These Lampeira Preta main crop figs are, for my taste, the best of all dry figs.

 
Francisco
Portugal

Thanks for posting. Love all the helpful information and pics. I picked up this variety from dan. Cant wait till next season.
Richie
Louisiana

Lampo,

Have you dried other varieties? For those without the wasp.. what would you recommend?

They look great!
At this time of year the sun is in a great position to dry figs.   How long does It take for them to dry leaving them whole like that?

Meg

The dried figs for house consumption are stored raw in wooden chests hand pressed into layers having in between a mix of bay and carob green leaves plus green stalks of fennel for flavor and critter control.
Another way to store these figs is to have them previously roasted on the rural clay ovens immediately after bread is baked.. then, once cooled off, to store in the chest in the same manner as above,.. or in glass jars following the same principle.

All are good but my preferred is the old  'fig cheese' made in the fall and using the frames of old hand flour sieves.. it takes various types of figs, almonds, etc.. a rather complex recipe
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4AufCeCJIYQ/UbY8oh7M_qI/AAAAAAAABk0/ns2_A9eTHZo/s1600/DSCF0907.JPG

Francisco
Portugal

Wonderful looking figs, Francisco.

Too bad that all of mine will go to waste, because lack of pollination. Next year i hope i can change things a bit with the help of some wasps.

 

Regarding Côteo, do you think its a variety worth adding in my case or having Quarteira and Branco Especial (and hopefully being able to mature both Inchários) its dispensable?

The drying up on the tree is interesting and i believe almost unique to this variety regarding Portuguese figs...

Francisco,

That's what i thought. That characteristic is very interesting and that's probably why, in 1883, according to Manuel Bivar Weinholtz, this variety represented 95% of all fig trees in Algarve.

Things have changed a bit since then. "Consumer needs" and "market laws" have done a great disservice to Portuguese fig diversity.
When i read in that dissertation, that S. Luís, because of his excellence, was the most common of Black figs in Algarve and now is such a rarity, its a complete shame. 

Regarding Côteo, if you happen to have access to some cuttings of this variety and can send them my way, i would appreciate it.

Thanks,

Time now for a few white and black figs to profit from this gorgeous Sun
and get dried for consumption during the cold months.. Four days shall be enough to reach the correct amount of reduced moisture.

 
 

Francisco
Portugal

Oooooh, those are great looking figs for winter! Sometimes I find dried figs in the store but they are either too hard or too sugary. I have not yet found dried figs that are truly good. But i keep looking.

This is a late strain of Lampeira Preta main crop-
Both brebas and main crop ripen approx a month later than their 'standard' sister cultivar
It has no particular name but some call it  'Late Lampeira'
Here a few pictures of their main crop figs which this season come out quite large and syrupy
These figs behave as any Smyrna variety and need to be pollinated by the fig wasp.


   
 
 
Francisco
Portugal