Here is my first Thibodeaux of the season. It was pretty good even though I've been having torrential rains everyday. It was a little watered down and I don't remember the void being so big. I'm sure it will get better.

I like the color of that fig, Ryan, outside and inside. Send some of that rain this way please.

Thanks, and I wish I could send it over there because we've been getting down pours every day. Way too much rain at my house, and it's crazy because just a mile or two north and a mile or two south is dry as a bone.

Nice fig but I didn't know the LSU varieties had voids that big! Are they all like that on this variety.

I feel your pain on the rain. That's exactly how it is here in the Texas Gulf Coast in the summer. It rains every day some where with in 50 miles of my house. Unlike you I have been on the short end of the stick!

As far  as I remember the void was a lot smaller last year.

I was at LSU Horticulture as a student when Dr Charles Johnson first brought in cuttings of Thibodaux. OK here is the story about this fig. In the 1940's this fig was breed at the Hill Farm by two now deceased Professors. When Fraternity and  Sorority Row was built the experimental farm was bulldozed. One Professor made cuttings of this fig which at the time the name was only a Trial Number. This Professor left LSU since the Hill Farm was gone and moved to Nicholls State in Thibodaux and planted one cutting on campus. When this Professor retired he contacted my Professor Dr Johnson who breed figs himself and told him of the one tree. We went to Nicholls and made cuttings and brought them back to LSU where it still kept the Trial Number Name. The trials lasted about two years when Dr Johnson told me that this fig was the best he ever had and that it was time to introduce it to the market, but it needed a name. Since I was born in Thibodaux and the only tree was at Nicholls I said lets name it Thibodaux. Dr Johnson also thought that would be the perfect name. I graduated with a BS in Horticulture and lost touch with what ever happened to this fig. I got one of the original cuttings for my self and the tree is growing in my parents yard in Baton Rouge and I have some potted cuttings for my self. Since I am living in the NOLA area I am considering starting about two or three acre Thibodaux orchard and grow them for the commercial trade and for high end restaurants

Dr Harold Daigle Jr 

Dr Daigle - thanks for sharing the history of this fig.

Welcome to the forum Dr. Daigle!  Nice to have you here.  Wonder how this fig would do in dry and sunny Southern California?

Suzi

It's really nice to hear detailed history of a fig like this. Welcome to the forum Dr. Daigle. I'm guessing that if you are considering planting an orchard of this fig that you also rank its quality as excellent.

Mike in Hanover

welcome Dr. Daigle.    you are a treasure for this forum.   Joyce in Florida

Thanks for sharing the info on the history of this fig. I have a few plants of this one, and got one nice size black fig. Looking forward to seeing more of it this season.

Thank you Dr Daigle!

I am so glad you gave us the facts! Hey Jon, you can add his story to your database.

Say Dr Daigle, Do you have any information on LSU Red and LSU 156? Than you in advance!

Welcome to the forum Doc. Thanks for the facts and the very nice story. Hope to get some pics of the tree and fruit soon.

Oops, just saw the fruit pics. Sorry.

Thanks for the background on this, Dr. Daigle.  Always good to know the history behind these clones.

John

  Welcome to the forum and thank you for the information.

Doc Daigle,
Thank you for the wonderful information.  I am truly a fan of Dr. Charley, and his work.  I wish we had more of these stories about the LSU Program.

I would love to hear the story of the LSU "Improved" Celeste.  I remember Dr Charlie saying that here never was an "Improved Celeste" but if there was it would have been the O'Rourke, which was an "Improved Celeste".

I wish you would correct me on this issue as I continue to see the term "Improved Celeste" and I am questioning my memory.

Really nice history, welcome to the forum Dr. Daigle.

Thanks for the story.

Stories like this are why I am a member of this forum.

Welcome doc.
I expect to get figs from mine this summer and am happy to have this info. Do you know anything about the Jack Lilly?

Michael, I have one. It's a big fig! Mine fruited last year.

Excellent thread!
Welcome Toxdoc. It will be an extraordinary thread if you are also a historian of other LSU figs of interest.

Welcome Toxdoc.  Look forward to hearing more about the LSU figs and stories from you fig orchard.  Thibodaux is one I've been looking at for a while.

Dennis-I think you must have one of everything!  I am so jealous.

Ha! I wish! It does produce large figs. But its not that hardy for my climate. It's a keeper.....very prolific!