I have an aisle along my south facing wall that will eventually become an espalier fruit tree wall (apples, pears). About 3-4 feet in front of it are 4 raised veggie beds. I'd like to add four spots for figs here - behind the veggie beds and in front of the espaliered fruit trees by about 2 feet. I was thinking of building a half circle 'container' on to the back side of the raised veggie beds (see photos below) so the figs wouldn't be on ground level. There would be no bottom built into this "container" so the roots would be free to go wherever they pleased without becoming root bound. I think :)

Things that come to mind for me is walking space between the figs and the espaliered trellis, possibly shading out the fruit trees behind the fig trees (though I'm not too worried about that), and needing to prune/train the figs so they don't grow into the walking space. I also would not be able to bring these figs in for winter, but tbh that isn't high on my priority list considering our mild Seattle winters (most years).

Is there something I am not thinking of that I need to consider before moving forward with this?

In the picture you can see one of my pear trees in the ground against the fence, harshly pruned to begin a fan shaped espalier fruit trees. The trellis will get installed directly behind it so that is as far out it will be from the raised beds.

Your aisle will be very cramped (at least for the first few years) and lawn care may become a problem. In your zone, you should be prepared for the eventuality that you may not be able to maintain a single-trunk fig tree due to winter die-back. The result would likely be a shrub-type shape. Also, what is to stop the fig roots from coming up into your raised beds?

There is no lawn in this spot, just mulching and weeding. The trees would be more shrub style with a short trunk (my preference over single trunk tree) which is why I'd have to be careful of branches growing towards the back fence.

Unless you also espalier the figs, they will fill the alleyway and cover a lot of the raised bed.  I found that out by planting near a raised bed. The roots will fill the bed to the point where you will not be able work the soil. The only way it will work is if you plan to abandon the beds. Why not add a fig against the fence and drop one of the other trees. Figs espalier very well.
"gene"

Nichole.....

Just to throw you another idea.

Before you make a decision, check out the way the Japanese grow figs in a semi-espalier style.  I wish I could give you a photos but they are here, on this forum.   Members on this forum will know the style that I'm talking about, and maybe they will give you a link so you can see what I mean.

The fig trees are cut very low to the ground and then a main branch is grown, and trained  to grow parallel to the ground and shoots are encouraged to grow straight up along the branch(es), and tied in place.  After fruiting, and when dormant, the branches are trimmed way back, so they can grow again in the following years.  The trees can never really grow out of bounds.  Maybe this might work for you too.

Just an alternative.  It's always better to select, instead of settling.

Frank

That is an interesting idea and like it - but I'd run into the same root problem and my wall already has (non fig) trees in the ground. Back to the drawing board.

Nichole,

Can you move the boxes away from the fence a foot or two? Or, can you build a box inside the box and plant the veggies around it?

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Off topic,

Your pits are a couple of beauties!
Years ago I used to have an American Pitbull Terrier.
Red with green eyes, ears clipped and short tailed. Was pure McCoy blood line.

One of the most beautiful pits ever. Sadly he was stolen from my yard. I can only wonder what they used him for.

I can't move the boxes - this picture explains why. It's a pic from the first of March before I had many things in the ground (new landscape project).



I was thinking about maybe digging out the dirt from the boxes and laying down a board but I imagine that eventually the wood would break down and I'd be back to roots invading the space. Another idea I'm kicking around is picking up a bunch of those cheap $1 square cement pavers from Lowes and laying those down, but I'm not sure if the roots could come up through them?

[QUOTE]Off topic,

Your pits are a couple of beauties!
Years ago I used to have an American Pitbull Terrier.
Red with green eyes, ears clipped and short tailed. Was pure McCoy blood line.

One of the most beautiful pits ever. Sadly he was stolen from my yard. I can only wonder what they used him for.[/QUOTE]

How sad. I am so sorry your boy was stolen - breaks my heart.
I am paranoid of theft. I have had strangers come up and offer me money, ask for puppies, I've even been stalked (creepy style) as I walked my dogs through the neighborhood. Which is ironic because there are SO MANY in shelters! My girls are a little different though - they are Staffordshire Bull Terriers, the smaller English cousin. Both girls are fully grown at 28 pounds. But the people who are after my dogs don't know that. They think they are young "pit bull pups" which is why I get asked about breeding them a lot. Makes me super paranoid.

You sure had me fooled. LOL
Looks like pit pups to me. They are still a couple of beauties!

Are you planning on planting something to grow on the arbor?
Stay away from Silver Lace. Beautiful and fast growing, can cover the whole arbor in one season but the drawback is it attracts this nasty ugly bug. Looks like flying ants. Gives me goose bumps.

They look very similar - the APBT came from the Staffordshire Bull Terriers, after all :) The main difference that the average person picks up is the size. Everyone is always surprised to meet my girls in real life because they expect something much bigger! They are 14" at the shoulders and 28 pounds, 2 and 3 years old. Both spayed so any thieves would be sorely disappointed.

I have a young grape plant I am going to grow up the pergola in the back corner. It is in a container right now because it isn't big enough to survive the girls ;)

Nichole looking at the above picture that space would be to tight to walk in there to pick the figs once ripe even if grown in tree form let alone bush form .
My opinion.   ; )

Just don't leave them outside alone or else they will be goners.

My cousins had a pit once and he had fresh cuts from fighting. I told them if I see this again that I was going to kick both their @$$es real bad. I don't like that, very cruel.
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What are you going to do with the space on the bottom right of the last picture?
Maybe move the veggies there and place the figs in the boxes?

Or, how about the back wall?
The only thorn you have now are the boxes, everything else looks good. I see you are paying attention to detail. I would love to see you show us some pics when it is complete.

Here is an updated pic - took it just a few minutes ago. I'd say we're around 70% complete. A few more things need to go in the ground, hot tub needs to go in, trellis needs to go up against that south facing wall (on the left) for the espaliered fruit trees, and beyond that everything just needs to mature and fill in the space.



The empty space for the bottom right is for the future hot tub. There will probably be a pergola there to block the view of the neighbors. Not sure what I will put on the pergola there but I hope to put in something the hummingbirds like.

The back wall just doesn't get much sun. That's the catch. We don't get a lot of cold but we don't get a lot of heat either. In the very back left corner against that back fence I do have a desert king. The yard has a slope downward and also slopes (very slightly) from left to right. The Desert King has a strike against its location because cool air travels downward, towards that end of the yard so I added soil to raise the elevation there to give the temps there a mediocre boost. No idea if I helped but I figured it couldn't hurt. I think the rest of that fenced back area wouldn't be warm enough to make a fig happy.  The DK at least rests against the south facing wall. Do you think I might be wrong?

I've thought about bagging the veggies and just putting figs in the raised beds!

*****
I never ever leave my girls outside unattended. They have kennels inside the house and they stay in those when we leave the house.

Nichole....

Is it possible for you to control root-run by spade pruning your fig tree roots once or twice a season?  Plunge a sharp-edged, straight spade, into the soil, and sever roots a couple of feet out from the main trunk.  You will force smaller, feeder roots to form inside the pruning perimeter, and it will not set back your trees.  Still no good?  What about sinking in plastic barriers....the kind that's used to contain running bamboos?

Just suggestions....

Frank

How far down do you think I'd have to put the barrier to prevent the roots from going over to the veggie beds? 

Yeah I am thinking large pots given your space considerations. Fig trees in ground grow very vigorously and large, If the roots get into the ground soil you will have your hands full, unless you catch it quickly. No room against the wall for figs if you want your espaliar to grow. Think container.

I was admiring your dogs as well. I had a Bull Terrier, the football headed one like Target's mascot. Love all the bully breeds, wish I had one now. 

Nichole: I also agree about keeping your figs in containers for now.  Maybe in a couple years when you decide about whether to keep the raised beds for veggies etc. it could make sense to put them in the ground.  But keeping them in containers gives you the freedom of deciding later where they should go and keeps the roots out of the raised beds.

Figfanatic: I'm also thinking of espaliering a fig along the south facing brick wall of my house.  I'm curious as to why you are worried about their roots.  From what I understand fig roots won't penetrate a foundation wall.  If anyone has had this happen please let me know! If your house is on a slab I suppose it is possible the roots could work their way under the slab and cause problems but this seems unlikely.  I share your concern about the heat in the summer though.  Here in Maryland we get more humidity along with our heat.  The nice thing is that the wall will provide protection in the winter.

And keeping them in containers makes me circle back to what I was brain storming last night. I was looking for wine barrel planters with flat backs, like this one, so it can lay flush against the back of the veggie beds.



I need some more interest on this half of the yard - I think the fig trees will help.

looking at your yard and what you're doing I'm confident you will put that creative mind of yours to work and come up with a solution.

I'm looking foreword to seeing the finish result.

Thanks! I will let you know what I end up doing. The yard has been a big project. This is what it looked like before:



And if anyone is interested in seeing people lose their minds in their back yard landscape project, I have put up pics of the process online, from beginning till current:
http://niroha.smugmug.com/Landscapes/Back-Yard-Landscape-Project/

One idea is to break up the grass into segments and put a fig tree in the middle of this. 

Hi Nichole,  Would it be possible to add 2 more raised beds so you'll have 6, plant a fig in every other bed and veggies in the others?  It looks like you would have the space coming closer to the house, but I'm not sure what the copper colored ornament is where I'm referring to.

Rewton, as far as the roots staying small if you keep the top trimmed.  I don't think that would control the roots size or spread.  Also, my area is all slab construction and I've seen a home with a fig tree about 18" from the house, and the tree is about 10 x 10! 

What's the distance between each raised veggie bed?  Maybe you can have three potted fig tree between veggie beds.  From the picture, the 8 or 9 o'clock to 12 or 1 o'clock postion in your garden would be the ideal location for figs. 

The distance between each veggie bed isn't a lot - maybe 2 feet. Not really enough room to put a pot there unless I have no desire to walk between them at all. I have more wiggle room behind them.

I don't really have room to add any more than four beds. I know it looks like I do with that big space to the bottom left but that is slotted for the hot tub. I promised the hubby I wouldn't sacrifice his hot tub for figs ;)

Cinder Blocks- You can bury them around the perimeter of your planting spot and force the roots down.

If I plant the trees in the ground I like the idea of putting a separator between the tree and the veggie beds - like the bamboo idea above. I am putting more thought into the japanese stepover espallier idea. That would contain the rogue growth. I'd just have to be on top of it and prune yearly. Since I can't get main crops I'd have to go for old growth as my main goal for breba crops.

Or, of course, containers. Hmm. Choices. Will mull this over in my noggin for a while.

Containers can always be converted to in ground trees. In ground trees usually aren't going back in the container once in ground unless you start a new one with a cutting. Be very carefull about putting a tree in ground. it's a real commitment of space. 

I got my trellis today! Not 100% done but I am excited!!! It is so pretty. My free form fan shaped espalier fruit trees will look so lovely on their new trellis.

Here you go Nichole,

Is he yours? I love his face. Kissable.

No not my dawg, I wish.

Pulled the pic off the internet

I can raise the stakes

Great!
We'll have a tea party