Hello Everyone. I am a new member and this is my first post. First off, I want to thank MrFrozenJoe (YouTube handle) for his great videos which got me interested in growing figs and also for introducing me to Figs4Fun. Secondly, I want to thank every member on this site for sharing so much valuable information and personal experiences and opinions. I've been reading the threads here and this information is incredible!

After doing research on what figs grow best in my area, northern suburbs of Atlanta GA, I decided to start with the safest in my opinion to grow. I bought a celeste from a local nursery and also bought a LSU Purple from eBay.

The celeste when I bought it already had baby figs on it and it's exciting to see them already grow a little bigger every day. It is already in bush form about 2 feet tall and has a 1" diameter trunk with several .75" branches and many .25" branches off those.

The LSU Purple is only about 8" tall and has a single stem thinner than a pencil and has 7 leaves on it. I've staked this plant to grow upright and to protect it from the wind and I'm waiting for the trunk to grow to a larger diameter before doing anything to it.

Once again I want to say thank you to every one on this site. Thank you so much.

Hello David and welcome to the forum. As you stated there is so much information here. I am in Newnan and about 40 or so miles from you. Maybe I can be of some assistance to you in obtaining some other varieties. Check out these two links of mine and perhaps they will be of some value to you.

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/southern-fig-information-page-1-6616248?pid=1282402649#post1282402649

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/southern-fig-information-page-2-6616218?pid=1282404531#post1282404531

Happy to have you join us, David. You are right about the quality of people and information here. I am also fairly new to fig growing, and have been inspired by the stories and generosity of the F4F members. Your new plants look great, you are off and running. Welcome! Gary in CA

Welcome to the forum! We're always happy to have new people join in!

You should probably enable your Private messages and e-mail. I have never had anyone abuse these on my account.

Thank You Everyone for the warm welcome.

Newnandawg: the links and the information on your list is priceless! Simply awesome! It's now time to do some more reading about your "top 5" and "awesome" varieties.

Javajunkie: thanks for the tip. Already updated :)

I cannot express in words how amazing this forum and it's members are and how much information is here and all in one place!

Welcome and good luck with your new hobby!

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Fig Forum. Lots to read, lots to learn, lots of joy, and unfortunately sorrow as well. You are off to a good start with your initial purchases and it's FUN to nurture and watch those baby figlets mature into a tasty treat. The trick is to wait and wait for perfect ripeness, don't pick too early!

Welcome

Hi David!  Welcome to F4F!  You look like you are off to a great start - glad to have you on board!

Welcome!  Let's all take bets on what date s/he gets the 12th fig plant  :)

Liked that last post!  :0)

Hahaha, 12th? I don't know about that. I'm still kinda scared about the LSU purple growing. I don't have the special mixes I've read about so I just used Miracle Grow garden mix and I saw one of Mike's (NewnanDawg) posts so I also just used pine straw as mulch to cover the soil. I don't know what/when my next fig plant will be but I'm getting really really antsy with these 2 plants I have now. I've counted the times I've been outside to fiddle with the plants, take pictures of every angle, and inspect the plants and every leaf and it's 7 times since noon today! Lol

Hello David and welcome to f4f!  I must say your opening post is one of the most eloquent I've read on here!! 

Bob, it sounds like a betting square thingy (like for football) needs to be started :)

Hi David, always good to welcome another local to the forum! Getting your LSU Purple on Ebay was probably a pretty smart idea. My first three attempts at getting one from local nurseries last year yielded me three unknowns, one of which is actually a green fig that is now my favorite. I have two more potentials now, but I have to wait for them to fruit before getting my answer.

Consider yourself warned, though - figs are a gateway drug! You laugh about reaching twelve varieties, but once you get bit by the bug it's hard to stop. Especially when read about all the amazing varieties that people post about on this forum, and oh, the pictures. Next thing you know you're augmenting your 50+ figs trees and rooted cuttings with things like pomegranates, persimmons, citrus, peaches... Fortunately, this forum is full of members who are both generous with their knowledge and their extras. Speaking of which, in about a month I'll be confident enough with the viability of some of my rooted cuttings to let them go to good homes, so just let me know if and when you're interested!

David,

  I also am a newbie to figs. F4f has become a daily read for me because the folks here have a wonderful spirit which inspires.  

Welcome David from the fire ravaged area of San Diego (not complaining we grow great figs here).  LSU purple is a great choice.

Welcome.

Thank You again for the Welcomes... everyone here is so nice!

So guess what?  Bob and Tamar, you're gonna love this, I got 7 new varieties today!  7!

Gino's Black
Marseilles Black VS
Adriatic JH
Vasilika Sika
Violette de Bordeaux
3013 Holly (Unknown)
Chi Ming Chao (Unknown)

Thanks for the offer Tamar, it sure is great to meet local forum members.

Ahhh nice , and so it begins !! Welcome , you'll fit in just fine  ;))

If we make the bet large enough I could pick the date and take him the extra trees needed to make 12.  Almost a sure thing.  My kind of betting, however I gave up gambling as being bad for my wealth.  

Hahaha, too funny. But really... No more! I am starting to think this fig culture is dangerous!! Lately I find myself scanning left and right when I'm driving looking out for fig trees! Dangerous!

My (user) name is loquat1 and I'm a figaholic.