Hello!  I'm brand new to the forum, but I've been reading it the last couple of years as I've gotten my figs settled in our home by the north shore of Lake Ontario.

I've got two Natalinas, a Ficazzana, and a Hardy Chicago all growing happily in 20L pots that I sunk 20cm into the ground this year.  I've also got a Violette de Bordeaux and Stella new to me this year - and I've had pretty good luck growing figlets from cuttings off my existing trees.  None of them has borne a lot, but I understand that's normal for young trees that have been moved around a lot. 

Last year we dug a cold storage area underneath our deck that we covered over and hid all my figs in over winter.  They loved it, both the four big figs and three figlets.

I'm here looking for other suggestions about how to overwinter them - having some in the ground would be nice - and what varieties grow nicely in my area.

As my name suggests, I also grow pawpaws - I've got my first flowering tree this year!  They're notoriously difficult to settle in, but three out of four are now quite happy.  Apart from them, I've got two peach cultivars and a cherry tree.  Oh - and a giant old black walnut that produces delicious nuts that are a pig to crack open!

Thanks for all the helpful advice I've gotten from you all already!

Welcome to the forum. I used to live in the Toronto area and know what winters are like up there.
One of the most interesting and original setups that I ever saw in this forum came from Russia.
Check out post #18 here: http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/hello-from-russia-7766369?highlight=figs+russia&pid=1289668449

And

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/5th-zone-the-wintering-in-a-hole-8041296?pid=1291639458

Perhaps Elena could give us an update on how things went this summer.

  the zone you are in, zone 6 is only an average min temp.  Figs don't read averages.  A min temp of 0 seems to kill most to the ground . I'm in zone 7 close to 6 the polar vortex -10, top killed all unprotected figs (this is below the average temp).  Many want to push the hardness envelope but the effort to replace the fig trees or lose a year is more than  the effort to winter protect (I use pots).  I use a small insulated room in the garage with a heater set to 32 degrees approx.  Your dug out sounds ideal but I would add a thermostat alarm set to 20 degrees or a heater.  I think short season figs would be more use full.
I I have to enclose a pix of my EPIPHYLLUM they are like a weed but aren't edible

We overwinter our figs on the ground by digging a trench and bending them into it, works like a charm
Look up Steve Biggs' fig talk on YouTube, he talk about overwintering in southern Ontario

Thanks for the welcome!

Sas, that get-up looks interesting.  I've buried figs before, but never did anything so elaborate.  I might try something like that for an in-ground fig.  Problem is I'm starting to run out of yard space... 

eaglet, thanks for the advice.  I'd use a garage, but don't have a heated one.    I'm certainly under no delusions about how far I can push zone 6!  Also, that's a lovely epiphyllum -  and nice windows, too.  :)

I should post pictures of the dug-out that I made.  It kept everything above freezing - I had clover and some weeds growing in it when I opened it in March, but the figs were happily sleeping away.

Thanks m_delgo!  I'll be sure to check them out.  And yeah, I'm reconsidering digging a trench.  I'm just running out of space, so containers are pretty appealing right now!  Maybe I'll do it for just one of my figs.

Welcome!  I'm in Z6.  I keep all my figs in my garage and turn this on if needed.  I can keep it above 30 in there even when it's -5 outside.

http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi-EW7707CM-Safeheat-ComforTemp-Oil-Filled/dp/B000TGDGLU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1463370048&sr=8-1&keywords=delonghi+oil+filled+heater

Thanks for the tip, rcantor!

Hello from Niagara.
Amazing how many fig collectors there are in Canada and many are on this forum. 
The great fig north!
  

Thanks for the welcome pino!  I've definitely used other Canadians' experiences on this forum to help my figs out.

Добрый день, друзья. Я недавно на форуме, но узнаю очень много нового о выращивании инжира. Я с Украины и приходится укрывать инжир на зиму. Хотелось бы почитать о способах укрытия. Спасибо всем и больших урожаев. Выращиваю виноград и инжир https://www.youtube.com/user/agkmel А здесь несколько видео об инжире.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8p0Nic0L-g&index=8&list=PLaKXL0Dirv80eCN1RUwud7h6radGt7VbQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2O4u1jfN1Y&index=18&list=PLaKXL0Dirv80eCN1RUwud7h6radGt7VbQ  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGIeyki76Lc

Добрый день и добро пожаловать на форум. Мой русский очень плохо, но спасибо за все ссылки на YouTube! Я надеюсь, что у вас есть большой растущий сезон! (Я использовал Google Translate, чтобы написать большую часть этого;. Извините за плохое качество)

In the extreme likelihood that your English is better than me and Google Translate are at Russian, the original text follows:  Hi, and welcome to the forum.  My Russian is very bad, but thank you for all the YouTube links!  I hope you have a great growing season!  (I used Google Translate to write most of this; sorry for the poor quality.)