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Cooper

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Posted Reply with quote  #1 
Just got this off of http://www.planetfig.com and was wondering if anyone has ever tried ringing the bark on their fig tree to decrease growth and thus harden their fig tree?

"The demise of the Tarring Fig Gardens didn’t signal the end of interest in growing figs commercially in England. A fruit farmer called Justin Brooke took up the challenge in 1951 by importing several different figs from France as a way of extending the range of fruits he grew. Mr Brooke owned a 300 acre commercial fruit farm near Newmarket, Suffolk, growing the usual sorts of fruit but was blessed with an experimental frame of mind and was particularly sceptical of the conventional view that figs were hardly worth growing outdoors in the central areas of Britain. Having read ‘The Compleat Gardner’, an English translation of Jean - Baptiste de La Quintinie’s book ‘Instructions for Fruit and Vegetable Gardens, with a Treatise on the Orange’ and being impressed at what the gardener to Louis XIV had to say about how he grew figs at Versailles, he devoted part of his farm to trial plantings of outdoor fig orchards (and also peaches and apricots). He subsequently published his findings in a book entitled ‘Figs – Out of Doors’.

This book is of interest to anyone growing figs in a climate similar to that of Great Britain and is well worth reading for its practical suggestions. The main point made by Mr Brooke is that success in growing figs in Britain is to ensure that vigorous, lush growth is restricted and short stubby fruitful growth encouraged by various cultural techniques. Brooke states that fruitful growth should have no more than a 3 inch (7.5cm) distance between the nodes, or leaves, on the stem.

He found that planting in specially constructed concrete ‘boxes’ that are sunk into the ground dwarfs figs but the cost in materials and labour makes them unsuitable for mass plantings. He also found that a very heavy clay soil can retard growth to an acceptable level by itself, particularly if feeding is kept to an absolute minimum.

However, the technique he favours above all is to remove a complete ring of bark, about half an inch in (1.3cm) width, from the main stem of a young fig tree, and to then replace it upside down and cover in the same way as covering a conventional graft. This works because the vascular tissue of the phloem, found just underneath the bark, which transports the products of photosynthesis (sugar) throughout the plant has polarity. In other words it doesn’t work as efficiently in transporting food to the root system if turned upside down resulting in a sort of modified ring barking effect but without the danger of killing the plant. Apparently the effect is quite long lasting and reduces the vigour of the fig tree markedly, giving the short compact growth which leads to fruit production. In addition Brooke noted that such sturdy growth is also more cold hardy and so less prone to frost damage in winter.

Justin Brooke died in 1963 and his visionary outdoor peach and fig orchards are now all gone, replaced once more by conventional crops. Sadly, to my knowledge no-one else has taken up the challenge of growing figs commercially in Britain… and certainly not as an outdoor orchard crop. "
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John C.
Zone 6b - O'Fallon, Illinois

Growing: Hardy Chicago, Violette de Bordeaux, Olympian, Brown Turkey, Celeste, Col de Dame

Wanting: Florea, RdB, Nero 600M, any recommended cold hardy to zone 6
DesertDance

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Posted Reply with quote  #2 
I'll admit, I've had a glass of wine or two, but is he saying to girdle the bark, and plant the tree upside down?  Did he suggest covering the roots also?  This would be confusing to me with or without wine!  Go Ducks!  JD is at the game.  I'm chillin'

Suzi
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Zone 9b, Southern California. "First year they sleep, Second year they creep, Third year they leap!"  Wish List:  I wish all of you happy fig collecting!  My wishes have been fulfilled!
Dieseler

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Posted Reply with quote  #3 
Have heard in past for inground about the concrete enclosure perhaps it would limit it from growing as tall as a house
but thinking that fig plants in a large container can get quite large if left unchecked.

As for doing the ring bark thing in the paragraph above it says it will reduce the vigor of the tree
which is not something i would be willing to do but im sure others may be game ?
PhilaGardener

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Posted Reply with quote  #4 
Sounds like the idea is to ring a half inch wide ribbon of bark from around the trunk and then replace it, inverted, with the idea that this will heal like a graft but slow the transport of food to the roots (phloem, remember from school "food flows down")  Sounds a bit dicey to me. 

An alternative (warning - blindly speculating here!) might be to graft less hardy scion onto a hardier rootstock, but since above ground branches of figs are the most likely parts to winter kill, you might just wind up back where you started - ground level.

What do other folks think?
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Philadelphia Gardener Near Philly, but winters still feeling like Zone 6!
milehighgirl

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Posted Reply with quote  #5 
I have heard of the method of inverting bark to dwarf, but not for the purpose of increasing cold-hardiness. It is a very interesting idea. I found a video on YouTube regarding inverting avocado bark. The actual grafting starts about 2 minutes in: Inverted bark graft on an avocado tree Bark Inversion. Part I Inverted Bark Graft on an Avocado Tree Part II 
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USDA Zone 5b, Sunset 2b

Looking for: Becane, Dalmatie, Doree, Florea, Hanc's EBT, Italian 258, LaRadek's EBT, Longue d'Aout, Marseilles White , Negronne, Nordland, Sal's EL, Strawberry Vert, ...anything cold hardy and short season. (Willing to pay for cuttings)
Chivas

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Posted Reply with quote  #6 
His tree actually ended up dying but I am not sure why.  http://www.myavocadotrees.com/inverted-bark-graft.html
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Canada Zone 6B
milehighgirl

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Posted Reply with quote  #7 

I didn't look at his website so I didn't see the sad end:( Apparently he doesn't know why it died either. Topic: Bark Inversion to accelerate flowering on a seedling tree 
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USDA Zone 5b, Sunset 2b

Looking for: Becane, Dalmatie, Doree, Florea, Hanc's EBT, Italian 258, LaRadek's EBT, Longue d'Aout, Marseilles White , Negronne, Nordland, Sal's EL, Strawberry Vert, ...anything cold hardy and short season. (Willing to pay for cuttings)
jdsfrance

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Posted Reply with quote  #8 
Hi Cooper,
England for cold hardiness ? Is that a late 1st april joke ?

The problem in England's weather is not the cold - it is the rain and the lack of sun and warmth .
If you want a top of the top lawn go to England... :P

What were the results of the tests in the orchard? Bland fruits? I suppose !

As for keeping trees small, it depends on what you are looking for.
For me I choose small cultivars - so trees that would stay at a smaller size.
Lately, I was hesitating in between two strains. One known to grow up to 2 meters and the second up to 5 meters ... I choose the first one.
Of course if you have space, then you don't have to take those constraints into account ...
Of course, the bigger the tree, the more nodes, and the more possibilities to get fruits.
But for me, I prefer having two smaller trees than having only one big ...
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Climate from -25°C to + 35°C
Only cold hardy figtrees can make it here
Cooper

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Posted Reply with quote  #9 
I think the take away from the article is in order to increase the cold hardiness of the tree one has to ensure the new growth has time to harden and turn woody. It's the new green growth that is in the most danger. Interesting ways though of restricting growth
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John C.
Zone 6b - O'Fallon, Illinois

Growing: Hardy Chicago, Violette de Bordeaux, Olympian, Brown Turkey, Celeste, Col de Dame

Wanting: Florea, RdB, Nero 600M, any recommended cold hardy to zone 6
pino

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Posted Reply with quote  #10 

What age does the tree need to be for this girdling/inverted bark graft to have the desired effect?
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Pino, zone 6, Niagara,  JCJ Acres
Wish; Peace on earth and more figs Italian 258, Galicia Negra, Luv, trade suggestions welcome.
gorgi

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Posted Reply with quote  #11 
How about purposely rooting a fig twig upside-down?
We all done that by some mistake and corrected later (or maybe not).

The new growth will grow upright with only the (controlled) short bottom part being inverted.
Will this have the same (desired) dwarfing effect as just flipping part of the circumference bark?
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George, NJ_z7a.
milehighgirl

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Posted Reply with quote  #12 
Good question gorgi!
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USDA Zone 5b, Sunset 2b

Looking for: Becane, Dalmatie, Doree, Florea, Hanc's EBT, Italian 258, LaRadek's EBT, Longue d'Aout, Marseilles White , Negronne, Nordland, Sal's EL, Strawberry Vert, ...anything cold hardy and short season. (Willing to pay for cuttings)
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