On this same forum I showed not long ago under the topic- 
'No hassles with NATURE!'

a fig originated from a seedling planted in the axil of a twin palm tree , most probably by a sparrow, a very common bird in that area of the city.

Followed the development of this young tree, having spotted a number of figs growing up with some chances of maturing....more pictures were posted indicating that it would be a dark fig.

More recently some 'bird' has arrived ahead of me and on two or three occasions, the figs I had planned to pick when ready, simply vanished.
However this morning, managed to be there at early hours and the following pictures tell you exactly what I saw.

Decided to pick up the fig, although not yet entirely ripe, otherwise I would certainly have lost it for good.
Tasted it,.. it is sweet and slightly acid (it will be a good one) but the full flavors were not there yet

Decided to call it ..'the Sparrow Fig'

Francisco

That does look good!  Take cuttings before someone cuts it down!  :)

Most definitely get yourself cuttings! I remember the first intro of this fig you gave us. It's amazing the size of the leaves and what a fabulous looking fig! Thanks for sharing the update and flavor so far.

Pardal? European Sparrow? That looks like a nice solid fig, Francisco.
Congratulations on that good find.

This is truly amazing.  I'm so glad you noticed it.  Sparrow fig was meant to be! 
 

Thank you all

Pattee , Bob,

Sure I shall arrange to take some scions at the right time

Rui,

Sim Rui, Pardal pode ser um bom nome para o figo pois este passaroco é concerteza responsável pela propagação deste fruto e pelo aparecimento de novas variedades....Who knows?


Soni,

Yes, this little bird is for sure responsible for the propagation of figs (by dropping seeds everywhere) and  consequently for the natural development of new varieties

Francisco

Francisco,

Maybe you can help me to understand better a way to increase the seed germination?..
I asked this question in my previous post at
http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/fig-seed-germination-question-6476864

Do the fig seeds need to go through a bird's/ animal's stomach, or some some special temperature/humidity conditions for a better propagation?

I see that people share the stories of some random successes but do not proceed further since the outcome is uncertain.

Thanks you! 

That is one beautiful fig Francisco .

John

I remember reading your first thread on this fig.  Very interesting story behind it and a great looking fig.  By all means, get yourself some cuttings before something happens to the tree.

Thanks, Francisco, hope you can one day get a fully ripe fig to report on how great it's potential is.

places you can find figs :)

Thank you all for your commenting and suggestions.

There are still 3 or 4 figs in the small tree which I think they do not seem to come up to fruition one day.
Will watch them as best as I can .

Greenfig, To your question on how to treat the seeds prior to planting I must say that with no doubt the natural digestive tract of a bird for instance will certainly be best.
However what I have done so far is :

Preferably from true Smyrna dry figs (Calymirna for instance) early March

- Get the seeds clean of all pulp, washing them very well in warm water and use the ones which sink

- put them into a glass container in a mix of 15% vinegar and tap water for 1 hour

- Agitate well for 2 or 3 minutes, then rinse with tap water and let the seeds dry in a shade.

Plant them as you do for any other seed of similar size/weight. Have never got less than 70 to 80 % germination. In my climate they will germinate at open air, under a shade keep some humidity in the soil just like any other fig.
Hope this helps

Francisco

This is very cool Fransisco. Did it turn out to be a common fig? It looks tasty.

Nice looking fig!!

Thank you for comments

@DevIsgro
Difficult to say as the 'pair' sits on an area with several Caprifigs sufficiently close
For sure, the water test showed heavy seeds but they could be pollinated Common.
Personally, given the odds, I believe it's a Caducous fig (Smyrna)

Francisco
Portugal

That would make sense, but you never know for sure without testing! It's a very nice looking fig and I really love the story behind it!

Francisco, i think the idea of naming it after its origins is good as you can be confident it is a seedling, to catch the imagination of English speakers you should name it in Portuguese, Pardal as Rui suggested, then with such an enigmatic Portuguese name everyone would want it!

Haha that's very funny Fransisco. Names tend to change far too ofyem. I look forward to finding out what your friend makes of the sparrow.

Oh My! First mention that I have seen of a suspicion that Craven's may be a new pseudonym for Preto, Violeta and BM... Perhaps I missed it before..? Is this a developing or advanced consensus? Very interesting indeed.... I thought that perhaps it might perhaps be a long shot pollinated seedling or one off sucker based on the strong resemblance to the pictures I have seen of Preto, Violeta and BM but I have not the experience or knowledge to judge with confidence.... Would love to hear / read more on everyone's thoughts regarding same....

I don't see the need if you already grow Preto or BMadeira. It's too similar imo.

LOl.... Thank you Brian.... BTW... in your WL.... Maltese Raven? A new variety or  sense of humor?

Lol,fair enough Fransisco,Sparrow it is!,I agree with your point about the name,if you release it as Sparrow it would get re-named Pardal by someone Portuguese anyway (I'm thinking e.g Bayernfeige Violette-Bavarian Violett) and someone somewhere in Europe or the states will plant it in ground and then move house,20 years later someone is going to come along and call it Unk.Petes Purple or something,eventually someone will start dropping the Unk and others will abbreviate it to PP and someone will miss quote it as Purple Pete. someone else will be calling it just plain 'Pete' and a nursery somewhere will start calling it Purple Passion because they wink it will sell better,suddenly we have chaos!