Seems like some members have questions regarding this varinat. Questions regarding: if it's a Mt Etna variant, how does it taste compared to other Mt Etna figs such as Hardy Chicago, Gino's Black and etc, how cold hardy it is and some back ground info on this figs.

This fig was originated from Greece and I came upon discovering it few years ago. Mother tree belonged to a father of my buddy who all, are Greeks. Father used to wrap the tree during winters. After the father passed away two years ago, his property was sold and the tree has been cut down by the new owners.

As for being a Mt Etna varinat- I don't know. Anyone can answer that question, go ahead and please do so. But, compared to Hardy Chicago and Gino's Black (I grow both), it's number one in taste and being much earlier than HC and GB. I'm not too great with describing tastes, but it has an extra rich flavor to it. I have grown and been growing some of the rarest and most expensive dark colored figs in past or in present, non have performed (productivity-main crop, taste, early main crop and ability to resist splitting), like this varinat. Friends in few European countries and many all over the States, been growing this varinat and have been very pleased with it.

This varinat only produces main crop figs (can and have produced two crops in Southern Italy) for me. Main crop ripens late July- early Aug. Will not split with excessive rain. Having grown many varinats in past and still growing many, for dark color figs, this is my number one choice. For light colored figs, a true O'Rourke will be my number one, along with LSU 5. Any of LSU figs are winners.

Cold Hardy- not sure. I grow my mother plant in a 40 gallon drum. The original tree that I took cuttings from, was winterized every year. The father didn't want to risk losing the tree. I share the same sentiment and do lot culture.

Some opinions of others:

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/unkown-dark-greek-2015-7748779?highlight=udg&pid=1289633521

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/navids-unknown-dark-greek-awesome-8246259?highlight=udg&pid=1293438024

I will be giving away a free rooted tree of UDG to a new member who has between 200-300 posts, and 3 sets of O'Rourke cuttings to 3 other members, who have 100 or more posts. First come first. Just write a short sentence on how you got involved with figs, and how many trees you are currently growing. Might send a free tree or two with the winners of the cuttings. I will be closing my PM by tomorrow evening at 8pm Eastern (Sep 30th).

Navid.

Hey. Got involved after growing up in Brooklyn around figs. Lived in apartment building and always wanted to grow one since I got a house 4 6"years ago. I am currently growing around 40 varieties. Most unknowns. Dark Greek looks great.

Matt,

You got the tree. Will send you couple of CDDB cuttings as well. PM your mailing address.

Navid.

Hello! I first got into figs because I was fascinated by a tree that has been grown for so many 1000's of years and I'd still enjoyed. Once I decided I wanted to grow them I started looking on here to find out what I should grow. That turned me on to RDB and from there I have continued to collect and propagate with avid enthusiasm. At this point I have only started black mission and vista mission ripe but I would estimate that I have about 20-25 varieties (I have a few rooting projects that seem successful but I'm not calling trees yet). For me it's a nice thing to do after my stressful day at work and I hope to retire to growing fruit (in 20 years lol)

Hey Navid.  I already have your UDG and LOVE it!  To me, it seems like a Mt. Etna type (because of its leaf shape and the fruit reminds me of the others) but it is its own fig that I would never give up.  However, it it important to note that even in its first year it has produced a lot of fruit, and MUCH better fruit than my MBVS and HC.  If I could only keep 5 varieties, this would definitely be one... maybe even if I could only keep one it might be it, but I don't want to think about that. haha  


Also, your LSU RED is to die for when the fruit is dead ripe.  There is not much talk on the forum about that fig but there certainly should be! It is definitely a 10 out of 10 in my book. If I could compare to anything in terms of taste and texture, I'd say it is something like a super flavored IC or O'Rourke, but with its own wonderful personality. I would take more pictures of it but, like my Unknown Dark Greek, I tend to lack the self control refrain from eating them long enough to take pics. Thanks for sharing it with me. 

Here is my fig story:

I have been eating figs since I was little.  I can remember going to Mexico with my mother and sister, eating the fresh figs from my aunt's garden.  For a while after we lived in areas where there weren't any fig trees available to the general public.  Then I moved to NC and found the old Celeste variants, a few heirloom varieties, and the BTs were pretty popular among southern growers.  It was wonderful having them again. I had a job working outdoors where many of my clients owned fig trees and many others owned pecan trees. Some days, that is all I would eat for lunch.  To some folks it was just nuts from the ground and figs that were destined to fall and feed the critters, but for me it was a meal fit for a king.  Eventually, when we finally became home owners we made sure to have a yard to accommodate a small fig collection.  I only have room for about 25-30 varieties. I haven't counted but I'm somewhere in that range... and my wife tells me I have too many. haha 

Also, I am not looking to get in on your cutting give-away.  I just wanted to share.  Oh yea, Navid, please contact me in January so I can get those Unk. Antalya Red cuttings your way.  I think you are going to be pleasantly surprised by that one (wow). Mine was a little difficult to get started, but once it got going it did well.  Keep that in mind when you root the cuttings I will send.

In the meantime here are some U.D.G. from one of my first year trees. 

My history with figs started with my job of almost fifty years. I was a produce manager in a big box type store and every season would tout the figs I sold. You know the ones packaged in the clam shell packages. I know, I know! One spring after telling my wife of these tasty tidbits, I purchased my first fig tree, a brown turkey. I should add that to this day it is "old reliable". That first summer we potted the tree and watched it grow ion our deck. The second year we were rewarded with several ripe figs. Even though they were brown turkeys, I knew what I was selling was not figs. I purchased a second tree, a Peters Honey and I was off and running. Upon retiring three years ago, I was looking for a hobby to fill the time. I started with the forums and was hooked. A perfect match, a twelve month hobby. It truly is, with each season having it challenges, from growing to rooting cuttings, air layers, winter protection and on and on. Now some forty odd varieties later, I see no end in sight. Earlier this week I returned from a two week stay with my daughter and believe me there was not a day that I wasn't on the forum several times. My wife now questions my sanity, but we all know better.

I probably have a little different path to the fig addiction than most...   I bought four very common trees from Home Depot to supplement our preparedness as a living food storage asset to prep for the possibility of the fertilizer hitting the fan.  

When the trees fruited, they were really bland.  (I had no clue that first-year trees were expected to be un-remarkable in taste)  Soooo...  I tried scouring the Inter-Web to see if there were maybe any better varieties out there.  And, kapow!!  Be careful what you might wish for!  I found the forum.  LOL!!!

Blue

You are very generous.

I just love to grow stuff.  Found out a friend of a friend had a fig bush and thought figs would be cool to add to the strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries.  I played with cuttings over the winter and the rest is history.  The garden was a almost all figs this year. 

Very nice offer you made.  This is me throwing my hat in the ring ;-)

 I've been growing things my whole life, mostly veggies and then later in life started with citrus , apples, pears, plums and then decided to push my luck with avocado's and learning to graft. I am in zone 8b so a lot of what I grow would be considered (zone pushing). A lot of work covering my trees during hard freezes, but I love it. So I innocently stopped at one of our large commercial nursery's here that was having their annual clearance sale and out of the corner of my eye I spotted a neglected sad looking Celeste fig tree. I committed what is usually a big no no, don't buy something thinking you can save it, surprisingly once I up potted it and showed it some love and more sunshine it took off and started putting on a lot of new growth. I started doing searches on the internet and came across this web site finding other people who love growing just as much as I do and have a wealth of information to offer. I have 10 trees in pots now and several cuttings started and don't know how many I'll wind up with in the end. :)

Great stories everyone. Very interesting to know how people got into growing figs. Keep it coming.

Matt got the tree. The next was Mario, he just wanted to share his story, so the three posters after Mario will receive the O'Rourke cuttings and the rest (poster #5, #6, #7 and so on) will receive free cuttings of my choice. Those who have posted can PM me.



Navid.

Thank you for the write up Navid. It's appreciated.

Navid, thanks for the background description of your UNK Black Greek.  I recently acquired Marius' UNK Black Greek and have heard many good things about yours.  My number of posts is outside of the required range and I am very late (congrat's Matty).  However, at some point I would like to try growing this variety.  The description to me sounds a bit like Bari I have grown for a few years.  Some other growers have put into Bari into the Mt. Etna group.  To me it is different from the Mt. Etna types though it shares some similarities.  If one wanted to be really loose with the definition I suppose most dark figs could be put into the Mt. Etna category.  It sounds like yours has a lot of excellent qualities.

Congrats Matt! Thanks for the offer Navid!

Thank you for your generosity. Greatly appreciated .

Hi Navid,

I have been interested that UDG variety of yours for some time now. It sure looks like a winner!

I think this is my 6th year growing figs now and am at the point that I have to start widdling down the variety list to focus only on the good ones. This hobby is so addictive you want to try them all lol. My first fig plant I bought at a nursery.. it was an italian fig of some sort. Since then after joining this forum and meeting lots of other members I've learned a lot about this hobby.

I would love to try yours if you are still offering those cuttings. :)

Tyler

Hi Navid,

A few years ago I took cuttings from my Popou's fig tree and undertook the project of propagating them for my cousins.

I chronicled my efforts on a twitter page, https://twitter.com/PopouDomFigs/status/416269887515136001.

I was doing well, the cuttings rooted and were developing nicely but a virus of some kind spread through my plants and killed them all after 6 months of care.

I was pretty disheartened by the experience and went retreated into peppers and tomato gardening.

After two years I am looking to take a shot at this again and this forum community is undoubtably the greatest pool of knowledge anywhere.

I saw that you had a tree of Greek origin (just like my Popou!), do you think it would do well in south Jersey?

Anyway, happy to be part of this community!

Be well,

Dom

 

Thanks! Time to get back at it!

Thank you everyone for participation. I have recieved the majority of mailing addresses for the ones posted, except a few. I will be keeping my PM open till I get their addresses. Cuttings will go out by mid October when trees beginning to go dormant.
Matt got the tree. Others will be receiving cuttings of my choice from these variants:

Beall
Italian Black
VDB
Planera (MP)
Galicia Negra
Conadria
Bordissote Rossa (MP)
Sultane
Noire de Caromb
Alma
Albacor Comuna (MP)
LSU Scott's Black
CDDB

Navid.

Dominick, please send me an PM.

Thank you again. This is a very kind offer and a great start for us newbies.

Very Kind of you, Navid! 

Way to be a great member Navid! Let me know if cuttings of the unknown black greek become available in late fall.

Got the plant today, thanks again Navid. As i mentioned i dont need CDDB anymore, so your welcome to pass that along to the next person below me . Thanks again