It is May 7, 2014 and my Atlanta, GA fig tree has no leaves... is this too late in the season and has my tree died?

Do a scratch test

Hi Jeniferhood,
Welcome to the forum . Just one tree ? How do you do :) ?
I would wait until July for final results. If you want to speed-up the tree, put a big clear plastic bag all around the trunk for greenhouse effect.
Water and fertilize the tree to help her ...
Keep us posted :)

I am sort of afraid to do the scratch test...I admit that I am very much emotionally attached to this tree.  It is my one-and-only.  Last season it was 8'H and 10'W.  Thanks for the encouragement about waiting until July to write the obituary!  We have had several 85-plus degree days lately so things may get going now.

I'm a little farther north than you in Maryland and I just saw the first sign of life from a tree that was in an unheated shed for the winter.  It has started growing from the base.  Looks like the entire top of the tree died.  I have several others with no growth yet.  All we can do it wait.  I am also reluctant to do a scratch test.  I can't ever tell anything from them anyway.  I'm just going to wait and if by June there's no growth then they're going in the trash.

welcome to the forum. unlike human beings, when a fig tree looks like dead, and smells like dead, it might not be dead. i wouldn't scratch it either. instead, take a pix of the tip of one of the branch, middle of the branch, and right above the soil and post it here. usually dead branches are easy to tell. also, if you have green bud on the tip, it's a good sign.

Welcome to the forum!  Check out this link  http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/help-my-fig-trees-arent-leafing-out-6886663

What kind of fig is it?

There is quite a bit of grass debris at the base of the tree that may be hiding some new growth.  I'll clean that up today and "take a peek under her dress"!

I'm not sure what kind of fig it is...either a Kadota or GREEN ISCHIA;  large spring and summer crops for the last 2 years.

When you check the bottom, look for borers. My Kadota was around 6+ feet tall, 1.5-2" caliper, and was taking a long time to put on new growth. When it did, it was pushing out growth from the bottom, which I ALMOST rubbed off since it was in a really nice tree form that I wanted to maintain. Upon closer inspection, I saw the telltale "toothpicks" sticking out near the bottom, and sure enough, all but about four inches was dead. I hacked it off below the holes, and it is growing back quite well now. Good luck with yours!

Tamar, 
     thanks for your tips... I still have not gone to look at the tree close up,  It has been outside in the ground since I received it 4.5 years ago.  I'm glad to have input from you since you are in the Atlanta area...   long live our figs! 
                                         Jen

Jennifer,

I live in Roswell. I have several young trees that I kept in the garage this winter and they are all leafing out well. I have a 3 or 4 year old brown turkey that encountered a lot of damage from our two ice storms this year. I had to prune a lot of dead, brown, ends off. It is leafing out now, but a lot of the leaves are damaged. I don't know if it was the ice or something else. The buds took longer to appear than others, but pruning aside, it looks like it will make it.

Welcome to the forum.

Tejas, 
   I am in Lawrenceville and as of Friday, when I removed all the grass at the base of the tree, there were many lush, beautiful shoots!!  Still no noticeable growth on the branches... I saw no green from my scratch test on about 5 areas.

    Thanks for your input,  J