I got back from a weekend in sunny Florida to find that my sons did not bring in the mail with fig cuttings. I got home after a night that got down to -9. Is there ANY chance for these cuttings? When we got home this afternoon the temp was a balmy 20F

Scrape a little of the bark and check for bright green cambium.

wow -9 I guess you'll have to wait and see whats happens after you try to root them. chances are the cuttings are still green but that don't mean the plant tissue hasn't been damaged by the cold. if they make it you got very luck and if they fail........ I hope you at least had a good time in FL.  you said sons, as in more than 1 and neither checked the mail? No phone no xbox and no friends over for a month should teach them to check the mail :) but boys will be boys I have 4 little boys and I've had fig trees ran over by bikes, crushed while playing football and pot's knocked over by runaway basketballs. and that's just a short list of damage to my plants :) don't let me get started on what all they've done to the house, cars, and greenhouse!!

ouch.. were those the Dominick cuttings?  I'm anxiously awaiting mine.  My mailbox was frozen shut Saturday so I don't know if they tried to deliver any mail or not.  I'm guessing not.

Never hurts to try.

Since the cuttings were in an enveloppe, wrapped and protected by the wind in the mailbox, I would give them a chance and try to root them. Who knows?

Here in Central Texas, the temperature rarely goes down to 18 F. Perhaps last year the weather was milder than other years as I left two cuttings outside all winter under the canopy on the patio and they both rooted. They had some relative wind protection. One, rooted and pushed some new growth at least two months earlier than the other one. I would water them a bit approximately once every couple of weeks as not to allow the soil to get too dry.

I like to be a glass half full kind of guy, but I'm thinking this is a pretty grim prognosis. Unless these are cuttings from the Antifreeze fig that is.

New growth may also depend on how healthy the scions are
concerning stored energy in the wood. Also, below freezing temps
are just that, whether it's 30 degrees or zero degrees. Branches
on the trees are frozen, too, but come back come spring. Keep them
dormant in the fridge until then.

keep it away from moisture and let it warm up in dry room temp. if you keep that in air tight location with moisture like inside of ziploc bag with moss or paper towel, there is greater chance of rot and mold. once it's warmed up and looks well, clean it and try rooting it. 

At least you have the cuttings, there was member whose family member decided to get rid of his bundle of "sticks" while they were away....as long as you have them there is hope..good luck I'll send warm wishes your way.

I think they are toast.

I was thinking that a slow thaw would be better so I put them in the refrigerator to thaw. I was hoping to wait a while to start all my cuttings as I don't have enough lights for cuttings and seed starting, but I think I should start these now. I will keep y'all posted.

i don't use any artificial lights. i keep my cuttings in a room with south facing window. they get minimal light. however, they do fairly well. last yr, i think the survival rate was over 80% or so. few died due to over watering, and taking them out of humidity bin too quick. but light was not a major issue. they do grow leggy since strong light is not present. ones that made to early spring all went into 1 gal and to outside had no issue afterwards. 

Edible,

I have 6 of them, but the youngest is 18. I was just happy everything was still standing when I got home. I gave up long ago trying to have a "normal" house. I kept saying that when my kids are grown I can put pictures on the walls without having them knocked off, etc.. Now all I care about is that they come home alive!

[QUOTE]I have 4 little boys and I've had fig trees ran over by bikes, crushed while playing football and pot's knocked over by runaway basketballs. and that's just a short list of damage to my plants :) don't let me get started on what all they've done to the house, cars, and greenhouse!![/QUOTE]

Go ahead and root them.  There's a good chance they've still got life in them.  I've had lots of cuttings that froze, thawed, and then rooted.  One thing about this:  if they're going to freeze, they seem to do better if shipped dry, rather than moistened.

So some friendly advice for those who ship cuttings to/from frozen locales:  If you're shipping cuttings in the frozen months (and they won't encounter some hot place while en route), consider shipping them "dry" in a plastic bag.  Or if you feel you must moisten them, keep it very minimal.  If you put them in a plastic bag and squeeze most of the air out, they won't die from dryness all that quickly.  (Obviously this is different in hotter months/locales).

Mike   central NY state, zone 5a

There's no reason not to try to root them.  I bet they do ok.

I've had many dormant cuttings accidentally freeze solid.  They rooted fine and are nicely growing trees.

There is a huge difference between frozen say 30 degrees and -9.  On the plus side you will know pretty quickly either way once you get them in moss.

milehighgirl I dread the day mine turn young adults and I'm up waiting on them worrying if they are okay. at there age now I know where they are at all times.  
Although they destroy 75% of everything we own and I can't get them to do shit, they are my everything and wouldn't trade my life for the riches of the world.
Good luck with the cuttings I hope they make it.

[QUOTE=WillsC]There is a huge difference between frozen say 30 degrees and -9.  On the plus side you will know pretty quickly either way once you get them in moss.[/QUOTE]

True.  But they may not have actually gotten down to -9.  And cuttings from an already dormant tree top will do much better at low temperatures than green wood would do.  Also, in my experience, the number of times they pass through the range of 28F - 32F matters quite a lot too (going in either direction).  The freeze/thaw is where a lot of the damage happens, so if they only cycled there once, they really may be OK.  And I like her idea of a "slower thaw" (in the fridge) as well.

So milehighgirl, give them a try.  And please do let us know how it all turns out.  You could post the result right here in this thread, OK?

Mike   central NY state, zone 5a   (we get a lot of freezing weather here)