If I start cuttings now am going to have to keep them indoors all winter?

Only if you want them to survive, LOL.

Even down where you are you can get some nasty cold weather.  Remember the Christmas snow a few years ago? Snow on Galveston Beach, 1976, I think.

With that said, I am starting cuttings now as well and I know I will have to protect them, can't help myself, only here would anyone understand my illness.

Though I am new to growing figs, I think this link could provide you with good information --> http://figs4fun.com/More_Info_Cuttings.html

Just wondering but will the garage suffice barring any freezes?

Yes, we really are sick but it's an addiction that shouldn't affect our health! If it does, perhaps they can start calling it a disease and it will be covered on the insurance.

Thank you Zen, already been through that one.

Yes Tami,
The garage was sufficient for me. I had them on the window seal and they had enough sun and light. Without light they might die.

Awesome, thank you. I'm afraid of the flack I'm going to get if I fill the house up again LOL

Hi Tami

I'm just wondering if u are going to start from last year's dormant cuttings or new, green limbs from this year's growth? If from new growth, what propagation techniques do u plan to use?

i always have few cuttings rooting. personally, i don't like winter rooting.. but when there is good cuttings to root, why not?

Mark,
Most of the cuttings are new growth but a few are older. I am going to use the same system I use with all my cuttings because I can't find anywhere that tells me a better way to do it. Everything I have found says to do it the same.

Pete, that's the problem right now, they're too good to pass up!

If anyone has a better method please share it :)

I have a whole mess of cuttings going right now.  Has anyone tried a small greenhouse for over wintering?  Something like one of these?

http://www.amazon.com/Flower-House-FHSP300CL-SpringHouse-Greenhouse/dp/B000EHYQC2/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1378129352&sr=8-5&keywords=greenhouse

Tami
I used 2-250 watt heat lamps in my 2 car garage, worked well.  I have a rooting closet (small utility room) that I keep at 85 degrees all winter, again works well.

I think for us down here that would work great. I am trying to get my hubby to help me build one with the pip bent over. Tunnel house, is that what they're called?

Anything to get me away from mosquitos while I'm working with repotting and starting.

Danny, that may be the ticket I'm looking for, thank you.

Is light really necessary for overwintering?  I just ask because of a video I watched recently showing a fig tree that was being unburied in the spring.  They had dug a large hole next to the tree and dug the root ball and laid the tree down in the hole.  Covered with a board and a little dirt and that was it for the winter. 

Meghan,
Overwintering dormant plants do not require light, in fact light would be bad for dormant plants, because if the temperature was to increase, they might wake from dormancy.

But growing cuttings through the winter requires light and a heat source to keep the plants above 45 deg F. I was able to grow cuttings throughout the winter successfully, by keeping them in south facing windows without any additional artificial lighting. If kept above 65 deg F they would have put on a lot of growth, but were placed in an unheated space that fluctuated from about 40 deg F. to 70 deg. F based on the outside temperatures.

Meghan
The light was a bonus, it was the heat that I was using the lamps for.  It turned out to be a real bonus as the trees flourished and were beautiful when I moved the outside in March, gained almost a season of growth.

So this goes back to the earlier discussion of do figs need a dormant period or not.  But for young plants that are still growing large enough to be left outdoors, the extra season of growth sounds beneficial.

Danny, did you notice a difference on fruit production on the plants that were brought in and grew under the heat lamp?

I started these last year about this time. The few that I kept gave me ripe figs this summer. The figs were good for a one year old plant.
I wintered them under grow lights.

No you will not. If there is a hard freeze predicted, bring them in. Otherwise, in your area, they can stay out.

In Houston, my favorite time to root cuttings (when I could get them) was mid to late November. It seemed as though the cooler weather kept the exposed parts of the cutting quiet for longer while the sun heated up the growing mix so it stayed in good root production range. As for snow... I got caught once in 2008.





I did not lose very many of these leaves.

James,
So, you're saying I can leave all my figs in pots outside unless a hard freeze is predicted? Most of them were started this spring and have substantial growth. The cuttings I am just starting, what do you recommend for them?

Tami,

One winter I was traveling through December and January.  I bare rooted my (about 40 that were shorter than 3') trees, wrapped the roots in damp paper towels and aluminum foil, then let them go dormant in the fridge (you can tell I am single).  Other than this, the only other time I remember bringing trees in was before Hurricane Katrina (I left them all before fleeing ahead of Ike).  Most winters my trees would lose their leaves and go into a quiet state without really going dormant.  It is not cold enough and there is still a lot of light.  The terminal buds would normally stay green.

I was about 20 miles from the coast in a subdivision.  It is possible/probable for your climate to be slightly different.  You are further south than I was, but that does not guarantee it will be safer for trees during winter.  My guess, based on what I have experienced, is there will be very few, if any, days you will need to protect your trees from winter weather.

For those growing in similar climates, this is why I recommend doing root work (or plant trees in ground) in late fall / early winter.  The container/ground temps will generally stay within the preferred temp range for root production.  When spring comes,the trees have reestablished their roots before the top begins to grow.  This is nice, since top growth slows down during the hot, summer months.

James,
That is quite a relief for me. I was looking around and trying to figure out where to put them all. I could fill up the garage, shed and some of the house and not have room left for the dragon fruit. We're told it will be a mild winter but who knows for sure. At least here they tell you how cold it will get and when right down to what time it will happen. In six years they haven't missed the time by more than 30 minutes.
If it really is a mild winter I am going to have some really nice figs next year! 

Here's my two cents worth based on Houston experience.

I was sent a 3 foot tall potted Hunt by mistake last November so I considered it my experimental tree.  Whenever temps were predicted to get below 40F I brought the tree in (never more than 2 days in a row).  It never lost its leaves so we could assume it never went dormant.  Its doing fine now in a SWC.  I'd say fig trees do not need to go dormant, at least with one year's history to go by on a Hunt fig.

I started cuttings last Nov/Dec.  By the time I could get them outside they were getting a little big for the house on the dinning room table with a grow light.  If you start cuttings now you will have to make plans for large trees (~2 foot tall or more) and some form of lighting.

I think I may be willing to do that because the cuttings I got my little grubs on are most probably worth it.
Also, with James letting me know that in all likelyhood I will be able to leave the rest outdoors, I will have room in the house :) YAY!

The main problem that I ran into with winter rooting(starting in Nov. 2012) was the infestation of fungus gnats in the house, which not only killed many of my rooted cuttings, but also became a general nuisance to winter living, with the little gnats flying all over the house, to the point where I was constantly swatting at these annoying creatures while trying to read a news paper or watch TV...this year I'm going to wait until March 1st. to start rooting my cuttings...with the system that I now use(root riot), it only takes 30 days from the time I begin the rooting process to the time they are ready to be uppotted to 1gal. and begin to be placed outside in the shade to start their life cycle...as far as fungus gnats, when I switched over to root riot trays, I never had a problem with those insects again.