So many members have contacted me and sent cuttings or rooted plants that I wished for.  Today, I checked the sphagnum, as I do, and SMITH!  Rooted!  with little shoot nubs!  Both will be going into the double cup system.  Others I dreamed of have leafed out with dozens of roots too!  I always send a PM to the donor, but thought you might like to know.......

Why did I want Smith? Dennis Rates a 12 "Will Make you Pass Out"  Not available at UC Davis.  Dennis is also known as Snaglepus.  I know I spelled that wrong.

Battaglia!  Why did I want that?  Available at Encanto Farms.  This is a delightful green fig that was brought to our attention by my friend, Sandy Battaglia. The hardy tree bears large numbers of brilliant green figs. Each fig has a deep maroon interior and a wonderful flavor. Our closest ID is to the "Strawberry Verte" variety, although we think it may be superior in flavor. This fig has the darkest and richest interior of any of the green/yellow summer figs. The fruits are medium-sized and hold up excellently to rain and humidity.

Tena!  Why did I want that?  "I love this fig for its refreshing, lightly sweet flavor. The flesh of a Tena is moist, but not heavy, and is light pink or amber. When really ripe (late summer), you can almost drink it. I have several Tena figs scattered about our farm just so I can snack on them without returning to the main fig orchard."

Calabria!  Why did I want that?  The history behind this tree is that it came over around 1905 to Beaver Falls and moved to Ellwood City in 1954. This is an inground tree that wasn't covered last year. It was brought from the Calabria region of Italy, Province of Cosenza. I met this fellow 2 months ago and asked if I could get some cuttings this fall. Well he called me last night and had a bunch of cuttings and dug me up 3 starters with root.  Sorry I don't have any pics of the ripe fig but I can tell you that they are delicious. The flavor is sweet with  a berry flavor. One of the better figs i've tasted. They look like my Hardy Chicago but larger.  That was per Kubota1.  Another one showed roots and shoots today!  I now have 3.

I could drone on, but don't want to bore you!

Suzi

That is awesome!!!!
The Battaglia sounds amazing....
Sounds like a variety i'll have to put on my wish list and cross my fingers that someone will make that wish come true.
i can't wait for my trees to put on some growth next year so that i can also share with people on here. i'm amazed at how many generous people there are on F4F...!

This was called "Sandy"s Strawberry Verte" or "Battaglia Green" by Paradise Nursery, after a fellow named "Sandy Battaglia.

Hi Suzi,
Your post made me smile. I can relate to the joy of seeing those roots forming.   One day I want to start a wish list and will put Smith on the top.  That is great!

I remember the story about the Calabria when it was first posted. I bet the person who planted it over a hundred years ago would have never dreamed that it would end up being discussed and shared by others who have a love for figs. 

Watch out for the Smith.  It roots easily but doesn't tolerate drying out.  It needs to be in a larger pot fot its size than other figs, or watered more frequently.  It doesn't bounce back from a dry spell the way other figs do, either.  I lost 3 Smiths over 6 months that way.

Thank you Suzi for noting a fig that may do well here in the Houston area. 

Battaglia............. hold up excellently to rain and humidity.

Suzi, you're part right.  Its snaglpus.  If you grew up in the the 60s and 70s, snaglpus was a cartoon character.  He was a lion with a crazy voice.  I like that character.  Plus I'm a Leo, so I like the name snagplus.  If you zoom in on my avatar, you'll see a picture of the real snaglpus lion.

But Smith is one of those figs that looks ugly when ripe but oozes so much honey when ripe.  You have to make sure you're sitting down when you bite into one!  It's a very very rich fig!  When I drove to Houston this past Spring.  The most figs I brought back with me was Smith.  And guess what?  I'm getting ready to get some more!!!!!!

Aw, sweet Dennis!  You are da man of descriptive s!  You have a way of describing figs and their flavor that sucks us all in!!  Absolutely!  I'm truly excited that I have two Smith cuttings with roots, and one with shoots!!

Suzi

Suzi-

Kubota is calling his fig "Chiappetta" for what you have listed as "Calabria".

when i first joined this forum, i'm sure i was a pain. i had to have Paradiso.. not one or two, but all of them. asking who had them.. asking where i can get them. well 3 yrs later. i still have one.. but have about 3 additional ones coming in sometime soon.

i guess sometime last year, i was looking at the pictures of figs. yes, some men like to look at the pictures of car.. boat.. airplane.. woman. i like looking at figs (nice set of bagpipes, and good fixed edge knives are other two). i found this picture of Persian White on bass's site. i had to have them. one of the very generous member once day sent me a PM and said "would you like some Persian White?".

of course, there's JH Adriatic. i missed jon's post earlier this year.. like i missed posts about gorgi's maltese cuttings. then i heard from one of the member that he has additional plant that he can trade with me.

then there is rafed. he has given me so much it's just amazing. this guy has heart of gold. he has been great help to me when it comes to figs in general.

well.. as soon as my plants are big enough. i'm sharing with forum all of my cuttings, rare or otherwise. this forum has shown me sharing is fun.

I couldn't agree more with Pete. If it was not for the generosity of forum members, I'd just have whatever was available at the local Lowe's store. I have grown and tasted figs that most people don't even realize exist. And I have given extra plants to friends, relatives and anyone I meet who is interested. It lights the fire in new minds, and ensures that these wonderful trees live on and on.

OK, just to add a bit of philosophical thought, I was thinking the other night about what we do here. By trading and growing cuttings from the wide array of figs, we really are continuing a line of genetic material that goes back many centuries. Our clones are the continuation of literal "family trees," brought over as treasured pieces of home for many immigrants. That Dottato in a pot may be (after a very round-about journey) from the tree that Pliny the Elder ate and wrote about. Who in history may have savored the figs in our collections? What have those original trees seen? It is living food history, human connection, unfettered by politics or religion, that we preserve in our plastic cups. I love that thought.

Congratulations Suzi! That is awesome. I have Smith now too! A big fat one from JF and E. I'm planting it too, humidity be damned. Now, battaglia is up next as a must get. Ill start looking, odd that EL doesnt even list it. Col de Dame would be nice too. I swear this collecting thing gets out of hand in a hurry.

You know what? I want every single fig from Bass's collection. I love his pics, his Battaglia and Hollier look so... Perfect? Inviting? Necessary! That's it. Dennis takes nice pics too, they are most helpful.

@ Forrest -- sure glad you are back at it(figs). Make sure you get JH Adriatic & Smith.

Ha Shana!  I have a tiny bit of space on the bathroom counter.  There's always the tub and shower...........

I love the way some people describe figs in this forum, and I always copy and paste what they say with the variety so I know what to expect when figs ripen.  My wish list is an evolving thing, and it's amazing how many PM's I get out of the blue from members with extra cuttings.  I look forward to the day when I can pay it forward with some of the wonderful varieties I now have in their first year or just leafing out from being rooted.

Suzi

Hey Paul, yes my fig obsession had just gone dormant for a bit :)

Here's my collection thus far

JH's Adriatic
LSU Gold
LSU Improved Celeste
Champagne
Violette de Bordeaux
Smith
Strawberry Verte
Verte EL
Hollier
Hardy Chicago
Corkys Honey Delight (local fig)
Desert King
Papa John
Black Madeira but unsure if I'll plant it

Thinking about getting a petite negri but don't want a dupe of my VdB
RdB would be great, battaglia and col de dame, Bass's banana fig looks great... Jeez it's gotten to the point where 15 fig trees is the absolute bare bones minimum for survival :)

I've really got to practice rooting cuttings. If you are at all serious about collecting great varieties it's an absolute must have skill.