Frank ,

You ask why people are angry or who they are angry at .
I can only speak for myself but it is not anger but rather a sense of disappointment at what this forum has turned into .
It use to be a place where one could find people who only were interested in learning about  figs , and finding others who's only objective was to do the same .
When you and I started collecting figs this was a very affordable hobby . in fact I would say that most of my varieties were due to the generosity of people I met on this forum like Nelson,TylerJ,Chivas,Rafed and others now like Luzzu,Ottawan and one time you and your brother came to my house for a  variety you were interested in , and you were gracious enough to bring me some cuttings of your own . At that time i had a variety (the one you wanted ) i found locally that i posted about and tried to get identified and people like Herman thought it was an unknown so I called it Niagara Black .I thought (and still do ) that this is a great variety and tried to share with as many people as possible so that others could enjoy it and share it also . It is now in the the US , Middle East , and Europe through the pay it forward generosity of others . 
Today though due to the popularity of figs the forum is filled with people that use it for FREE ADVERTISING. Sure many of them are crafty and try to come across as helpful and genuine and try to build up their credibility by all means possible but they have one priority and that is profiting off of the obsession that many of us develop about figs . Then due to the high prices there are those that are lying about the actual variety just to make a buck and the buyer won't know they've been scammed till the tree fruits . Then there are those that spent so much money accumulating some of the latest fad figs that they feel now they need to make their money back somehow so why would they just give cuttings away ? These people who are bidding up these varieties are actually the ones that are responsible for the ridiculous prices we see today and they are the focus of my comments .
I can buy a cubic yard of high quality potting soil for $70 i can go to my local nursery and buy returned 10 gallon pots for 2 to 3 dollars , I can stick a cutting in the pot . Jon of Figs4fun sells cuttings and i never paid more than 6 dollars each , now i get them as gifts or give dozens away every fall .This is not an expensive hobby , or at least it was not a few years ago . 
I suggest to newbies to take their time and get to know other fig enthusiasts in their area ( they can find them on the  forums or local advertisements) , and share with each other varieties that thrive in your climate ( don't just look for named varieties some of the unknowns are excellent figs especially if papa Joe has been growing it for years ) and avoid all the latest fad figs which have not been tested in all climates by multiple people. Look for established varieties that have been tested by trusted people in your own climate . And share with others ,  in return ask them to pay it forward . Karma is a wonderful thing .
Frank so there is no misunderstanding none of this is directed toward you in any way , I have the greatest respect for you and your contributions to this forum , I just wanted to clarify my position here.

John

Be it what it is...I too love this thread.  And, I would certainly love to have a cutting of the Ponte Tresa

Quotes by Johnparav

".... These people who are bidding up these varieties are actually the ones that are responsible for the ridiculous prices we see today and they are the focus of my comments ...." 


A while back ago somewhere in this forum, you denied that you have attacked me, the very first person who won the auction of 3 PT cuttings on Ebay with a very high price .

Now, to save the friendship between you and Frank, you said that you focus on the buyers who have paid a ridiculous prices . I end up confused with your arguments. Is there something wrong with you ?

I am not responsible for the ridiculous price or for whatever other people pay for .
With my own money, I can buy anything that I like, at any price that I can afford . NOBODY is allowed to judge me, or permit himself/herself to dump mud on me 

Johnparav, YOU OWE ME AN APOLOGY

Lolita ,

Have I mentioned you in any posts ? No.
My posts are in general terms , I say "people" and refer to nobody specifically . 
Its my opinion and I have a right to voice it . That is the purpose of a forum .
As far as Frank goes , i was responding to his post . Does that offend you too ?
You are the one trying to make this personal .
 
John

Delicious looking fig Marius.

The solution seems pretty easy.  Don't bid on or buy figs that appear to be fads or overhyped or overpriced, unless you want to.  Those that want to can bid each other up and pay ludicrous prices if they want.  It shouldn't cause problems for anyone.  I'm interested in this Ponte Tresa fig but I'm not paying $500 for a cutting, and I don't care how good the fig is.  But if they want to pay, let them.  Who cares?

Mai, I don't feel that John in any way directed his comments toward you, you have given the forum some valuable and interesting information,and besides that we enjoy your enthusiasm for growing everything you can get your hands on, and I might add with great success. I feel John is trying to explain the original intent of the forum and other forums that started out as information and sharing activities. I believe he is right, if you look at several posts on this forum and the new forums, it is tipping towards commercial comments, but most of the high end activity is directed to eBay and we still have the generous offers here on the forum, and still a majority amount of threads and comments on information and sharing. All high priced figs are auctions, the buyers control the price and will bid as high as they want for their own personal reasons. The sellers are not going to refuse the high bid. Again, that is eBay, not on the forums. I am guilty of bidding on eBay auctions, but I have a set price and if I am not the winner then I feel that I can wait for the cuttings until MY price has arrived. I have some pretty rare(or one time rare) trees by waiting. Again, the generosity of members is still here on the forum, I see it everyday. You can get gifts or reasonable offers from several members, one of them is Frank, I just received a shipment of 34 cuttings from him, great price(generous) with a couple of gifts. I was going to say 4 PT gifts but I am sure everyone would freak out, so I won't make that joke. Now the purchased and gift cuttings are established varieties, real nice varieties, I mean great tasting varieties and must have varieties if you are a member who loves the TASTE of figs. So let it be known that members who sell figs for a high price on eBay usually are generous to fellow members on the forum($2-10 a cutting for certain varieties is generous). Also, there are members that I purchased from on eBay that have loaded me up with extra cuttings and gifts, very generous members. So the majority of the threads and comments are still what I consider to be the original intent of the forum.

HOW BOUT THOSE FIGS!!!!!!!!

Come on guys. Remember the figs. It's why we are all here.

Be blessed!

Marius is going to start a bidding war!!! :)

Looks great!  I'd trial anything that Marius recommends.

Greg, I got a cutting from Marius that has grown into a nice little tree. It is called "Enigma" and has some really good potential to set a record..Thanks again to a very generous and kind forum member.

Curiousity peaked!  Potential to set a record for what?  Love the name.

Lol not going to be for sale. Marius told me he saw the mother tree in a picture around 3 years ago and was able to get some cuttings. However that was all the info that he had. Knowing him it is probably really special. Can't wait to see, love the anticipation.

Thanks Brian...a bit fuzzy brained due to a cold.

Can anyone tell me why the pulp color was bleeding out towards the skin in the original images? I find it is related to a lack of sugars and sometimes "lemony" but not sure why it happens. Thinking it is from too much water at the roots...

Yes Dennis for me it is about the connection with other lovers of plants and these amazing figgies in particular. I haven't had this much fun in years! Happy figging to all. Jodi
Pic of me sitting in a huge wild fig in Baja!

When I was a child there were no fresh figs.......I was told I could not grow them .

So I did it anyway eventually .

Like all the  things I was told I couldn't do .


 ..wait there are still No fresh  figs here .

except the ones I grow .

thanks to all here that helped .

I am painfully thrifty .





....

John, I understand and appreciate your perspective. I believe that one can be a great contributor to the fig community and at the same time buy and sell fig material at ridiculously high prices. Our mutual friend Rafed is a great example of that. In any field, you will find a full spectrum of views and endeavors. The only bad guys in all of this are the intentional scammers we've seen on eBay.

By the way, I have Rafed's Genovese Nero and Ponte Tresa cuttings in a $7 lotto on the other fig forum as we speak. The tickets are selling fast.

LJfiggy it's from ourfigs.com lots of people are members of both sites... last I check only 10 left