Hi all,

I was thinking about adding another fig to my small collection and wanted to crowd source for ideas :)

I'm in wilmington DE and have five plants at present, all in pots on my second story porch. If you saw my other post you've seen the two Prato plants. I also have two brown turkey (one a rooted clipping I'm gifting a friend) and a Celeste. I'm interested in a large fig. The turkey produces my biggest fruit so I was looking for something substantially larger. It would also be nice if it was a consistent producer and even cold/humid summer hardy, but I'm open to ideas.

Its spelled Preto not Prato.

When I first started collecting figs I was looking for the BIG ones but I found out that when it comes to figs, size doesn't matter, it all boils down to what you like and what will produce in your area.
If you're still looking for big figs then San Pietro from Joe Morle is large. It's about the size of an egg. Mine produced a few figs last year that were good but taste is very subjective. I covered it when it rained a lot because I wasn't sure if it would split but this year I'm letting mother nature do her thing so I'll find out if it splits.

Several large ones come to mind, Mega Celeste, Giant Blue Celeste and Stella pop in my head. Cucumber can be somewhat sizeable, as can Orphan. I have one called Bulls Balls which seem to be a very large Brown Turkey type. I'm guessing others will chime in with more to add to the list, it's kinda late and my brain isn't very functional. Keep in mind though that many folks feel the smaller ones are the tastiest. I'm not entirely convinced of that though as there are some really good figs of all different sizes. 

Stella?

I think JIN AO FEN is the biggest fig that I have seen. I have been eat one that more than 250 g last year.

I would say stella also but bigger is not always better.

Pied de Boeuf is very large but the taste isn't very good.

My 184-15 have weighed over 100 grams and taste is very good.  I brought several to Jon's recent Fig Fiesta and they enjoyed it.  Sequoia has produced an even larger fig but it's pretty mild tasting.

Maybe lsu thibodeaux?

Hi Tim,

You may try and order a small tree or cuttings of this fig...It should be available in the US.

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/abebereira-bebera-branca-a-fig-from-the-heaven-6481129

It is a Common type, an excellent fruit, very BIG, with super taste, sweetness and flavors
The only little snag I see, is that it ripens a bit late (September).

good luck

Francisco

Martin, I seem to have made that spelling mistake twice.  I feel like I've misspelled the name of my child.  
Francisco, Those pics are fantastic, what a beautiful fig.  I'll be looking for this variety.  I can't check now but maybe they're available at Encanto Farms?

Brent, yes Stella. I was just at Bill's Fig's Fig Festival and his Stellas were the largest figs I saw there. For comparison, my Vasilika Sika  has a similar shape and color to Stella and have all been fairly large, but his Stella fruits are easily twice the size. His trees are very large also, so they are mature and really kicking out fruit.

Hi Tim. Some of my largest figs have been Ficazzana. Vito

There's giant black german but I heard its not the best tasting

Colar breba about 120-150 grammes for me.

Sorry Barry, I was making the suggestion of Stella, but I have not had a ripe Stella yet so I added the question mark. I must have posted just a couple minutes after you did so did not see your post, lol.

Neither have I Brent. Unfortunately none of Bill's were ripe. I do have a tree though, so in time.  

Brent, Barry, I've read good things about Stella. I guess since you're both in my area the plants do well here? Dave, fantastic fig. The tennis ball is a good gauge for its size. I see also that you're in Connecticut. Can I assume the plants are hardy? How did they do with this seasons rain/heat/humidity? If the pics are from this season they're doing very well. My brown turkey started to swell yesterday. One of the figs is pretty sizeable. Ill have to toss it on the balance and see how much it weighs when ripe.

Another possibility is Emerald Strawberry.  Jon recently listed it as a choice for "fig of the day"... lots of info on the site about it, a recent thread is here:
http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/Fig-of-the-day-Emarald-Strawberry-08292013-6499613

I'm growing this one, but mine is a first year tree (bought cuttings from Jon this past winter).  The tree is growing nicely, but too young for me to report how it does for fruit in zone 5a.  It's reported to have great tasting rather large fruit.

Mike   central NY state, zone 5a

Vasilika Sika
[IMG]http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y467/Gold4Figs/IMG_20130825_015935_868_zpsb844bfe6.jpg[/IMG]Vasilika Sika 

[IMG]http://i1276.photobucket.com/albums/y467/Gold4Figs/IMG_20130825_020810_188_zpsf67a6c9e.jpg[/IMG]

[QUOTE=BLB]Several large ones come to mind, Mega Celeste, Giant Blue Celeste and Stella pop in my head. Cucumber can be somewhat sizeable, as can Orphan. I have one called Bulls Balls which seem to be a very large Brown Turkey type. I'm guessing others will chime in with more to add to the list, it's kinda late and my brain isn't very functional. Keep in mind though that many folks feel the smaller ones are the tastiest. I'm not entirely convinced of that though as there are some really good figs of all different sizes. [/QUOTE]

Barry,

I respectfully disagree with the Mega Celeste being a large fig. I have that tree and the fruit is medium to small. Could you be thinking of another Celeste?

I would say Fiorone De Ruvo, Zucchini, Capelas to name a few. All rare and "somewhat" hard to get.

Could be a case of mislabeling Rafed, but sure Mega Celeste gets to a good size

I planted a Beall in ground this spring that I started from a cutting in February 2012.  It grew two figs that were each the size of a medium/large plum.  Huge.  Not sure if this is typical, but this was my experience.  If you want more info you can see my website or send me an email or private message.

BLB, is it possible that Mega Celeste just gets big for a celeste type fig?  But may not be in fact large compared to other figs on the market?

Anything is possible Meghan, but I've been told by several knowledgeable fig growers that it is a pretty sizeable fig. I don't grow it though had a plant but gave it to a friend who wanted to grow large figs. It's also possible that Rafed's plant is still young and not producing full sized figs. Rafed, how old is your tree?  

Barry,

I don't remember when I got mine. Maybe 3 or 4 years ago? This is the first it produce plenty of fruit and ripen.

But here's a link below from a previous thread I started on the Mega Celeste.

http://figs4funforum.websitetoolbox.com/post/mega-celeste-6492176

It should be old enough for full sized figs then. They're pretty big but not really so bit to warrant Mega in the name. Big for Celeste though as Meghan suggested. Ok strike this one as a very large fig, I stand corrected.

It's all good, Barry.

I have some Zucchini, Capelas, Niagara, Nordland and Black Yugoslavian all starting to swell but the cold temps are really killing my hopes of them properly ripening.
Not to mention all are relatively large figs.

The San Giovanni and the Genovese are decent size. The GB is roughly the size of a tennis ball. But both definite keepers.
I know I have others but just can't think of them at this moment. Been a long day.

The Joe Morle Paradiso Genova produces very large figs, larger than a jumbo egg.  They have a lot of white pith at the neck or stem, and split at the neck when ripe, so I am not totally sold on this, but then again it is a first year tree so maybe it will change over time.