Fantastic pictures, eatmoreyeah! Thanks for sharing - It's really nice to see the ripened figs on the trees - like walking through your garden with you!
Picking a dozen fresh Black Madeira daily? I wish I had THAT to deal with, not to mention everything else you've got going on :) Malta Black keeps calling to me in all it's strawberry-jammy glory! And I was assuming black pepper when I saw "Pepper Fig Jelly", but Jalapeno's + Figs = Take a Walk on the Wild Side!!!
Keep them coming & Keep Growing,

We planted this Vine last September. . .
 

11 Months of Southern California Sun later and. . .
 

I thought it would take at least a few years to fill up the trellis, now I wish I'd built it 3 times larger - Haha! Time to expand :)
The vine only has about 10 fruit on it right now, but I'm sure I've got the hang of manual-pollinating now aa 15 new ones are coming along! Plus I hit the 15 flowers that have opened in the past 2 days so I'm hoping it will be LOADED soon.
My kids love the sweet & sour tangy flavor of them and say the crunchy seeds remind them of pomegranate seeds :)

 

 

Anyone have any success hand-pollinating these?

Keep Growing, 

Vista

Show and Tell :)

These are 2 Vistas that started as 1-gallons from Jon at Encanto Farms last Fall. I'm waiting for them to get stronger before they get transplanted in-ground. We've already enjoyed a handful of figs from this super variety and I could taste the "strawberry jam" others have described. However, a fruit sample from the MotherTree at Encanto blew me away with its richness of flavor - It proves this Fig Tree just gets better with age!

The story goes that this was originally a mislabeled Black Mission(?) - so it could have ended up just ANY where in ANY yard. Thankfully Jon found it and has done well spreading it around!

I noticed even though it's young it didn't drop leaves during our mild winter (no lower than 33 F). Here is #1 in early February this year with Fall leaves intact:

Here is #1 now:
 

 

Here is #2 now (main growth tip was accidentally severed too early):
 

 

 

1st fruit from Vista on 7/17/2014:

 

 

Interesting Vista info reposted from  hermansur:

"Vista is not Violette de Bordeaux,but a Hybrid of Mother Violette with father Unknown?.

It clearly show that is related to Mother Violette de Bordeaux but is far from been Identical.

It could be better or worse but is not identical.

In California, Mother of any common cultivar makes female flowers,and if Male polen is nearby by any meaNS A FRUITwith viable seeds will grow.

Out of that one fruit more than 200 plants can be grown.

One third is usually common females plants that will fruit and persist like mother tree.

Most grow out to be way inferior to mother tree in fruit quality,but sometimes one baby plant could be very close in fruit quality to mother tree.

And very rarely(one plant in 5000),can be just as good as mother tree tho not identical as a Specimen,and having other different desirable qualities.

Well Vista seem to be that one baby New Hybrid selection,of, Violette, selected by someone for it's qualities."

Good info to know, Thanks hermansur!

Keep Growing, 

Hey Gang!

It's been a while since I last posted. . . and this seems like a 'bummer' day on the Forum :(

I first must apologize for "Falling off the face of the Fig Earth"!  I was Hot & Heavy for this Forum for the several months after I first "discovered" it last year, but a new job and other changes led me away from regular reading/posting.

Still, I would read a few topics when I'd wander over from Jon's Varieties page. Surprisingly my love and interest in figs and "exotic" fruits & vegetables has only grown (Pun Intended)!

I must also admit I've gloriously killed nearly ALL cuttings I have acquired through trade/purchase/friendship on this Forum but I chalk it up to the Learning Experience and still enjoyed the process of trying! If you sent me cuttings - sorry, I tried my best!!! We still have some to nurture that are past the "infancy" stage :)

Reasons I felt I'd post:

#1 - I signed up for the 2nd Annual Fig Fiesta in San Diego- YAY! Just a few weeks away! Earlier this week I got the itch to contact Jon and visit Encanto Farms Nursery to pick up a few fine specimen Figs. I had wanted to get down there in the Spring but it didn't happen and I missed his whole spring cuttings sale and everything! So  eventually I got down there, reserved my seat for the Party in person and we had some spirited Fig Talk! I am excited to be attending because I just barely missed the 1st one last September and STILL regret it - Haha!

#2 - I began a renewed interest in reading this Forum again with the Fiesta coming up and getting up-to-date on the Fig World. . .

Only to find members blowing up this Forum with a lot of Personal Garbage!!! Spill-over from public and private conversations - just plain ugly!!! But who needs preaching to the choir? You've all lived it :( Very sad to see people leaving.

I wish we could all remember what 'Mom' taught us:

"If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all"

2 cents: This Forum is a Valuable Collective Resource that none of us 100% owns (Jon if anyone, he set it up & maintains it) and it contains a lot of experienced folks' information and insight through history archives and in real-time. Imagine if tomorrow the Figs4Fun website was COMPLETELY GONE!?!?!? No Forum!?!? No Varieties Section!?!? What a Waste that would be!

It's awful to watch this Forum abused for personal/egotistical reasons. Even if only a fraction of the 4,000+ members are actively posting and responding - many more look on and gain from this Forum in various immeasurable ways also.

When I myself joined, I couldn't believe the Friendship and Graciousness I encountered with every member that I contacted or contacted me. I was/am thoroughly convinced that Fig People are Great People! "Great" in the sense of friendly, caring, respectful, helpful, sharing, giving - all the best qualities. And I believe all those wonderful things are still very much here and intact if everyone just gets back to the fact that Figs Are For Fun (Figs4Fun, right!?)

With so many problems already in Our World to deal with, why needlessly add more, right?

Peace & Love!

See you at the Fiesta! 

'Keep Growing!'

Dave C. & Family, Temecula, CA - Zone 9b

Here are some Figs for those still reading:

Today's edible "Harvest" from our little Paradise. . .

(from left) Flanders, Peter's Honey, Kadota

Taste:

Flanders = Melon like honeydew mixed with cantaloupe, sweet and maple-y with hint of nut perhaps (walnut?), not much crunch and fairly thin skin.

Peter's Honey = Watermelon with some honey sweetness!!! I laughed out loud! My wife tried it too and she also said "Watermelon!" Juicy with some crunch and medium-thin skin. Watermelon in a Fig, I still can't believe it! :)

Kadota = A day or two away from ripe so not very juicy but had hints of light-melon, a nice crunch and fairly thick skin.

What a Fig List!!!
What a Feeding Frenzy!
Where to start? How about one of everything?
Only in my dreams - Haha! :)