Hi!  I just joined and wanted to say "hello".
A friend brought me a fig plant yesterday
and I had no idea that such a thing even
existed in Ohio!  So I am just trying to learn
about growing figs, and I came upon this
forum.  Looked like a good one to join, so
I did.  My plant is the Chicago Hardy variety
which seems like a wise choice for my zone.
It's only 33° right now, and it won't likely
get much warmer today, so at the moment,
it's sitting in my living room floor.  I know it
needs to be re-potted and I'm looking into
formulations for appropriate potting mixes.
I need to know EVERYTHING so any and all
suggestions with be greatly appreciated!

Hardy Chicago is a nice one!  The name "Chicago Hardy" is incorrect, IMHO, although others may argue - it's a point of contention and a pet peeve for some.

But, Welcome to the forum!  Over the years a plethora of info has been posted.  The search feature can and will be your best friend if you're looking for information - if you're looking to form bonds, the members will be your best friend also ;)

I know this will sound weird, but try searching for "growing media", "pine fines" and "pine bark nuggets".  The pine bark is a common element in mix recipes.  "Growing media" is a common term for mix.  These terms will net you a lot of recipes.

Finally, here's one recipe that is documented around the web and highly sought after (Al's Mix/tapla's mix):  http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/contain/msg031557203792.html

Pami225,

Welcome to the forum.
You have a very good fig for your or any area. I'm sure you will be picking a snack or two off it soon.

No need to rush into re potting. Wait till things start to warm up before you do.
BTW, What size pot is it sittings on?

As for the potting mixes, It's different strokes for different folks.
But most of us agree to stay away from Miracle Gro however.

Word of warning!
You could end up with about 25 variants or more by next year! LOL

I will let others with more experience fill in the rest.
In the mean time. There are plenty in this website to study and do your research. You will love it here.

An addiction And an obsession rolled into one.

I started with 4 trees last spring. Then by the end of the year I wanted more. By October I had 21. The end of the month I ordered 3 more from one nursery for a total of 24. Beginning of Nov I ordered 6 from another nursery. So by then I got adventurous and started ordering cuttings. EBay became my sanctuary. Another 10 or so. So between then and now, I have about 65 varieties.

There is no more room but I want more. I am so giddy that a Hoop house will be the next stage. Its crazy!

On the mix, you want a light mix but not too light that water runs right through it.  I started using Miracle grow and Scott's with fertilizer release before finding the forums for advice.

My two cents- Pro-mix is good, Some suggest Fertilome UPM.

I have a generic form of Pro-mix from AGWAY here in MA. I lighten it a little with coarse Perlite. The Biggest problem is under or over watering, and over fertilization. Get a moisture meter until you get a feel. In the summer months you might be watering 2 times a day if in direct heat. You can either get light colored pots or get some White Spray paint for the pots. Otherwise, they will just suck up the heat especially if on Asphalt.

Thanks for the welcome!

From now on, my fig will be known as "Hardy Chicago"-
I was going by the hang-tag that came one the plant,
and it was written the other way.  Like I said, I know
virtually nothing about figs- so I had no idea about the
name being written in dyslexic form.

I had actually looked at Al's mix on GW, and found out
that I have almost everything to make it already.  Looks
like that will be the one, then.

Right now it's in a 1-gallon plastic nursery pot, and I
pulled it up and looked, and the roots are all wrapped
around the inside of the pot, so I thought when it got
warmer out, I would go up to a slightly bigger pot.  I'm
not sure what the volume is, but it's about 10" across at
the base, 14" across the top, and about a foot high.  I
think it will stay in that size pot for a couple years?

BTW, I'm in SW Ohio, in Dayton.  By my zip code, I'm
supposedly in zone 6- but I don't really believe in that.
I try to act like I'm in zone 5- just to be safe.

I've seen a couple of people get a backhanded 'correction' for using the two names interchangeably, I'm just trying to hop in and warn before someone with that 'Chicago Hardy' pet peeve to pops in ;)

Check out some of the cool stuff people here do to get their mixes just right:  http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post?id=3805790

Now that is clever.

Pot size is a contentious matter.  Some would say you should give room to spread legs out and grow up... others willl tell you that you'll get more fruit from a root-bound plant.  I would personally up-pot it if rootbound at 1gal.

A 3gl. should be fine for now.
No need to rush.

Let me know when or if they finish the constuction on I-75. LOL

Hope you have room for more fig trees. You will need it.

I bought a LSU Gold from EL this year and put it in an extra large container to see if it reacts differently to having lots of room. All my others are in smaller containers to grow into, probably becoming root bound by August or so.

When I first started I was told Figs LOVE to be contained and root bound. After having a stagnant season last year and upon transplanting finding them extremely root bound, I don't believe that is the case.

Dominick

Dominick, nice to meet you.  So you went from
4 plants to 65 in under a year???  I have a very
small property here, so I hope I don't get that
addicted!!

Jason, I love that way of down-sizing the mulch
chunks!!

Rafed, that will never be finished.  You do know
that there is no orange-barrel storage, don't you?
They just move them from one construction zone
to the next down here.

Dominick (Again! Sorry, I can't keep up, I guess)-
I think maybe they like to be cozy in their pots,
without being crowded?  Is that what I'm going for
here??

You know I'm not really sure if its overall for the group name of Figs or do some varieties like room and others like tight quarters. I'm trying to find out. I don't have the answer.

I am a truck driver and I put in around 100K to 125K miles per year.
I travel all over the U.S. and Canada.

Being out on the road it becomes routine.
You can almost predict it coming.

Some roads that really need it never get touch, Never ever.
While some that don't need are always under construction.

And those that do get fixed are Half A$$ed jobs.

It is a revolving door.

Like Dominick and I said, Just be ready. LOL

You don't want to know the size of my collection. And it is small compared to others.

Hi Pami.  Welcome, and I know that you will enjoy growing your fig and visiting with the people here.

Figs are a wonderful hobby, great fun, and super healthy for you and your family.  Also, there is nothing like the taste of your own home grown figs.  Store figs, even if you can find them, are expensive and inferior in quality.

Because fig varieties are cloned, you are growing a piece of history as well.

As I recall, the Hardy Chicago was originally found growing about 3,000 feet up Mt. Etna on the Island of Sicily, it was brought to Chicago, successfully grown there, and that is the origins of its name.

Whether it's the Mission Fig, the Hardy Chicago, etc., every fig has a history, and that is part of the fun.

Best wishes.

John
North Georgia Piedmont
Zone 7b

Hi John!  Nice to "meet" you too.  I have never had a
fresh fig here- the only one I ever had, was picked and
handed to me, right there under the tree, and eaten
right there, just like it was.  I LOVED it!  ♥  Anyway, that
was long ago, in a land far away, and I never dreamed
figs could happen in Ohio.  I guess I'm about to find out.
I have questions about my fig plant- should I ask here? 
Or start a new thread?

Hey its your thread, you can ask it here or start a new one.

But you may get more people to see it if you start it new- as a question or a topic for discussion.

Hi Pami225,
i grow figs here near Chicago growing them in Ohio should not be any problem in containers.
As for 3 gallon pot for a couple years its been my experience over the years that my smaller pots 10 and 15 gallon containers need root pruning before there 3rd growing season or they will suffer in fruit production.
A 3 gallon pot will need it before hand groing in decent potting soil i say decent because thru out the years i have tried them all.  ; )
My 30+ containers i only have 4 of those and they need root pruning after 3 full growing seasons for sure.
Last season my Sals started to suffer and when i took it out of pot i saw why as i was somewhat lazy because its a lot of work for me.
Some types of fig plants are more aggressive then others i have found out.
Some not as much.

On the topic of making your own mixes, this came through on the Dave's Garden weekly email thread and I thought I would share - it talks all about making your own soil mixes, concepts and practices, and supplies a couple of recipes to be used. 

http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/3192/

What do you think of that mix?

I basically use Pro-mix with a humus mix and slow release fertilizer. Then add a little 202020 during the year. Lime is in mix but add more at times.

Obviously this is my first attempt at making a mix.

I wouldn't use it.  Too much work.  Easier to buy pre-bagged mix from the store and add in the ingredients I want to control drainage, etc. (perlite, wood chips, whatever)

Pami225,
 for me going from 1 to a 3 gallon pot i do not touch the roots.
Once i have plant in its final pot size that i can manage i then root prune every 2 to 3 years depending on plant and my observations of it.
During dormant season before spring in my garage i will lay container on its side grab tree trunk and pull it out of the pot to look at the roots to see whats what.
This is what i do and well everyone has there own way of doing things such as different potting mixes they use or make, what type of fertilizer and how often they use and so forth.