Hiyall!

I am getting back into figs after several years without any. When I lived in Knoxville (east TN) I had some trees in containers, but the only survivors from that time are now large trees at my parents' house and my brother's house, both in Nashville. Those surviving trees (10-15 years, I forget exactly) are the typical "well, it's either Hardy Chicago, Brown Turkey, or Celeste" trees. I *think* they are Hardy Chicagos that I grew from cuttings from a friend's old tree, but at this point I'm no longer sure.

Anyway --

I now live in mid-TN on six acres outside a little town east of Nashville, and I've finally decided to start figs again. I have virtually no soil here (solid limestone), and all the figs are in large containers (around 20-30 gallons -- I haven't measured, but it takes roughly 1 1/2 to 2 64-liter bags of potting soil to fill them). I know that figs like limestone, so I may plant some in what ground there is in future -- but containers for now. The containers are set on a large graveled apron in a large clearing that faces west and south (graveled because a former owner had a home-based RV-repair business here, and a clearing because that part of the property is wooded). They get plenty of sun, and I'm hoping the gravel and surrounding trees will help with warmth retention and wind protection in winter.

You'll see from my sig which varieties I've already purchased, and which I'm hoping to add (some of those I'll probably be getting off ebay in the next week or two). I already have one conundrum: I am confused about Violette de Bordeaux/Petite Negri/Petite Negra/Negronne and whether they are or are not the same, but Wellspring was selling both Violette de Bordeaux and "Dwarf Black" so I decided to get both and check them out. From what I've seen in forum postings, lots of other people are confused about these as well. ;-)

I've visited the forum many times over the years, and of course I've learned tons from y'all. I'd love to hear from anyone in this area, and see what their experiences have been!

Welcome to the forum Egghead!  You have some nice varieties for your containers.  Good luck with them!  I only have one concern about those you plant in your soil in the future.  RV repair could mean there are toxins in it, so be careful you don't plant near those... like oil, paint thinners, stuff like that.

Suzi

That's a great thought about the toxins, but never fear. I don't plant anything in the ground in the graveled area -- I have plenty of property to play with. :-)

Oh, I forgot to mention -- I know an old lady in Nashville who has had the same fig trees in the ground there for more than 30 years. I was hoping to get some cuttings this past winter, but we had such a cold winter that I'm sure they died to the ground (they did the year before, which was also a bad year). So I'm going to try again this coming winter. Then I can play even more "what is this fig?" games!

Welcome!  We have several people in the SE who can give you great advice.  I'm sure you'll have 30 acres in figs before you know it. 

Welcome Egghead.

Ridgetop Tn. here. Just north of Nashville. Pretty much new to figs (in fact I have never even eaten a fig).

Growing most of mine in SIP containers. Because of a design flaw (and red solo cups) I drowned my Adriatic JH to death, and have a Smith and Hollier, that I hope I rescued in time, and now watching/hoping for recovery. I plan to put my Hardy Chicago, MSVB, and Improved Celeste in the ground next spring after giving them one more year of age in pots. Good luck with your endeavors and happy growing. =)


Regards,
billy

Welcome to the forum!

Thanks, guys!

Hi Egghead,

I had a conversation about this with Edible Landscaping in Virginia once. EL says Negronne and VdB are synonymous. If I recall correctly, our French member #jdsfrance said that in France they call it Negronne not Violette de Bordeaux, so I guess that name was added at some point after it made its pilgrimage to the States. I think EL coined the name Petite Negri -- and, by their comments -- it is the dwarf version of VdB/Negronne. For what it's worth, someone at EL said they found the PN strain to be a bit more production and also more cold-hardy than VdB/Negronne. I don't know whether Petite Negra is the same as EL's Petite Negri or not. Probably depends on who's selling it.

Thanks for the info!