets of leaves per growing season. As long as the roots and growing tips are healthy the plant will grow.

Pattee,

I heartily second Pete's advice.  Bag or burn those leaves.  Or... well I guess giving advice to ensure that you get a really hard and deep freeze over the winter might not work even in coastal L.I... (and definitely not in Florida) :-)

Just one of those times when living in a place with really cold winters might give an advantage though for dealing with rust... because I was about to say that freezing kills rust too.  At least I think it does... I suppose it's possible that it's the "drying effect" that accompanies most freezing.  (But it's got to really freeze, right down through any mulch layer, etc).  Bag 'em or burn 'em, and only count on the benefit of freezing for the leaves that escape your bag-and-destroy efforts.  

Even if I could count on weeks of minus 20 to minus 30 degrees F, I still wouldn't mulch the dead fig leaves.  (I also choose bagging over burning, but that's because I don't like to burn stuff most of the time).   

Pete:   good reference, and good reference thread.  

Mike   central NY state, zone 5

Oh that's really good to know . They are very healthy root wise so I 'm going to do just that ! 

Got me to think about what I do with the leaves from my plants.  I use the Ruth Stout method of mulching heavy and save all of my leaves.  Saw some sighs of rust and didn't know what it was on a small cherry tree this year.  Thank you for posting and sharing a useful site.

Doug,

I typically compost, and use my leaves as mulch. I will be destroying the fig leaves.

I have attached pictures of the front and back of Mission and Ischia leaves, and a close up of the back of Ischia, to show the visible indicators of rust.

The attached document put out by Perdue University, about Organic Fungicides, gives an easily read review of several organic options.

I am in MD Zone 6B and have a major Rust problem. Especially this season with the high humidity.  I have had luck using Neem Oil.

Frank,
I don't have much experience with Neem Oil, so can't comment. But last year several members recommended it. The Copper Soap fungicide worked quite well for me last year, before the continuous rains in late September.

Pete, I have been doing some research on the Copper Soap. There appears to be many versions to choose from. After reading
the possibility of injury to the plant with it, would you mind sharing which brand and the mixture you used? Thanks

Mike,
I used the Bonide Copper Fungicide Soap concentrate (Bonide Liquid Copper) @ 1 tablespoon per gallon of water (the lowest recommended dose), it didn't cause any damage to the leaves or figs. I also started spraying after the first signs of rust not before, and I removed and disposed all dead and dying leaves.

 Bonide_l811.pdf

Pete, thank you. I have been using Daconil for the anthroacnose (collectotrichum) which it works well for. However, I am
not sure it is the best solution for rust which I have some on a few plants.

Nice link, Pete and unfortunately all too familiar photo depictions.

thank you. this is the kind of education i really need.

susie

Mike,
You're welcome. The removal of infected leaves is extremely important, It removes multiple sources of future infection (inoculation). I have observed this practice (infected plant material removal) in the local commercial apple orchard for years. Its one of the simplest means of combating plant disease.

Charles,
Once the spores fall to the mulch surface (ground), that allows them to be further washed down to the soil, they should no longer be able to get airborne. The soil microbes, bacteria will then be able to decompose them. The type of mulch would be part of the equation, nuggets or gravel or sod. I'm aware that this approach may not be viable for large in ground orchards, but some of these basic practices can be done in most home orchards. And by spraying the leaves, the source of new spores is greatly reduced.

I'm spraying potted plants not inground trees. Most of the in ground trees in NYC do not have a problem with rust. I didn't have a problem until I brought in purchased plants from Nurseries. The fungicidal spraying of large in ground trees could be a problem, but using some of the recommended practices (increasing air circulation) and maintaining a clean orchard (removing leaf litter) should help to reduce the severity of rust outbreaks. My comments on spraying are really directed towards potted and smaller trees not larger plantings and mature orchards.

Dale, Susie,
Thanks. You're welcome.

Just ordered some Bonide 811. Hopefully I can halt the damage. 

Since we are approaching the end of this season, at least in the north, I'm curious to see or hear about this year's Leaf Rust and any procedures that you may have used in combat. Thanks for comments.

I personally have not initiated a rust treatment schedule this year, due to concentration on better nutritional maintenance of the fig trees and a program of better Orchard hygiene. Although several plants have been inoculated, very few leaves have fallen due to being healthier (thicker) and more resistant to damage. Even with the almost daily rain showers, the leaves are doing much better than last year. The leaves that have been damaged by rust have been removed or portions cut away, to reduce spore inoculation.