i know.. lot of you prefer fig tasting figs. but i like figs that tastes like others. i prefer desert figs. 

while discussing another topic, Sangue Doce came up and how that taste like peach. 

i'm not looking for more cuttings, i'm maxed out at this point. but maybe next yr. 

what other figs taste like peach? i would like to know some names to go after next fall. 

Hi Pete, the Chico Strawberry to me tastes like peach, but it is not that sweet compared to Hardy Chicago. Sergio in South Jersey.

Hey Pete. I've always felt that this Haikel Lebanese has a bit of a peach tasting "finish". Granted not every fruit off the same tree tastes that way. It seems like the ones that are closes to being perfectly ripe display this flavor the most. 

An added note here is important. This Haikel may very well be a Brunswick variant. I just can't say for sure yet because I haven't grown any other Brunswicks to maturity yet.

However, I do have one other unknown variety that produced Brunswick looking fruit for me this year. It comes from an elderly lady who says her son in TN gave it to her years ago. It seems to grow more vigorously than the Haikel and it remains to be seen whether or not it has a similar cold-hardiness as the Haikel.

At any rate, the Haikel does have a bit of a peachy flavor. A very good tasting fig IMO. BTW I don't have any cuttings or trees available of Haikel at this time. 

Pete, I've never had a fig that taste like peaches.  I have had some that did taste like a melon.  At UC Davis, Howard Garrisson told me that Adriatic taste like coconut.  The Adriatics I tasted at UCD did not taste like that.  Howard and I do agree that Excel is one of best tasting figs in their orchard.  I guess everybody's palate is different.

Figs tasting like peaches.....interesting...

dennis,

only had one that tasted like melon, and that was only during the fall. Paradiso Gene gets melon taste towards the end of the season. i have another fig that was said to be like melon.. but forgot which one that was. lot of berry tasting figs. i know rafed did talk about some fig that he tasted at jon's place that tasted like peach. fig that taste like coconut.. that would be neat. lol

morle paradisio [not related to other paradisios] tastes like melon if picked at peak ripeness. the peach flavor comes when you let them dry out a bit on the tree.

personally, i won't bother picking or eating them when ripe. the taste is just so super when they get wrinkly.

if you get too much rain, you need a very fast draining mix like 5-1-1 to get them to dry.

been using 5-1-1 for awhile. problem is when it rains days on end.. that won't help :) it's humid as it is, and last yr was specially bad. few yrs ago, it was so humid and hot some of my trees started putting out roots on the branches. 

wow!i've never seen humidity like that, even back home in western new york, where the air was always full of water.

i can tell you i didn't reduce water while fruiting or shriveling, using 5-1-1. i didn't try to dry them as much as supermarket dried figs, just a little.

from now on, i'm gonna leave a few figs on every tree shrivel, to find out it the taste is always better. i don't need dried figs, just yummie ones

thing is, that peach taste with just a hint of fig is better than any peach or fig i've ever had.

typically it's not that bad here.. but hot weather plus good amount of rain makes it rather humid here once in awhile. last two yrs have been bad but few yrs before that were great for the figs. i remember way back when i was in high school, the typical weather during the summer was like walking around in steam room. i'm hoping good weather will be back soon.

i hope that you get great weather. i wish my figs were inground now, as the winter has been mild. it hasn't gone below zero, just down to -2.

i'm learning that it's not possible to name great figs that work for everyone. like, for my tastes n in my location, morle paradisio  is tops. the only reason to have others is to extend the season.
i'm gonna put 5-6 figs inground this year. if my paradisio survives n others don't, the failures will be replaced with paradisios.

but, that's just cause i can get them to dry on the tree. i have jammy figs like black triana , n figgy HC. just no others that i can rate 10 out of 10.

1)  As a general rule, no fig can ever hope to compete with a good peach/nectarine/apricot in terms of density and complexity of flavor/aroma.

2)  I think it's a bad idea to chase after specific flavors.  With figs, the big issue can be related to Brown Turkeys as archetype...they don't really have a strong or compelling flavor, and what there is, depends on hot weather.  At the end of the day, when you want a dessert table fig, it's a matter of getting fruit that keeps you interested in various flavor notes--and doesn't require that you just had a hot, drier summer to get them.  A well ripened California Brown Turkey has a far more sophisticated taste than Mission types or Kadota types.  However, they're terrible if you don't get them ripe or the summer wasn't hot and dry enough.  On the other hand, the LSU Malta varieties generally do a good job of having a very solid and rich fig taste under most circumstances.  VdB and its siblings also will ripen acceptable fruit under most circumstances, but ripe fruit under optimal circumstances will beat most figs (It regularly beats Black Ischia in Wolfskill tastings, for example), and can compete with other dessert fruit.

it's given that good peach is much better than peach flavor fig, or that well ripen fig in right condition is better than figs ripen at substandard weather condition. given that, what fig taste like peach? even in bad condition, i know my VdB has touch of raspberry. i know Paradiso Gene has melon taste every fall. i know CdDB has strong berry taste. given all that, i'm still looking to see what has peach taste :) 

I'm more interested in figs with interesting notes related to honey, molasses, brown sugar, and other non-fruity notes, but with complexity and strength of character.  Also more interested in figs with a good aromatic quality in the nose and mouth.

shah, i have to disagree with you. speaking just for myself, i prefer my morle paradissio to
supermarket peaches. the slight hint of fig enhances the peach taste.

I live in Georgia.

shah, try Paradiso Gene and Niagara Black. Paradiso Gene has good honey note during the summer. it's warm and nutty with enough complexity. Niagara Blk was just plain good. i only had one last yr to say much about it, but it definitely had bit of light honey. jammy, and it was mouthful of goodness. 

there was another light fig with good honey note, but i didn't read the label. i was putting it away and didn't really think to take a note on it. it was either 187-23 or Sucrette. RdB was very complex. it was all sort of things mixed together. i didn' get much berry out of it, but that was also only 1 fig. 

St. Rita was very light, but not lacking in any way as far as complex taste. it was rather refreshing after having Niagara Blk. 

well, shah, that means you have access to better peaches than i do.

my peach tastes are not very sophisticated. i usually use frozen peaches for pies n such.

gonna plant a peach this year, but the sheer number of available varieties is bewildering.

They may seem common and all, but...  However, most peaches in the store aren't all that good.  A lot of them are, however, depends on the season and what variety it is.  At least it's possible to get a good peach at the store, as opposed to apricots.

But flat out--Peaches are one of the great dessert fruits of the world.  They were thought of as luxuries on par with other very high quality dessert fruit like lychees, etc, in a way that figs have never been.  A good peach has a strength of character that only the very best figs can match, and the best peaches are up there with the best mangos, pineapples, cherimoyas, etc.

That's why I think that it's pretty ludicrous to want a peach flavored fig.  I can understand peach tones making a fig more pleasant, but figs simply can't match anything like what a peach is like, taste and aroma-wise.

On the other hand, peaches are a great deal of trouble to grow and fruit if you're not in California.  Here in Georgia and South Carolina, they require a serious pesticide and disease spraying regimen.  Figs don't need any of that kind of care.  I suspect you'd be better off with persimmons than peaches, depending on how much care and time you want to devote to your tree.

shah, do you have a recommendation for a super yummie peach   that will grow in the high desert?

highs well over 100, lows dipping below zero?

Pete,

Long ago when I first visited Jon "in paradise" he shared with me a fig that really tasted like a peach.
Don't have too much detail about it and have mentioned it here before but it was similar to RDB in size and shape.
It was the first ever from that cultivar and from that time I think Jon said he had that tree for about four or five years and it was the first time it ever produced. I am curious if he ever got it going? And it's not the one he recently introduced as a peach flavor. It is another one.

Something you might want to look in to.

Peaches are hard to grow because they're not the robust fruit trees around.  I would suggest that you find the latest blooming peach possible, to avoid freezes.  High desert is probably too dry for more of the serious diseases, but peaches probably will be relatively thirsty trees.  High desert that gets truly cold is relatively challenging climate.  As such, you aren't in a great position to try just any variety of peach.  I'd try figs and hardy Russian pomegranates (both with protection).  I'd try Che, chinese jujubes, hardier quinces

thanks shah. i'm determined to trygrowing peachesas they are my fav, after figs.

anyway, i wanna see if home grown peaches taste as good as my paradisio. kinda doubt that, but it's worth a try.

It is very hard to find good peaches in fall or even mid summer here long after the Florida and Georgia peaches are done.   Far as the Sangue Doce my source said it tastes like the best peach you have ever tasted.....I trust his opinion.


Susie,

Peaches are great and they grow FAST.......but they tend to die young also.

does anyone know where to find a pic of a sangue duce fig? i can't find one, but the taste disciption makes me think it's the same fig as mine.

Susie,  Until I started growing figs, my favorite fruit that I grow is a Belle of Georgia white peach. I surely don't live in a warm climate. We always get late frosts and this is by far my best producer. My brother has a couple of older Belle of Georgia trees that do the same for him.

I do like to have different tasting figs. I think it would be great to have a fig that tasted like a peach.

Pete, The Chiappetta/Cosenza that I sent you has a nice melon flavor. You should get some figs this year. I think you will like this one.