Another important characteristic of a fig is whether or not it has a void or "hollow" section inside of the fig. Open eyed figs which have a hollow section inside of the fig pulp, can and will house those nasty fruit souring insects.....this will cause fruit spoilage. Take a look at a cut Brunswick fig and you will see a classic example of an open eye, hollow pulp fig. Brunswick is notorious for not handling rain very well and/or going sour. Brunswick can be a real winner in drier climates yet perform poorly in wetter climates. An open eye fig with "Full" pulp is usually less prone to souring than a fig with "hollow" pulp.

So.........whether or not a fig has a hollow section or not in its pulp can play into how resistant a particular variety is to both rain (lost of flavor or splitting) and insects (souring).

Just so you know......a fig's pulp can be anywhere from very juicy (LSU Gold) to very dry (my strain of Hardy Chicago) and anywhere in between. Some people like juicy figs while others prefer their fig's pulp to be on the dry side.

Flavor.......flavor is not the same thing as sweetness. Sweetness is solely related to the sugar content of a fig. "Flavor", however, is related to the sugar to acid ratio of the fig juice and to the trace organic compounds contained in its pulp. These two parameters can give the fig a flavor similar to that of other fruit......strawberry, raspberry, mango, concord grape, peach, etc. Taste is a very personal thing and individual taste ratings will vary according to one's particular preference.......just like with wine preference.

Some figs have lots of seeds in them (Adriatics) while other have no noticeable seeds (Maryland Seedless). The seeds will not be fertile if taken from figs grown anywhere in the US but a certain area in California where the fig wasp lives. Fig wasps are those tiny insects that fertilize the female fig thus producing viable seeds. Some seeds add much flavor to a fig (Yellow Marseilles) while others add only a pleasant crunch with no added flavor from the seeds (Sal's,Dark Portuguese, Adriatic).

The meat of a fig is the part of a fig that lies between the outer skin of a fig and its internal pulp. The meat of a fig can be from thin to thick and its texture can vary quite a bit. The characteristics of a fig's meat seems to be what determines whether or not a fig will split under certain conditions. Fig varieties that "color stain" the meat of its fig seem to be the better tasting cultivars......I will closely watch this latter fruiting characteristic in my fig trials next year.....

Dan
Way down yonder near New Orleeeeens