I grew up in New Orleans where we had 2 fig trees in our yard that the gentleman that planted them said were Celeste. The first time I realized that not all fig trees were the same. Late in the summer these trees produced figs like crazy and nobody ate them but me. I found that the ones drooping and cracked were by far the best.  My taste in figs still leans to a ripe Celeste. So last year I started on my dream back yard which is simply a fruit grazing adventure. I have many types of strawberries including Alpine types, multiple blueberries, raspberries, blackberries,cherry trees, grape vines, citrus trees and (I counted yesterday) 57 fig trees. Two in the ground, 2 in 18" pots and the others in various size containers. I started my collection with buying every type of fig Hirt's had. All were small last year....more like tiny. This year 3 of them had edible figs. I am still impressed with Hirt's for staring a collection inexpensively. I have also never had one (yet) that was not what it said it was. I also have had good luck with Wellsprings figs.

However figmainia hit when I found out rooting cutting was possible and as I am retired they were CHEAP! The problem or advantage of all the fig blogs is everyone that roots cuttings has a method that works for them best.  My first big item I learned is that some did not work well for me. The paper towel in the plastic bag simply was a fungus incubator. Starting in water worked well for about 2 weeks then the warm water would "cook" the roots. I tried the method of completely burying the cuttings and was rewarded with ONLY a 25% success rate. I will agree that when it worked the resulting plant was very healthy and vigorous. I then tried the cup method with a cup dome.......finally success! Or at least 75% of the time at first. I refined my potting mix and added about 25% small pine bark nuggets which gave aeration and a little acid to the mix. I also found a use for Styrofoam peanuts, a layer goes on the bottom of the planting cup with lots of drainage holes. This mix works for me, will it work for you.....who knows?

One way I figured it out was by ordering "unknown figs" listed as " Louisiana Brown" or Texas ever-bearing and "Ashland Unknown", a dirt cheap way to learn what worked.   I have about 15 of these now about 18 " tall that will be traded to a farmer for a box of fresh veggies every week in the summer.  He wants to grow figs but has no idea what to plant or care for. About a dozen appear to be Brown Turkey or  Celeste and a few Yellow figs from Louisiana. I believe once he has fresh ripe figs for sale he will find it a good money maker. The only "fresh figs" we get are packaged rock hard Brown Turkey figs that were priced at $5.00 for 5 figs. And the trees once well rooted will grow like  weeds with zero care for him.  

The lights I use and the plant shelves are documented on the forum. But keep in mind the the conditions in my growing room will not be the same as yours. Buy some inexpensive cuttings and experiment..........fig trees are always easy to get rid of.

As to my 57 trees, I have  24 varieties and some are just different names but same as another plant. So I have in reality 22(?) known varieties but many I have just one and others as many as six.

I also discovered that some figs root very easily and others do not. The easy ones for me have been Kadota, Black Italian, Jelly, Little Miss Figgie and the Brown Turkey variants. The hard, again for me, have been LSU Purple and Celeste for some reason. I also have proof positive as to which figs do well in the hot, humid East TN area. This year Rust wiped the leaves off of some varieties and others showed no signs of rust. All were within feet of each other. All have recovered but the ones denuded lost 2 months of leaf coverage. So these will not stay in my collection. 

BTW, my current rooting method is about two weeks in water until I get many of the white bumps on the cutting then into the cup W/cover using my rooting mix and under 12 hours a day LED lights indoors.

Find what works for you, I know for a fact any fig from a tree you started will taste better than one you just bought........(I know it is all mental but I have also been called mental by some.)   

Thanks for sharing. Figging is definitely addictive. Lost about 2/3 of my cuttings due to over-watering. Think I have it now.  Good luck! 

Loved your post! How much we learn in just a year's time! I started getting into figs about a year ago as well. Haven't learned as much as you though! Just started my hand at cuttings this summer and I'm experiencing the kind of trial and error you're talking about. I've got cuttings growing several different ways right now (water, burying, and clear cups). I think I like the clear cups method best too. I use the styrofoam peanuts in my larger pots as well. I think it may help. Especially because I can have a heavy hand with watering sometimes.

Congrats on all your fruit trees. Sounds like heaven!

JMRTSUS: "Find what works for you, I know for a fact any fig from a tree you started will taste better than one you just bought........(I know it is all mental but I have also been called mental by some.)" 
Nope, I don't think it's all "mental."  I bought some "fresh" figs recently.  I was so excited to be able to buy them.  The excitement only lasted through the first bite.  Tasted kind of like eating textured dirt.  NOT good at all.  I just had one fully ripened on the tree, teeny tiny Hardy Chicago.  Definitely worth the work to grow your own.
I agree with your comment about experimenting with the less expensive options.  22 varieties in a year is impressive!
Good luck.

I think some of the other things I learned were Tissue Cultured figs really respond to a larger pot and direct sunlight as soon as you can get the transitioned. The growth rate is amazing.....from a 2 1/2 inch pot to a couple of figs the next year was a shock to me. I also learned (first hand) that they tend to grow too laterally for me as I prefer an upright tree. That way I can get mores figs in a given area. Many of my figs will need to be put in the garage this winter so a wide bush type of growth I prune and train to upright.

I think for the fig fans that only want a few trees or do not have the time/desire to root cuttings the tiny fig plants from the online nurseries are inexpensive and healthy. Some of my TC plant came from Bakers Creek on sale as a 3 plant bundle delivered for $13.00. I ordered 3 sets and ended up with 7 different types and I lost 2 to stupidity! I Also have had luck with Wellsprings and Hirt's. My experience has been the ones from Hirt's grew at a mush faster rate...I can only assume they had a better root structure. Cuttings on Ebay is a gamble for the newbies like me. I did not do enough research on the vendors and the forums. Ordered cuttings from Israel......never saw them. Ordered VDB cuttings.....appears to be Brown Turkey.  The place I ordered them and several others types from has disappeared so who knows at this point if any cutting were the correct type from them. Almost spent mucho bucks from one vendor that has been exposed on this forum. Funny thing is I had ordered Alpine Strawberry seeds from them that never germinated but I thought it was me.  So this Forum saved me there. Now I try to get my cuttings from vendors that are known on this forum!  

I also have learned that fig trees are individually different. I bought my first two trees and planted them 20 feet apart in my yard. One is a Brown Turkey and the other a Celeste.  Both were the same size from the same store but the Celeste is 6 foot tall and 8 foot wide a year later and the Brown Turkey is still 3 foot tall and 2 1/2 wide....alive and healthy but no real growth. The Celeste is huge and loaded with figs! The Brown Turkey is known for good growth but this one is on strike! 

Thanks to all for the nice comments. And stay tuned for more info as the adventure in figdom continues. I will post a list of the figs that thrive here in E. TN and the ones that rust devastated in this area. I think I will use them to provide cutting/plants to better areas for them! As to the two trees in the ground, the Brown Turkey was completely denuded by Rust and the Celeste showed no signs! Who knows! I am trying to decide what to put where the Brown Turkey is and what to do with the sad sack BT!

My LSU Gold provided about 5 figs so large I had to cut them out of the organza bags! Wow what a fig, big and sweet. Choosing between a Celeste and an LSU Gold would be a hard choice. No figs yet from my other LSU figs....I have high expectations for them. (Geaux Tigers!)


I think we need a permanent folder for cutting exchanges.......list what you have and what you want. Each pays their own shipping. This way we the forum members will have an easy source for obtaining new types in their collections with the minimal cost! I will have a handful of several types this fall but not enough to try to sell on Ebay so exchange is the only way to really benefit from them. Whatca' think?