Picked a Black Ischia this aftenoon. I waited one day to long it seems as it was dead ripe but had started to spoil near the eye. I tasted it anyway, at least the good part. It was sweet and very figgy. It was too little a sample to make any decisions on but what I tasted I liked.

[IMG]http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff295/PawPawgene/figs/Black%20Ischia/100_3113.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff295/PawPawgene/figs/Black%20Ischia/100_3114.jpg[/IMG]

Gene:I have a hint the Fig mosaic virus goes away in your hot climate.
Can you report in the future if this fig become a large plant,with normal leaves?
Here is still a foot tall after 7 years,of growing!

Herman2,

I don't believe that the virus goes away in our hot climate. The one from UCD cuttings that I grew for several years NEVER got around the virus and it finally died this past winter. Another replacement one has less of a case of FMV. I did get a chance to eat a few BI figs in the second year that I grew it and know that this one has the potential to be a GREAT tasting fig.

Dan :Could it be ,that gene's fig is not originating,from California Collection?
I have seen written accounts that in the past century,Ischia Black was a common fig in the south!

Gorgi, My tree came from California but I don't know the source other than I got it from Richard Watts. I will drop him a line and ask him for his source. I will keep everyone updated about it as it grows. I hopefully plan to get cuttings off of it and see how they do. I received the tree in March of 2010 as a bare rooted tree that was one season old and very small and weak. It grew the new sprout to about 18 inches last year. This year it didn't look back and add almost 2 feet and still growing.
"gene"

Little info i post again Gene but give him a call if you want i can pass number let me know.
as metioned before i have heard or saw this name before perhaps in some writeing's i ran across.
Here is one of the places i have seen his name -

The Friends of the Fig Society actually is over 20 years old. It was formed back in the mid-1980s by Jack Thomas, who lived in Conyers, GA at the time, and the late Paul W. Starnes, who lived in Newnan, GA.


Part of excerpt from RW when i asked where his ischia black came from as i always try to gather information when i obtain fig plants.

The Black Ischia that I have was obtained from Paul Starnes in Newnan, Georgia. who is since deceased.  He called it Black Provence, but I believe iit is the same fig.  It is very distinctive as it has reddish buds and a pink eye.  Mine does not show FMV most of the time but will show it sporatically.  I have had it since '86 and it  is still in a 5 gal. can.


From me - 

It would have been interesting as to where Paul Starnes originally obtained what he called Black Provence.

I did have bareroot from RW as well but it did not make it thru winter storage.
My intentions are to try to obtain another to compare them years down the road to my specimens from UcDavis.
These plants are a lot of fun for me.

Thanks Martin for jogging my memory, I had forgotten your post mentioning the Black Provence. I do have his number and he, I, and his wife Edith swap emails every so often. They are a great couple and Linda and I thoroughly enjoy the visit we made to his house last summer.  He invited us over to talk figs and meet but he was interested to hear a real cajun talk. None of that TV BS.

I got a surprise today in the form of a Martin's UK. I post picture on another post.
"gene"

I noticed on one of my visit's to Adriano's place that his Black Ischia looks perfectly healthy no sign's of fmv on the leaves no yellow or deformed leaves.  I am not sure who his source is for the BI but I hope I can get one from him in the future.

Nelson:All you got to do is ask him,the origine of his fig and we might be in for resolving this problem.