Hello from New Zealand! I just wanted to reintroduce myself; I've been off the forum for quite a while now...

I used to go by the username JR, hailing from California and quite a fig enthusiast. I have since moved to New Zealand and have now found the time to reconnect to the fig community. I thought it would be easy to find fig trees here, but it's proving to be a challenge. My hope was that I could find neighborhood trees to get cuttings from, but apparently, unlike California, it is illegal to harvest anything (fruit or branches) from a tree that hangs over public property if that tree is situated on private property. In other words, overhanging branches into public property are not fair game. Add that to the fact that there aren't many fig trees around anyway and the result is that my fig hunting has been severely limited. However, the people here are SO friendly and giving that I see this as an opportunity to just ring doorbells and ask politely for cuttings! Out of my comfort zone for sure, but it takes fig hunting to a whole different level for me :)

It appears that many of my previous fig forum friends have gone quiet; nevertheless, I am hoping they are still around so that we can re-connect. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Welcome and well met! I am only on the forum for just less than a year so still a relative newbie making all the normal newbie mistakes... Great but very addicting hobby are figs....

Welcome back!  How hard was it to move to NZ?  Are you staying there?

If on private property overhanging into public, can you just knock on door and introduce yourself and ask for a cutting or 2?

Welcome back. I spent some time in scenic New Zealand, it's a pretty place and loved some of the large ranches they have.
When you get a chance, tell us about the figs, you discover.

Best of luck on your move.

Hi,
Good luck on your new start !
How is the climate by you ? Could you grow other more exotic fruits ? (Pineapple , kiwis ... )

Thanks for the warm welcome. It's nice to be back. It's been a crazy hectic 2 year process, for sure!

A quick summary of my move to NZ: We (me, my wife, my youngest daughter) moved to NZ in August 2016 and bought a house on the North Island in November 2016. The immigration process is still in the works but we're expecting our entrepreneur work visas to come through any day now. Have to say, the whole immigration process is fairly straightforward and simple (but NOT easy); NZ does require applicants to show how they will benefit the country and add to its culture before they approve it (economically AND socially). Makes perfect sense to me.

Surprisingly, the hardest part of the move was getting our two cats here. NZ is VERY strict on its biosecurity so the amount of paperwork and hoops we had to jump through (and money spent) was astounding. My wife handled the matter and after going through FOUR different pet transport companies (and several outbursts of tears on her part), we finally had success. So, if anyone needs help in transporting animals internationally, we are now quite experienced :)

Regarding the climate here in Hawke's Bay, we're located on the 40th parallel, which puts it roughly comparable to Northern California. I've worked a lot in the San Francisco Bay Area (Corte Madera, Pacifica, South SF, Pacific Grove) and it appears to be very similar. Very mild climate, but influenced by the ocean (e.g. fog, rain year round [every couple of weeks], etc.). There's no ozone layer here, so the plants and trees grow fast and grow well.

We're in a sub-tropical area of the North Island, so I have seen some exotic fruits. Kiwis are one of their top exports and they're hoping to get some red kiwis on the market in the next couple of years. My property is about 7 acres of essentially bare land, and we've already started planting a variety of trees (apples, plums, pluots, pears, Nashi/asian pears, peaches, nectarines, loquats, pomegranate, feijoa... as well as eucalyptus, willows, poplars, karaka, manuka and she-oaks). I've also started my fig orchard and so far have these varieties in the ground: Brunoro Black, Fig Malta Type 1, Ficus White Adriatic, and 1 unknown green fig. In my starts I have a tasty green fig and a total unknown (black or green, who knows?) that my real estate agent pointed out to me. 

I am constantly on the lookout for more varieties, and will keep you all informed of what I find!

Amazing, and here I thought ozone was a good thing, something to reasearch.


Seems like you have a good start on your orchards. You must have a desirable proffesion for them to take you. Kudos and much success.

Hi JR!
I'm an Italian fig (information) passionate, that likes to have some information about fig.
Compliments for your 7 hectares orchard in Hawke's Bay!

You yourself have given the answer to the difficulty of collecting cuttings from edges outside the gardens, is not perhaps a matter of a different culture or different rules; If the plant is considered rare or uncommon it is considered more valuable.
Is not like in Italy, where figs grows also upside down in a digged cave, see picture herein down...

I'd like ask you as follows:
1) Is there in NZ the pollenizer insect of Ficus carica?
2) Are there in NZ male plants of Ficus carica?

I know the quite impossibility of introduction of new variety of Ficus carica in NZ, (They should be the authorities of the State to decide this).
The first question is for my information (I'm mapping for its presence), but both question are about the more direct ways to increase the variety range of the specie in NZ.
The first allowing the natural way, the second by hand pollenizing.
I consider however that NZ has less of life for Ficus than California, (Oceanic climate),   and only in few particular niches and conditions.
Your answer will be by me very appreciate.
Bye
Blastophaga
  

Hi Blastophaga,

There is a lot I can say about New Zealand in reference to your post. But to answer your questions first:

1) Is there a pollinizer insect for the fig tree here in NZ? I don't believe so. I've asked around and I've read some literature, and the consensus seems to be No fig wasps. But I'll never stop looking :)
2) Are there male ficus caricas in NZ? Last September when I was driving around the area, I drove down a rocky riverbed access road (believe it or not, it's legal to drive on riverbeds and beaches here - they're considered "roads") and spotted a large, older fig tree. I took a branch with fruit on it, expecting some nice juicy fruit to eat, and was disappointed when the fruit seemed to be male. I discarded it (assuming the non-existence of fig wasps in the area), thinking I'd go back to the tree later to check it out, but haven't been back since. It's on my "to-do" list.

Back in California, I too had an interest in mapping the extent of the fig wasp. I had read conflicting information about the existence of the fig wasp in the San Francisco Bay Area - some sources said it did exist, other sources said it did not. When I asked people about the fig wasp being in the SF Bay Area, I was told by some that No, it did not exist and told by some that they were unsure. However, in my own explorations, I did indeed find fig wasps in that area in many different locations. I posted some of my findings on this site under my previous username "JR."

I think NZ, climate-wise, is ideal for fig trees, minus the fact that it rains often (which tends to cause cracking of the fruit). I've driven most of the North Island and the upper half of the South Island and my opinion is this: The northern tip of the North Island is what I would call tropical; the east coast of the North Island is very much like the San Francisco Bay Area (lots of different micro-climates, called "The Fruit Bowl of New Zealand" due to its high production of apples, apricots, cherries, pears, plums etc.). On the South Island I saw redwood forests in the Motueka area, vineyards & grasslands & California poppies (reminiscent of Napa, California) in the Blenheim area, and cold rocky alpine forests in the Murchison area (reminiscent of Lake Tahoe). All of this on the South Island was within a 4-hour loop of each other. 

There's a local "figgery" in town called Te Mata Figs that sells different fig products (fresh figs, fig ice cream, fig relish, fig jam, fig salami, etc). I met with the owner and he said he had about 25 different fig tree varieties in his modest orchard. I'm keen on collecting these different varieties but so far haven't been able to find many varieties commercially available. I'm sure I'll be asking the owner for some cuttings from which to start my own!

What a great photo! Thanks for sharing. I always wondered what would happen if I started a cutting upside-down! :)

Thanks,
JR

I thanks for your comparation with California, but I'm in Italy...
NZ is greographically similar to Italy, BUT with a huge difference: in Italy there is the Mediterranean dry climate, do not rains (overall in middle and south) for four months.
And this is important because there are conditions that are NOT good for fig, ... also if it is hot, ... the frequent rains in ripening season.
As I know Blastophaga is in Australia, in Adelaide plains and hills, I do know if is in Perth, too.
The similitude about Italy is that a mountainous environment produces a lot of different habitats (e.g. upside or downside wet winds) with different climates at all.
In Italy exist many varieties not directly "the best", that are may be "less splendid" but are a lot better of the splendid ones, if splendid are sited in worse condition....
In picture, one of these fig, described in a rare Italian botanical historical work (hand pictorial) of begin of '800.
The condition of have small range of choice in shops for fig is consequence of small cultural interest of people on this, and for consequence narrow span of sell, may there are only one or two true-reproductors of figs in whole NZ...
Take care of your cultivator friend.
The fig "upside down" was not planted, was born itself in a cave of thousand years ago, it is in Baia (Naples) and may be "born" from a root of a tree upstair.
Regards B.  
 

Thanks for your informations!!

Welcome back JR and best wishes in your new home!

Thanks Harvey, it's nice to be back on the forum and back into fig hunting.

JR

Welcome back, JR. Congradulations on your new home.
How impossible is it to import fig cuttings to NZ? Is it strictly forbidden? 

Hi Mara, 

Agriculture is one of New Zealand's top exports so their biosecurity is very strict. From what I've been told importing fig cuttings is extremely difficult (some say impossible for the average layman) but I read about a guy who imported some not too long ago. I'm working on getting his phone number so I can contact him about it (and maybe get some of his cuttings!). Hopefully I'll get some leads on who to talk to; our experience so far is that the government is pretty easy to get hold off and get information from. I'll definitely keep you updated!

JR