Thanks John,

I'd like to hope that older trees can fight off scale, as it's pesky to deal with.  I've only had a problem with hard scale that looks like tiny reddish-brown barnacles and that can be harder to get rid of.  I use alcohol to spray on the trees, then spray them with an insecticidal soap with, or without pyrethrin in it.

noss

Stormy, I do act against the scale. I am reluctant to use chemicals, so I use regular inspection followed by any manual action necessary. I crush the scale using thumb and finger being as careful as I can not to tear the leaf. This process is quite therapeutic but can be a bit time consuming. It works for me. It helps that pot culture keeps my figs small so fewer leaves to check.
Relating to ants, they are regular visitors to the greenhouse but since I put pot feet under all my pots I have not seen any climbing up the pots to get at my plants. In previous years before the pot feet this was not the case.

The ants are the worst offenders when you have aphids, or scale, or mealybugs because they "farm" them, encouraging them to prosper so the ants can eat the honeydew from them.  Keeping the ants killed off will aid in getting rid of the scale and other pests.

It's the tiny "sugar ants" we have here who are the worst offenders of all and they may have done in one of my Key Lime trees.  I had to cut it down quite a way to try and save it and there are several sap runs that I'm worried are borers, but I don't know how to tell about that.  Other than that, there are all new sprouts that look healthy, which are coming from right above the graft line to about a foot above it.  I'm hoping the tree is saved, but am concerned about the sap runs.

noss

What's glue paper, that's not tree grease is it?
I have used tree grease on some in ground fruit trees and ended up over the following weeks, as I forgot it was there, regularly getting it on my clothes. It's really difficult stuff to clean off, impossible to get rid of the black marks completely. After that I decided not to use it any more.
So is glue paper something different?

Noss, hope your key lime recovers. It's not a tree that what do well in my climate. Not enough sun and heat in the summer and although it would probably survive the relatively mild winters it would I am sure lose its leaves.

Hey John, Spray your greenhouse trees with sb invigorator. It feeds your plants also. Great stuff and you'll never see a bug.


 

John,

What are pot feet?  Do you have any photos, or can you let me know a link to them so I may go see them?

Thanks,

noss

Hi Vinny, I've got some of that stuff and have used it in the fruit cage. You reckon it's good in the greenhouse as well. Would you use it at the normal application strength for plants under glass.

Noss,
They are just small manufactured pieces of clay or plastic designed to be placed under a pot to raise it slightly off of the ground, primarily for drainage. If you Google images "pot feet" all will be revealed.

Thanks John.  I'll go look for pot feet, then.  I'd like to get some of those to raise the pots a little off the ground.

Sounds like a good thing to me.

noss

$24.95 at Walmart

( https://www.walmart.com/ip/Pot-Risers-PRB2-12-Indoor-and-Outdoor-Potriser-Bulk-Pack-12-Count/55542158?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222227075238291&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=&wl1=s&wl2=c&wl3=188301846474&wl4=aud-310687322322:pla-293859918476&wl5=9021724&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=55542158&wl13=&veh=sem )


80 lb bag of motor mix $4.00.  Soap/candy mold app $4.00.
( http://www.gardengatenotes.com/2010/01/12/make-your-own-pot-feet/ )

Just sayin'

A very effective control for aphids, mealybugs and other 'suckers' is a simple soap solution.

Almost any real soap can be used, (soap, not detergents) but you don't need moisturizers, scents and so on, so that will limit your soap choices when dealing with bar soarps.  But it has been shown that potassium based soaps are even more effective than sodium (Potassium hydroxide lye as opposed to sodium hydroxide lye used to make the soap), which generally means a liquid soap...liquid castile soaps and Murphy's Oil soap fall in that category.

Mix 1 TBS of the soap (liquid...if bar soap, it needs to be liquified first) per quart of clean water in a spray bottle and cover the bugs well.  Test a small leaf first, as some plants are more sensitive and can suffer from leaf burn.

Also, a strong jet of water can be used to wash minor infestations away.

Thanks Stormy, I can get glue bands in the UK and might try them if ants become a problem.

Schang, I am not recommending pot feet as a protection against ants and I am sorry if I gave that impression. I was making an observation that since I have started using them for my greenhouse pots I have only seen them on the floor not on my plants. I bought the pot feet as a drainage aid not as an ant deterrent. It's completely possible that the ant scouts just haven't discovered my pots are off the floor now.

I would second Figgysid1’s vote for Figo Preto/Black Madeira. It’s a heavy bearer with large, delicious fruit that are always the 10 standard in flavor. Mine isn’t as vigorous a grower and likes to branch out rather than up which is fine for pot culture as well as in the ground. It wants to put all its energy into figs rather than growth.

I almost would almost agree with Frankallen about Strawberry Verte except that its brebas were disappointing in taste considering how wonderful the main crop is. No fig tree is perfect but FP/BM and SV come close. 

BM / FP it is..... now all I have to do is get them to grow..... get them to grow in quantity and get them to ripen to full maturity..... That is all that I am asking for.... if I plan on 1 good fig from each plant, that means that I have to successfully grow about 25 BM's and 25 FP's..... Can I do it?

Genevese Nero AF

Ronde de Bordeaux would be my choice for great, all-around fig.  Ripens sooner than all my other varieties, delicious, and plentiful, although on the smaller side.

Preto has always been my favorite tasting fig and still is.  Just needs some heat.  I've seen figs stay on for 4 months before ripening.  Well worth it though!

Thank you, Frank! I remain eternally hopeful!....   :-)