For large air layers, milk jugs work nicely. They're free, easy to cut, transparent enough to check development, and they provide a decent sized root ball. I prefer the open-topped approach with periodic watering rather than trying to seal it water-tight, but either approach works fine. If the jug is shaded it doesn't need any additional covering, but if it's in the sun I throw a rag over it.

That is so cool!

Hard to argue with those results!

With the size of those air-layers, maybe a 20 gallon trash can?

Those are like 2 year old trees!  Wow!

Suzi

Looking great Ken :-))

That is amazing.   How long does it take to get so many roots?  I've tried a few and see absolutely no roots.   I use regular potting soil with maybe a little perlite thrown in.   I've done both the sealed and unsealed.   Most of mine though aren't on figs, but no roots seem to be on figs either.   The other plants I've tried them on are guavas and ylang ylang.  

need advice-- is it ok to trim poted fig tree  in the fall , got so big to bring it in. can share cutting  nero-caesar, peters-honey, jack black, italian white green- ischau, brown turkey---- vinny

Figfinatic, it usually takes about five weeks, but it varies and I don't know why. The two side-by-side Black Missions were started on the same day around mid-August; one is packed with roots and the other has almost none (neither has been cut loose yet, but the one with all the roots is more than 5 feet tall from the top of the jug, and needs to be removed soon). The LSU Purple was started at the same time (a week after I cut yours loose) and it literally had roots coming out of the soil and into the damp tee-shirt I used to shade the jug. I think big, vigorous branches tend to root fastest, but not always. 

With all that foliage, it will have a hard time sucking up enough water to keep from wilting. If it loses some leaves, that's fine--I may even snip a few if it looks necessary. For a week or two after I first cut them loose, I stand the jug in a pan of water, about two inches deep, so there's a constant supply of moisture to the roots.

figsrus, I don't know whether pruning in the fall is okay. It probably depends on your climate, how much you prune, and the health of the tree.

Hi Ken,
Just before I left La. to drive to CA, I removed a large air layer off of my Cajun Gold. I removed a lot of the lower leaves and cut most of the rest in half. Well 3 days later they were all wilted. My son kept it watered while I was gone and now that I've make it back home, the tree has sprouted all new leaves and branches. It looks great and healthy.
"gene"

Ken,

Question: How do you stop the tree from moving in the breeze and breaking the new roots. Im doing an airlayer for a friend and I put it in a pot, but the wind kept breaking the new roots as they tried to dig in.

Gene, glad you made it home safe and that your air layer survived as well. It was fun to meet you and Linda. I was getting some wilting this afternoon, so mine may follow suit and drop all its leaves before rebounding. Time will tell--but the root system looks healthy enough that I have no concerns about it dying.

Slingha, I'm not sure what to say--we get strong winds but they haven't been a problem My best guess would be that, since I throw whatever I can find into the jug (these were pretty much all compost with a little bit of used potting soil mixed in), maybe it was dense enough that it kept the branch from moving and tearing the roots. That's only a guess though--I really don't know.

You could try putting a tall, stout stake into the ground next to the branch with the air layer pot, taping the pot securely to the stake, and then also tying the branch (above the pot) to the stake as well, in two or three locations so the stake would act like a splint and keep the branch from moving inside the pot.

I did something similar on another, smaller air layer I cut loose today--it was on a grafted branch that I had planned from the very start to remove from the recipient tree. To keep the weight of the rooting medium from breaking the graft union, I taped the air layer pot to a stake, but didn't need to do anything to secure the part above the pot. I took pictures of the process from making the graft to removal of the air layer, so one of these days I'll do a post about it.

The t-shirt idea instead of foil is a really good tip because the foil tends to rip when checking the progress underneath.

impressive!

Great results and a convenient carry handle!

Wow, I can't wait to get a fig tree big enough to try that.

Good work! Nothing like a full blown tree to-go.

i need to do that to my trees. i'm thinking few options. milk jug sounds handy, but i want something little bigger.. maybe 3 gal container.

Wow--three gallons? That will be one big air layer!

Ken,
Thanks for starting this Topic.

These air layers were attached to the tree for only 5 weeks. The air layers were cut from tree first week of October 2012 due to first frost, and are stored at 45 -60 degrees. The branches of 4 were pruned prior to storage the bottom caliper is 2 inches. The other 3 air layers were planted in 5 gallon buckets for increased root growth, only one air layer was not pruned. The roots are still growing slowly. The tree is an Unknown Dark fig.

<edit> My procedure was as follows:
1. Remove the bark at air layer point (girdle), 1 to 1-1/2 inch wide.
2. Wrap the wound (girdle) with moistened long fiber Sphagnum Moss (about 1 cup) and tie with string.
3. Place a plastic 1 gallon jug slit length wise with 2 "V" notches cut in the bottom center, upside down around moss.
4. Tape top of jug (bottom of air layer container) to the tree with electrical tape.
5. Fill the jug with moistened Peat Moss, tie container closed with string or wire and tape slit closed.
6. You could then wrap with saran wrap or plastic to seal ( I left it open to add water and allow for draining rain).

I did not use any rooting hormone and the leaves and fruit above the air layer were not disturbed (the figs were harvested).  Nothing else was needed to secure the jug to the branch and tree. The tape at the bottom and the 2 "V" notches at the top were sufficient.

Note: I mixed 1 cup of Dolemite Limestone to each 5 gallons of peat moss. The two "V" notches form a square around the branch exiting the top of the airlayer container. The square opening was much easier to create that a circle.

Ken

Thanks for showing this,I definitely have a few limbs I wanna try this. I have two questions tho:

1) what growing medium did you use? and

2) did you scrape or remove a ring of bark around the base?


Thanks in advance!

Current picture of one of the air layers from post #20 its still in the same 5 gallon bucket and has more than 5 dozen figs (yes, I counted), most of which should ripen by September.


The unpruned air layer did not survive, it was dessicated in winter storage. The other 3 are doing fine (as far as I know).

Thanks again for starting this Topic.

NICE

I started a smaller quart size air layer on my MBVS 3 weeks ago usin gsimilar technique.
I peeked last nitght,  have good root growth already but going to give it more time,

I decided to try air layering this spring probable late march early april.  I used everything from 16oz. coke bottles to gallon milk jugs.   All were slipped over a branch of all different sizes with the bottom cut off completely and left open.  I did not remove the bark or do anything to the tree itself.  All were filled with miracle grow garden soil.  I watered maybe 2 or 3 times but we have had lot's of rain this year.  When removed all containers were full of roots.  The last ones were potted up yesterday.  They could of been potted weeks ago but I just did them when I had time.   Did not seem to bother them.  When I cut the pots off I just go ahead and cut the growth above the pot off just a little above the pot.  Two or Three nodes up.  I pot up in a mixture of whatever I have on hand at the time occasionally even just straight miracle grow garden soil.  All have l ived  so far and are doing great.

goss