Just prior to joining this forum, I had read through the old posts, oldest to newest.
OK, I am horrified because I just purchased cuttings from a guy whose tag is Mifig4fun. Please tell me he has suddenly reformed and I have not been duped. The cuttings arrived in good shape and he even sent me two extra "unknown" cuttings as a gift. Everything seemed great until I read about him on here. Am I in trouble?
It is heartbreaking to think I might not have what I think I purchased - Sao Joao Preto, Mission, Black Madeira, Peter's Honey and Hardy Chicago. I chose a variety of types from around the world from his extensive available list. And since this is my first experience, I wanted to jump in with gusto.
Seeing his name as including "fig4fun" (associating him with this site) and his excellent eBay feedback, I figured he was a sure thing. Can anyone vouch for him?
I guess time will tell, but it has taken a little of the enjoyment out of this first batch of potential fig trees. I don't have a lot of extra cash, so this was a serious investment for me.
Thanks for listening to my whining.
John

I bought from him twice before I found the forums. I should get an idea what I have this year. I carefully labeled mine as they were described, but don't get you hopes too high. There has been a lot of negative posts about him. I know for sure the Black Madeira I got is wrong based leaf shape and having green figs,lol. The LSU Purple I got turned out to be a yellow lig, but is very sweet. I have hopes that one will be a good one even as an unknown. It is very frustrating, but I can always discard them later if they're not any good.

I posted and discarded a black maderia in past.

Burn me once   "shame on you"    burn me twice "shame on me"  , there will be no shame on me i can bet my all my plants on that statement.

Well, like I said, he did send nice cuttings and a couple of extras. That is hopefully a good sign. Crossing my fingers as they sit in their baggies. Judging from all the posts by people who sent "Mifig4fun" stuff in the past, he's got to have quite a collection by now. Certainly, enough types of fig to actually send out the varieties of cuttings from the list he sent me.
If he is guilty, his alleged method of acquisition stinks. However, maybe I'll get lucky; maybe he's not a bad guy, and maybe the cuttings are true. A lot of maybes. Only time will tell. At the very least, they are figs and should taste just fine once producing. I'll just have to chalk it up as a new adventure and hope for the best.
Thanks, everyone.

John
NC
Zone 7

John,

That's a good positive attitude!
But all the members can't be wrong on the same subject.

He claims to have that many variants, But does he?

I never dealt with him but have spoken with him a couple times on the phone and did sound like a true gentleman. He lives near me ( about 15 min drive )  and I was supposed to visit him and meet him but stopped returning my phone calls.

I didn't know why till I joined the furom and later learned the truth about him.

He has been called out in the past to defend himself but ignored all requests.

To my dismay, his part of the trade  have turned out to be Brunswick instead of LSU Tiger, I-258, Gene's Sal's, Calvert, Petite Negri, Gentile. This season I will know the rest and I don't trust the guy. How can you claim you are bonafide  when you cannot even label your cuttings properly. It all points to a grand design to cheat people off their variants -- never reply to my mails or even a word of apology. Yup he was super nice but after the trade not one word. Also, he impersonated as  a lady calling himself sodapopmum & figlady.

Is the Brunswick a decent fig? I'd like some opinions on this variety since it is possible that it is what I got as well. Also, if anyone has cuttings of the varieties I tried to get from Mifig4fun, please let me know.

Brunswick is not good for my zone. I 'll borrow from Pedro description citing "some figs are suitable for animals" and Brunswick in my zone fits that category. Hopefully to keep his clean ebay record he only resort to duping people he solicits to trade.

Here's an update. I was really bugged about these cuttings, so I emailed Mifig4fun. I told him I was concerned that the cuttings were not what I ordered due to all of the negative feedback I was getting regarding his previous dealings. I asked that he assure me and give me photos of the parent stock. I figured I would not hear back since he has been mostly silent when contacted.

He actually replied back (Progress?) and sent me the requested photos of his figs. The shots were small group shots, so I cannot tell much about what varieties he has. But he assured me the cuttings are what he says they are and offered a refund.

I will say that I do see some slight variations in the texture and color of the bark and other parts of the cuttings. At the very least, they did not all come from the same plant. I'm going to grow them out and see what happens.

I don't know. I like to think the best of people if I can. He might have still pulled one over on me, maybe not. I will hope for the best on these potential unknowns and I will surely post photos of them as they develop. Hopefully, people here who know more than me will be able to ID what sprouts. Like I said, should be interesting.

John
Zone 7

i also ordered from willis, and will be eager to see if those varieties are true.  to be honest, i've been very disappointed with the vigor of the plants i got from willis, and i would never order a thing from that company again.

I've met Mifigs4fun, bought a couple varieties from him a couple years back (he's local for me like for Rafed).  Met him at work (his work to pick up the fig auction winnings), he showed me pics of his plants at his home, if they were true then he's got quite a collection (in numbers alone if not varieties).

One plant I purchased from him as a Sal's C has not yet fruited, but the leaves are a mirror image of the pics I've seen on here and other forums (and in the identification section if I recall correctly). It has not fruited, so I can say nothnig more about that and we all know leaves can be a poor identification method alone.

 A Reverse I got as a free-bee has grown and attempted to produce a fig last year (which was not variegated, which means nothing except that it isn't Panachee).

I keep my figs labeled with provenance (their source) so I can keep track of what I have and where and when I got it. 

Willis has a booster on the g-web forums, but their recent gardenwatchdog reviews have slipped significantly (just like they did last year), so if you're going to order from there it seems to pay to do so early (and if you're in a colder zone, don't bother)

~Chills

Yep, the photos Mifig4fun sent me showcased a very large number of potted figs. Too small in the pictures to see any real difference from one to the other, so no idea if there is diversity. At the very least, he has a forest of some variety.

John
Zone 7