Does this thing grow dollar bills on it or what?  I just don't get it. 

LOL, ebay drives the prices. There have been a few at or near this price in recent weeks. Col de Dame gris, noir and blanc all were about that price. I actually saw a Sal's El go for over $300 and a few others for around a hundred. I don't know where people are finding the money, but it is interesting to watch and great for the sellers

some of the figs are rare.. hard to grow.. not readily available. so, the price is whatever the person is willing to pay for. i still amazes me how much a person is willing to pay for a fig tree.

pete

All I need is a Maltese Falcon and a Jolly Tiger and I can quit the 9-5!

Hold on to your 9-5

Today the JT and Maltese Falcon are hot commodities. Tomorrow, next week, next month or even next year something else will be hot.

Once the novelty of it starts to wear off something else pops up in the market that catches buyers attentions.

It's all on hot much you are willing to spend. I put my bid in early. Usually or most often I get over bid..

How bad do you want it? See, at this point it's a want, not a need.

May be because the cultivar makes fruits like this!,and they taste as good as they look.
And I assure you no Photoshop tricks here.
This are fruits from my own tree in my New Jersey home.
A fig tree of this caliper will outlive most of us and will pay itself many times over,in a lifetime of delicious fruits.
I barely wait for my tree to ripe Breba(it has about 20),and then later I barely wait to ripe main crop,as it has about 3 fruits for every 5 leaves at this point.

Herman - The volume of figs argument doesnt hold any water.  I can buy 10 established fig trees for 200 dollars which will out produce a single Maltese Falcon every day. Plus if one croaks my heart wont be broken.

Hmmm. "fig fever"... It happened

I believe Herman's point in a nut shell is...

And newbies always wonder why people jump on them when their first post is asking for free cuttings. This is a hobby and a livelihood for some. You want premium you gotta pay. Seems you want to fly fist class at greyhound prices

I want one! But not today

One day over time, once a person gets there hands on other types of figs, you will throw out your BT, Peters Honey, Italian Honey, and Kadota ( Dottato).

Oh you want it today Jennifer, you just don't want to spend 2 bills for it, neither would I lol

Not only makes high quality fruits but this cultivar is hard to root and nurse it to the point it will become a plant, that can be sold.
I For example I started no less than about 30 Maltese Falcon,in Spring 2011,and all but 2 died ,along the way,so I only have 2 now that I am growing them till end of October this year,to make sure the plants survive shipping,and then I intend to sell them.
I did not start any this Spring as it is too much work for me ,comparing the results,so I am sure that is why they are expensive too.
Because they are not many made.
Yet once one get it growing and established in ground it grow just fine,and I will show you a pix ,right now I will go and take a pix.
They do grow and are not like the cuttings from The Germaplasm collection, that just do not want to grow or produce normally,outside California.

Guess I got lucky then. I got 2 pieces of scion and was able to root one. It is growing nicely now.

And I hope you get top dollar for the ones you sell. I think people deserve to make a profit from their talents and labors. If someone doesn't want to pay it, don't bid. It really is that simple. Live and let live... :)

Barry, my buddy, my good friend...  ;)

My issue with eBay, especially on these rarer figs, is this: how certain are you that the identity is correct?  Figs can be honestly mislabeled.  In addition, besides the reliable vendors on eBay, there are others who either don't really know what they are selling or will be long gone by the time you discover in a year or two that you paid $200 for a Brown Turkey.  I've seen this with other types of plants for sale on eBay.  I've never gotten burned, but I know people who have.  I only buy plants from eBay vendors who have a large set of positive ratings..and I'm still cautious.

Integrity, that is the key. If you buy from a reputable seller and it turns out to be not what it was supposed to be I'm quite certain that any of the good sellers will make it right. The odds of that happening with the known good guys is pretty slim though and would not be intentional. Yes there are those others and I did get burned when I first started, that is why I stick to those associated with this forum that I know well from following their posts. Do a search of this forum and you will learn who to buy from and who to stay away from. Positive ratings are helpful but not foolproof. One ebay seller in particular has a good rating yet he is the one that burned me and many others. By the time the tree grows out and produces, the time to give the rating is long gone. You have legitimate concerns and that is all the more reason to stick with people who have a good reputation for honesty and integrity.

I think some folks forget how bidding on eBay works.  When you bid on eBay, you put in your max price.   When you put in their max price, and if you are the highest bidder that that moment, the bid goes up based on the current highest bidders max price.  However, when lots of others people bid on the same plant and put in a huge max amount, well that drives the bid price up higher and you really won't know how much the tree sold for until the flurry of bid settle at the last minute.  I'm sure those that placed those huge high bids are shocked because they were not expecting the item to sell that high! I'm sure the person selling the item is dancing for joy though!

My MF has not fruited yet but it will this year.  If the gang on this forum says, a fig has awesome flavor, then believe it is true!  Black Maderia, Ronde de Bordeaux, Votata, Kathleen Black, Smith, Negronne, Gino's Black, Tacoma Violet, Stella, Black Celeste, Stella, Black Mission are also amazing tasting figs.  I applaud those with specail trees like MF and Black Ischia.  I consider all excellent tasting figs, RARE!

My personal favorite is the Sal's tree which sold for $330 on 06.17.  A week later a similarly sized Sal's (same variety/seller) only brought $51.50 on 06.24.  The bid history shows that a person who bid up to $60 for the first one, only bid up to $40 on the second one.  Someone who bid up to $300 for the first one, did not bid on the second one.

We are a fickle bunch.

~james

Auctions are fascinating. To get the high prices, you need to be one of the first or few selling the item, and more than one person with money needs to want it bad. Subsequent auctions for similar items often bring less as initial buyers have gotten what they want and drop out.

As to buying seriously expensive figs on ebay, I personally wouldn't. Not because I think I'd be cheated, but because at this stage of the fig game, I don't feel I know enough and am very happy with some of the really good, but not rare plants. Though I did get a couple black Ischias to root this year that I am happy about. :)

But..if I were to want to bid on an expensive fig on ebay, I would not buy from someone unless they were a member here for several years, that had a good record, and someone who has been selling figs for a few years too. And I most likely would also privately pm other trusted members to ask their honest opinion first. But I am naturally cautious with money.

Gina,

I was talking to a friend of mine about people selling cuttings / trees on ebay, and they asked if I was planning on doing the same.  My response was (still is) when I finish paying it forward w/ interest, I'll think about it.  I don't have much left this year, but feel free to send me a PM.

I agree Gina.  Great comment.