These 2 cultivar will ripe Breba and second crop,continuously without interruption between the 2 crops,and they can start churning ripe fruits ,on or before June 24 here in NJ,as it was the case in 2012.
Both are very hardy,with proven record ,for Florea and good record for ,Improved Celeste (O'Rourke not).
I recommend these 2 as a must have for any gardener that intend to grow fig trees in zones 7,6,and 5.,as base trees to built on.
And I firmly state that a fig tree is the most rewarding ,most important fruit tree a Garden must Have.
I grew most fruit tree kind,and I found out fig tree is the most willing to reward and please the grower(Granting the cultivar is adapted, for the specific climate).
If you know of a different cultivar,as early to ripe as these 2,by all means chime in.
First pix:Florea

Any taste difference?  Which better in your opinion.  Florea ripens first dosen't it?

Thanks Vasile ,

Always on the look out for varieties you recommend . If they thrive in your climate they should do well here too ..
Splitting is a problem with a lot of the varieties , but if they don't split with all the rain you've been getting the last couple years then were good .

John

I wonder how Florea does in a Mediterranean climate.  I have 3 rooted Florea.  I'll pot one, put one in a gopher basket, and put one in a crack between huge rocks.  I will report on the results for a Mediterranean climate.

Suzi

Good stuff to know Vasile.

I have Florea from you but I haven't established Improved Celeste yet. It sure has a long neck doesn't it. How's the flavor of O'Rourke compared to regular Celeste?

EDIT: Improved Celeste is not O'Rourke.

Thank you Vasile for your report. I do not grow the IC and Florea, but the two fig cultivators that ripen (main crop- I always remove the breba crops) the earliest are; O'Rourke and my UDG.

Navid.

JohnParav:Florea splits and sour bad here if it get ripe while is raining,and Improved Celeste ,sour a little with much rain,but last Summer even regular Celeste soured,,but here it is about getting ripe early,not about splitting or souring during rain.
Most climates in the north and north east are dryer than NJ, and many cultivars that sour and split in NJ do not do that in colder northern climates.
Saxonfig,I am talking about Improved Celeste not O 'Rourke Celeste.
So far ,from what other are  finding out O'Rourke Celeste is only MaRGINALLY COLD HARDY.

H2- What do you think of Improved Celeste for commercial production? Do you know if IC was included in the University of Maryland trial that MBvs won?

Vasile,

can you please tell me how hardy are Florea and improved Celeste.Is Florea is a good tasting fig?I have a new rooted Florea cutting and whant to
taste this fig for hardiness in my zone.Ciao,
Giuseppe

The first to ripen in my area last year was Florea and Marseilles and Improved Celeste. We had no rain for a while and my little Florea had 3 figs on. The color changed and the birds got the first one. I covered up the other 2 and got to taste them. They were great and so were IC. In my opinion, you can't go wrong with IC.

Brent:For Commercial production,Improved Celeste would be very good,in my opinion,but not in others opinion,that can object that the fruit is too small,for fresh fruit.
This is Why,Marseilles Black was abandoned in Maryland trials,it was the most productive the most cold tolerant,but too small in their opinion for fresh market.
Improved Celeste is a new cultivar produce by a new Generation,and it was not trialed in Maryland.
Improved Celeste is about the size of Marseilles black if not a little smaller.
If I was going to make preserves,fig wine ,or moon shine(for that matter),the 2 above have no competition.
Giuseppe:Florea is very good tasting,in cold ,and hot climates,like yours,and other most climates where there is not a lot of rain in July and August when it get ripe.
Many people from such climates wrote on this Forum and the Garden web,as for how good it taste,in their local climates.
In my local climate it was not doing very well,and I found it as an exception.
Violette de Bordeaux,is having problems here too,tho it is the best tasting in most other climates.
As for how hardy Florea is:Giuseppe,the answer is,the most hardy i ever seen.

Vasile ,

I agree the early ripening is exactly what we need here also . Last year the rains started late August and on . So an early ripening variety is ideal .

John

Vasile,
 Would you say that Florea is your most cold hardy fig?

Art

I ever had!

Well, I guess I'm adding Florea to the wish list LOL.
Hopefully be a nice combo of early ripening in NJ and cold hardy.

- H2. Oops! I should have read your post more closely. My brain saw that you were saying that IC and O'Rourke are the same. Just want to make sure that everyone knows that is NOT the case. Sorry, didn't mean to add any confusion.

This is very good to hear about Improved Celeste. Early ripening should mean more fully ripe fruits on the tree before cool weather hits. Vasile, can you say a little more about fruit production on IC? Does it slow down or stop in late summer or does it produce right up until frost?

I don't have this one yet and it sounds like one I should try it for my area. Does anyone have an Improved Celeste tree for sale? I can pay via paypal or by mail.

Improved Celeste(O'Rourke not),made fruits continuously from June 24,till frost,and so does Florea.

I cannot wait till mine gets ripe

Vasile,
thanks for bringing Florea to the States.Ciao,
Giuseppe

Durio Nursery calls Improved Celeste/O'Rourke. Does anyone know is this really O'Rourke or is it the Improved Celeste like Vasile has? I'm just looking for a good place to get a clean Improved Celeste(O'Rourke Not).

Where can I get some of each? Let me know. I have a blue celeste but it drops em all. So if I can find these two that would be awsome.

Good to hear your good experience about the improved Celeste variant, since the improved Celeste that Lsu officially released as o'rourke does it mean that this is not originally from LSu?

The Improved Celeste(O 'Rourke not),is in my opinion,made By Dr O'Rourke too,because he is the only scientist that created new improved hybrids of Celeste.
California program was never interested in Celeste due to small size and red interior.
O'Rourke Fig in my opinion(based on my observation),is not a Celeste hybrid selection,but a ---Southern Brown Turkey hybrid selection,made by Dr O'Rourke.
It is improper called O'Rourke Celeste
It should be called Dr.O'Rourke fig cultivar!

Is the improved Celeste you have the same one that James robin sells? I got that and recently got orourke straight from Lsu, since they seem different.
Thanks for the observation.

Bass do you sell these two trees? How is fig drop. Its a problem with my blue celeste. I haven't got a single ripe fig from it here in illinois. This is the last year I will give it a chance. I need early ripening figs that are cold hardy to zone 6. So far my hardy chicago sets ripe fruit first aroung aug.