I have read (and know first-hand) that is a beast to root Black Madeira (BM). I have one BM in ground and two BM in pots. All are at a stand still with no new growth.

Questions: Does Black Madeira struggle to grow in the south/southeast? Has anyone in 8/8b/9/10 successfully rooted and fruited Black Madeira?

It is almost July and (along with Chico Strawberry, Col de Dame, Panachee, VdB, and until recently RdB), the BM is just idling along with no active growth. Every other fig in the 'orchard' has 6+ inches of new growth.

Here is a not so useful but interesting tidbit, I have read a hypothesis that Preto might be BM. I have two Preto in pots. Both are actively growing and one has a breba that should ripen soon. Same physical location, same sun, same water, same fertilizing, same potting medium (I think), different pot sizes (could that be it? The BM is in one gallon pot and the Preto is in 1.5 maybe 2 gallon pot)

My current thought is to liquid fertilize the BM at regular strength for the next several weeks. It already has a CRF (Controlled Released Fertilizer namely Florikan 18-6-8). I am thinking that it either GROWS or BURNS...

Any advice - good or bad, proven or unproven - would be greatly appreciated!

PS: I hope to post a few photos tomorrow.

They have similar leaves in my young'uns.

I won't post a pic of at least one of my BMs, I don't want to leave you frustrated ;)

Jimmie,

You and I live in two different parts of the Country.
I had started one last year from a cutting and purchased one from a well known member sometime around this time of year last year.

Sad to say the purchased one didn't make it through the Winter, Not blaming the source because it was alive all Summer long but just  flipped on me.

The one I started from a cutting is roughly 15" long with a small branch to its' side. Not much growth if any.

This  is only my opinion but I think it will need another year or two to get this fig to where we would like it to be.

I think right now all you and I can give them is a little Patience.

As for the Preto, I will have to wait till I go home and try to compare the leaves for the time being.

Good luck with yours.

@ Jason. Post please. Consider it a source of inspiration not frustration. I will take more than a few idling figs to frustrate me; and it would be nice to have BM, CdD, and VdB exploding like everything else but I can be patient. Frustrating is missing a fig tree...

@ Rafed. Thanks for the encouragement. I am thankful that they woke up from dormancy. I suppose this is a test of patience. I am good with that and I have one hand on the Foilage Pro. FYI. There was a report today on the evening news that man was seen speeding on a motorcycle headed the wrong way on I-20 East with an assault rifle, infant child, and large 4' fig tree strapped to his back. I considered him a suspect!

The thunderstorms are krazee tonight in Tallahassee.

I need a couple of days to go through all of my figs.  I need to up-pot some stuff this coming weekend (if I get time).  I get a 4-day weekend and I'm taking every Friday off for the next 2-3 months whether they like it @work or not.  Hopefully plenty of time to work with my trees and get some pics.  Only two more days left in my work week!

 last season I got a grafted BM from Jon, It grew about 5 leaves after receiving it but plant went stagnent late november and I only noticed it started to leaf out about 2 weeks ago this was approximately one week after giving it a nice handfull of dolomitic lime. My Preto already has over a ft of growth or more.

My Madeira is growing, it is slowly, but no new infected leaves from FMV, so maybe 2-3 leaves every couple weeks.  I'm going to give it one more strong dose of fish fertilizer and we'll see what that does.

My BM hardly grew for 2 seasons but this year growth was awesome. All I did was to move it from 2 gal pot to 5 gal, pruned some roots & fertilize from late April with general purpose Miracle gro fertilizer. I water plants & apply less than half strength fertilizer after the 1st an hour of regular watering. Growth this year was more than it had for 2 years & it is still taking off. No signs of FMV and it came from Encanto Farms.

Preto was started from cutting last year and it is a true grower. In one season, it zoomed to over 2 ft. Glad to know this variant quality is close/equal to BM.

BM has always been hard to root for me. Air layers took much longer than those on other varieties. High percentage failure of new plants that did not grow/thrive after first winter. In-ground plant grew 2" a year for several years. Then I decided that it was grow or die - didn't matter - as status quo wasn't worth anything. Put 12# or more of 16-16-16 on it over one spring/summer. got 6" of growth - whoop. The following year I got 6' of growth, and it has grown wildly never since. You can't exactly do that with a small rooted cutting, but maybe some very dilute Miracle-Gro every week would pay dividends. Rooted cuttings seem to barely grow the first season, and small plants are the last to wake up in the Spring, if at all. Air-layers needed a full fall and winter and even some spring in the greenhouse to really get stabilized.

Figo Preto gives may indications of being a similar if not identical fig, but roots easily, grows like a weed, etc.

I too had bad experience with my (shorthand) "Blk Mad".

wouldn't rooting hormone help with BM? i have been reading about BM in the forum, and no one seems to mention rooting hormone. i heard that it's not needed in most of figs since they root easily, but wouldn't hard to root figs might benefit from rooting hormone?

pete

I was able to root both B Madeia and Blk Ischia from UCD in 08[ I killed the B. Maderia & shipped the other to a member] He managed to murder it too...HAHA

Bullet,

My experience with hormone has been poor. Powdered hormone seems to aid in rotting. Lost more cuttings that way than any other method I have tried. This seems to accord with several people's experience, and the former research leader at US Davis concurred. When I have used liquid (not often) I have not seen any results that were measurably different, so generally I do not go to the trouble and expense.

This is Black Madeira from this year Jon cutting..

Well Jon,

I must have done something right because the one I have is from a cutting I got from you about a year and a half ago.

Jimmy,

That guy on the motorcycle, did he look anything like Jon?

Today I had the pleasure of having lunch with Gene and his wife. He has HANDS DOWN the nicest Black Ischia tree that I have ever seen.........it is growing like a weed.......like many of his other fig trees. When it comes to Black Ischia......GENE IS THE MAN!!!!!! Absolutely no sign of FMV on his beautiful tree.

I did not find either Black Maderia or Black Ischia hard to root. My problem was/is getting them to put on some new growth.


Dan
Semper Fi-cus

All right , I already write about this on a forum..
I do have another one Bl Madeira from last year Jon cutting, this one look almost like one I show you only no fruit..
Why???
One from last year first was in soil - organic compost, plus perlite, after this in soil - cow manure plus pit moss, plus perlite.. And I try keep this one in full sun..
Now one what I show you..
In soil mix - Jungle Groth proffecional mix for shub and trees plus pit moss plus perlite..
And I keep this one in place where sun come only in a morning area..
I never add fertilazer or lime or pine bark to this one...
So I think Bl Madeira love this new soil and shadeed area...
I start thinking ..May be this way I can make money..Try to sell my secret soil mix..

@ Olga. Very very nice looking Black Madeira. How much time to get that growth?

@ Gene. Please do tell...I love to learn...What did you do?

JD
I make a  mistake this year and put cuttings in mix of cow manure with pit moss and perlite and this real slow them, but after I move them in mix of pit moss and perlite they root faster so this plant in this pot for couple month now..

I'm with Olga, maybe I can sell my secret and make some money to buy more figs, ha.
JD
I have no secret that I'm aware of, just the luck of the draw. My tree came from the West Coast via my friend Richard Watts in March of 2010. When I received it, it was a small bare rooted  started tree about 5 inches tall. I planted it in a small 6 inch pot with possibly some Fertilome UPM and perlite. Once it start putting out leaves and roots started to circle the pot I moved it up to a 1 gallon pot. The soil mixture in that pot was peat, perlite, store bought composted manure and pine bark fines. It lingered there for quite a while doing nothing then it shot out a side shoot and up it went. I started watering it with MG soluble. The shoot grew at least 18 inches and had bunch of fig on it. None of them ripened but the shoot did not show any signs of FMV. After the tree went dormant I pruned off the small original trunk with a bad case of FMV and move it up to a 3 gallon pot. This year it came out of dormancy and grew very fast and FMV free. It now has two figs that have started to swell and have now darkened. The tree had been in the shade for the last 2 weeks to protect them from the drought and heat while I was on vacation. I put it back into a spot that gives it morning and evening sun but midday shade. The two figs darkened in 3 days as you see in the photo below. Hopefully they will ripen so I can take pictures and also get a taste. Perhaps the secret lies in the very fast draining soil and a weekly dose of MG. If I figure out the secret y'all will have to pay.

"gene"

p.s.: the visit with Dan was great. It's too bad I had to go to work for the rest of the day.

The tree showing the original trunk in the center and the sprout on the left.


The sprout last year with figs.


The tree this year.


The figs this year.

Hi, Gene!
Many people on this forum already know..I do have many, many figs..Like 400 or may be even more..I lost acounting..
And last year..I may be have around 10-15 figs total on all my trees..
I real was don't know what to do to make them produce..
I'm not interesting to sell figs trees..My interest to eat as many figs as I can get...
So..After I change soil.. After couple month put fertilazer 10-10-10 and lime and pine bark to cover pot..
Now almost all my fig have figs on them.. May be only 3 don't have figs..
With one gallon I just use this soil, no fertilazer, no lime, no pine bark..Almost all now have figs on them..
So, I don't know if this will work just for me, I mean climat and water I have..Or any one can have same effect..
But, I will be honest..I'm very, very happy this year..
So, I kind feel like I found a secret formula for a soil mix.. At list for area I live in...
I will continue experimenting.. And hopefully everything will work out...
I hope many other people can use this formula and get more figs to eat...
And you do have a very good looking BM! Congratulations!

Hi Gene,
that black ischia from RW was obtained from Richard Starnes who is deceased and called it
Black Provence.

RW mention to me he <<< believes >>>  it to be same as Black Ischia and it does not show FMV most of the time.
I had a small one from him but it died in dormancy this past winter as i wanted to compare it to my 2 UcDavis ones.

I see the interior of Black Provence fig is different interior color on Jon's site from pictures i have seen but i half to have RW'S to compare to my 2 UcDavis cultivars and then i will know for sure whats what.

Hope to get one this coming winter from the source and try again.

Martin, my Black Provence is from Richard Watts.

Sorry..
I have a question..
Black Ichia and Blue Ichia this is same varieties or this two different??
I don't have the Black one but I have a Blue one..I need to check this one out...I do think I have fruit on it.. Will check tomorrow..