A Common fig, slowly coming back from oblivion of many decades.
Easily identified due to its particular shape, skin colors and  eye configuration.
Much flavored, juicy and aromatic .. best when growing in ground under full sun .
The pics show fully organic fruit, no irrigation but subject to involuntary pollination.


 
 
 
 
 
 

Francisco
Portugal

That's a beautiful fig Francisco, thank you for posting it.

Nice figs Frederico, beautiful colors, certianly delicious..

Dang nab fig porn!

Wow!

Great looking figs, Francisco. Is that Quarteira Velha?
My grafts of that one are still young. I will have to wait for next year.

But i may be able to taste Quarteira. The grafts of that one are older and are growing quite well but are still shy regarding figs (i removed quite a few cuttings and that is probably one of the reasons).
Nevertheless, i have a couple of figs developing in one of them.



Still several weeks to maturity though. This really is not Algarve and the figs love all the heat you have over there. I sure hope August is warm enough to mature all these beauties.

  

There is an unknown possibly Portuguese fig here in the US known as Chico Strawberry or Saratoga (named after the street it was found on), that comes from a Portuguese neighborhood in San Diego, same area Preto was found.  That fig is also a green fig with a pink eye - I do not have it but the pictures on the forum sure look similar.  Here are a couple of links to threads that discuss it:


http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/saratogachico-strawberry-fig-7290637?highlight=saratoga&trail=50

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/a-fig-trek-with-suev-4936949?highlight=chico&pid=1265814159

Anyone growing this one able to comment on similarity to what Francisco has posted?

Ed,

I don't think that Quarteira has anything to do with the variety that you mention. The eye is much too red/pink in that variety to be Quarteira and the fig seems different . But Francisco will confirm it.

He has posted several times about Quarteira and we can see some more photos that, to me, show the difference - for instance, Here

As a curiosity, i was fig prospecting in Lisbon, last week and i have come across a tree that had very similar figs to those you mentioned. Will try to post the photos when i have the time, to compare.

Thank you all for your kind words commenting  'Quarteira' .

Ed, Everything will be possible depending on judgment and motivations. Very similar figs like the one Sue has discovered growing around San Diego are - 'Ull de Perdiu' growing in Spain and - 'Olho de Passarinho' growing in Portugal ,both old  light colored figs with marked red eye.  Quarteira, IMO, is not the same cultivar. It grows almost exclusively on the coastal plain of Central Algarve and never seen or heard of it anywhere else..It has a synonym  'Ponte de Quarteira' apparently following an old dispute among local growers still in the 19th century

Jaime, Yes these fruit are from the very old tree. It's gaining a new life after a wise pruning this past winter on its most exposed side

Francisco

Thanks for the responses!  I am only a few years into growing figs and that Chico Strawberry/Saratoga is a striking one that caught my attention due to the pink eye.

Quarteira is certainly a very beautiful fig!

Beautiful pictures as always, Francisco!

This year I hope to find out how these figs look and taste like in my climate and without intervention of the fig wasp. My tree was started as a cutting last year. It’s a fast and healthy grower.

 

 

Are there several strains of Quarteira (“regular” Quarteira and Quarteira Velha)?

Wow.... Beautiful figs I wonder how this variety would do in the hot growing conditions our members see in California?

Thank you all for your kind comments regarding the Common Quarteira fig.

IMHO - and being grown among local figs for many years, there are a few factors that seem to be almost exclusive to this common variety. and they are  shared by most growers when in doubt to identify the correct identities

- A large 'onion' like fig with a very short stalk displaying horizontal skin cracks when going slightly over full ripeness.

- Skin color - very few figs sport that golden color when ripe   . may be a few Turkish smyrnas -  Zeibek and/or Sarilop ...

- The ostiole - where the bracts are arranged in a sort of crown, distinct from any other fig .(hope you may  have noticed it) and the color being as said locally, .. 'wine color' ,   a garnet red.

- The pulp and its unique flavors are also different from other light colored figs.. The texture of its pulp make it highly syrupy to the extent that even under the August sun and very dry environment , Quarteira figs cannot be dried ... this an old remark/complaint from local grower who would very much like to have such a fine fruit preserved for winter
----------------

Timo, Yes the scions sent are all from the oldest tree (Quarteira Velha) and they seem to be doing all right!
This particular tree may have been there for a very long time .. probably over a century.
I do not think there are great diversity.. on this cultivar..What you may have are a few individual trees growing in different soils, getting more or less direct sun .. diff levels of moisture in the soil.. more or less care/interest from owners ,. etc
all this contributing to slghtly differen fruit.

Francisco

I accidentally sold my Quartierai thought I have a duplicate:(. It had a beautiful leaf shape too

Brian... hopefully you can re-acquire the variety, grow it out and then perhaps help to expand the distribution across the various zones and growing conditions in the US... Wish the import restrictions into the US were not so prohibitive. Interesting that there don't appear to be strict plant import and export restrictions across EU countries but there aren't any phyto certified controlled sources available to US growers from there...

Thanks for all the precious info on this fantastic cultivar, Francisco. The couple of figs i have developing are from the 'Quarteira' you sent me a couple of years ago.
I have the 'Quarteira Velha' you sent me last September grafted in the same type of root stock. The grafts are 1 meter appart.

I presume the scions did not come from the same tree so, in the next couple of years, i will see if they show any differences over here.
In your photos of Quarteira, over the years, we can see a color difference, with 'Quarteira Velha' having a much more golden color and the 'regular' being a bit greener, but as you say, that doesn't mean they are different strains, it could just be other factors.


Ed,
I agree with Francisco. The fig you mentioned with the red/pink eye is probably 'Olho de Passarinho', 'Ull de Perdiu' in catalán. Translated, it means 'Bird's eye' or 'Partridge eye'. Here's a description in the website of Galgoni:

http://www.galgoni.com/ENG/Fotos_Maxi/001.htm

The problem is, as he says, any green fig with a marked red eye, can have that name in Spain or Portugal and they can be different cultivars. Even the one i found on my fig prospecting had a red eye (not visible in the photos i took)

Hi Jaime

Correct !
The most recent scions are from the very old and much exposed tree.
Previous plant material of similar variety sent to you are from a younger tree,  15 to 20  yr old,  growing in ground on a gentle slope having a creek running nearby.. It receives far more moisture  and it's a bit less exposed and with a much denser canopy !
A magnet for birds.

Here a few pictures..

 
 
 
 
 

Francisco

Wow! Some really beautiful money shots there, Francisco! Love the honey eyed and  interior shots especially!

Francisco,
Is this a common fig or has it been pollinated? Thanks

Thank you all for commenting on these Quarteira figs.

@rayrose - Yes this fig is a Common and I believe it was involuntary pollinated by the fig wasp.
At the correct timing there are many thousanfs of wasps in  the air and they freely pollinate the majority of receptive figs they find

Francisco

Ray,
I have 2 Quarteira figs maturing not pollinated. If the critters don't get them first i will post a few pictures to show the differences.
I'm sure they will not have all that syrup and almond like seeds, although i believe the taste of this variety will be there for sure.


Francisco,
Thanks for the info on the cuttings you sent me. It would be interesting to see if, coming from 2 different trees, they show any differences in the same conditions.

I hope to find out, next year.

M. Tony Sparozi- Gary is growing this one in California, I gave him the cuttings. I will have a cutting for you this winter if you want.

@lampo, beautiful fig! Your photos are spectacular! 

Thank you, Rafael! That is most generous of you...