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Encanto Farms Nursery > Topics > preparing the tree 4 larger main crop harvest
 
 


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Grasa

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Posted Reply with quote  #1 
I tried this last year and it was GREAT.


From now on, I monitor the progress of little figlets forming, and I pinch them off, so that the tree focus on the ones already forming.

I pinch them over various days, getting the littlest of them all, in a couple of weeks, I may sacrifice those that are about 1/2 inch, leaving only the larger ones on the tree. 

As the weather changes to cold and rain, I get a scissors and start cutting the older leaves over a week or so, each day a few are cut, leaving just enough of the younger leaves to help the new figs get more flavor.   if it turns very cold, I may just knock more figs and cut the rest of the leaves.  

Last year, I had ripe figs all the way through November... Lets see this year. 

This is the begining, as you can see, branches are loaded with fruits.

Attached Images
jpeg Breba_and_main_crop.JPG (647.16 KB, 36 views)
jpeg After_1.JPG (853.38 KB, 40 views)
jpeg After_2.JPG (936.61 KB, 39 views)
jpeg Before_1.JPG (565.60 KB, 36 views)
jpeg Before_2.JPG (749.96 KB, 30 views)


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Grasa
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Posted Reply with quote  #2 
I pinched mine and it aborted all figs... I have a very long summer compared to you guys and my fig produces 3 times the main crops and no sign of breba till now... I lost 1 and ate the second and now waiting for the 3rd crop to ripen ;)
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Weather: Winter: 10C+  Summer: 42C+
Growing: Syrian Unk., Atreano, Egyptian Unk., Lebanese Unk., Col de dame Gris, Beall, Negronne, Ronde de bordeaux, Brogiotto Bianco
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FiggyFrank

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Posted Reply with quote  #3 
I'll have to keep that in mind.  I have over 250 figs combined (yes I counted all of them) on my trees that I am waiting on.  I'm already removing new figlets just like you are.
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Grasa

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Posted Reply with quote  #4 
the tree needs its leaves to  make food for the fruits. I don't pinch the tips, unless there are no figs I want to keep. I pinch off the little figlets.  
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Grasa
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Posted Reply with quote  #5 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Grasa
the tree needs its leaves to  make food for the fruits. I don't pinch the tips, unless there are no figs I want to keep. I pinch off the little figlets.  

Maybe this made my tree drop its figs because I pinched the tops too...
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Weather: Winter: 10C+  Summer: 42C+
Growing: Syrian Unk., Atreano, Egyptian Unk., Lebanese Unk., Col de dame Gris, Beall, Negronne, Ronde de bordeaux, Brogiotto Bianco
Wish List: Panache.
GeneDaniels

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Posted Reply with quote  #6 
So does everyone recommend pinching new figlets starting now, the middle of Aug? I am in zone 7b
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Zone 7b (Central Arkansas) Seven trees in the ground: Hardy Chicago, Celeste(?), LSU gold, Italian Black, Southern Brown Turkey(?), Strawberry Verte, and Unk yellow.  Trees in pots: VdB, CdD, and Sicilian?
pino

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Posted Reply with quote  #7 
Grasa
How does cutting the older leaves helps the figs ripen? 
I thought the more leaves the more sugar is produced and thus ripen the fruit?
Thanks
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Wish; Peace on earth and more figs Italian 258, Galicia Negra, Luv, trade suggestions welcome.
Grasa

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Posted Reply with quote  #8 
I got the idea from this John  
 however, I modified a little, if the branch has no fruit, I may cut off most of its larger leaves and only let the tip one one, they will shrivel and fall.  If the branch has figs, I leave just a few leaves, maybe 5 or 6 and cut the rest.   I do this in slow motion, each day I cut a few from various branches. Also a good indicator it is time to cut the leaves, is when it gets a bit colder, the leaves start to yellow to drop.. I just speed that process,   Last year, i got many ripe main figs... shall see this year.
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Grasa
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jdsfrance

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Posted Reply with quote  #9 
Hi genedaniels,
It all depends on the cultivar .
I have a cultivar that will restart to grow (green stem and tiny leaves ) if I pinch the figs, especially if the weather goes "Indian Summer" - that is mild at Fall time instead of colder and colder until the Winter.
My "Longue d'aout" doesn't care - so last year I pinched the new figs as of 1st September and she didn't make a move and went later dormant with no problem.
"Dalmatie" will behave as LDA . Now you need to find out to which group your cultivars belong ...

This year here, the spring was sort of milder - could have been better, but was (it started) not cold as usual although then turned less warm - and I'm looking forward to have, for once, a good main-crop ... Let's hope for no early frost ...
IMO, the warmer weather and sunny days are more important than pinching the figs.
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Chivas

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Posted Reply with quote  #10 
From what I see the past two seasons, pinching the tips of fig trees for me is beneficial if the tree is not producing embryos on time, if it starts produced embryos around 5-6 nodes then pinching in my opinion reduces harvest as it will put out more figs if producing at this point.  If they do not produce embyros pinching can help force them out, so far negronne and black mission have been the only ones to not do this for me.  If you are going to pinch, it would be better to do earlier than later as it will take time for new embryos to form on new growth once pinched in my experience, that being said if you get good early growth and pinch you could also have a good harvest but for me leaving un pinched if producing embryos at the right nodes is more important as well as what Grasa is saying to remove those figs that aren't proper size.  Herman has also been recommending and practicing this for years so it is good to see this working well on the west coast of the country as well.  My only other observation is that higher potassium (about 2 times the amount of nitrogen ie. 3-1-6 or 3-2-9) will produce more figs as well and was recommended by Baud, but that is not at the start of the season it would be as there are roughly 2-3 leaves already out.  I have tried 6-3-10 ratio and it worked well but I think based on variety it could be changed to better suit production, although I doubt I will look into it much more as it would be very time consuming to figure this out, although the col de dama's I will most likely feed 6-3-12 next year as they are very vegetative and the extra potassium I do not think will hurt them, but for now it is just a guess. 
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ascpete

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Posted Reply with quote  #11 
Grasa,
Thanks for sharing your procedure and its success in your zone.
As Chivas mentioned Herman2 has posted his pinching procedure in our zone, the embryos are pinched if they form with less than ~90 days to first frost (in my location that's October 1). I've used that procedure and it has worked exactly as claimed. But I never pinch the growing tips of the branches, instead I prune the apical tips of the tree early in the season, select fruiting branches and allowing them to grow out, or allow last years pruned fruiting branch stubs to grow out. The fig embryos that form after July 1 (~ 90 days to October 1, first frost) are then pinched, the remaining figs are all allowed to ripen.
Champagne_FruitingBranchTypfor6_8-14-14.jpg .


Chivas,
I used a Hydroponic fertilizer, General Hydroponics' MaxiBloom 5-15-14 this past season in the Hydroponic Test and on a few potted trees. Its a balanced fertilizer which includes Calcium and Iron and can also be used with potting mix and soil. It seems to work quite well when used as the "finishing" fertilizer per Baud's recommendation. Before MaxiBloom was started the tree aborted the original 3 main crop figs, after starting MaxiBloom the entire plant is visibly healthier and the figs are progressing through the stagnant stage..
Timlight_MaxiBloom_8-14-14.jpg .
rcantor

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Posted Reply with quote  #12 
I would never remove healthy leaves from a tree.  They are the source of sugar that makes the figs ripe and gets stored in the roots as starch to power growth in the Spring.
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Galicia Negra, De La Reina - Pons, Genovese Nero - Rafed's, Sbayi, Souadi, Acciano, Any Rimada, Sodus Sicilian, any Bass, Pons or Axier fig, any great tasting fig.
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