I bought paradisio and d'oro from him 2 years ago. Arrived in very nice shape, and were of decent size. Last year was the worst I can remember for figs in my area and that had an impact on all my trees not just these 2. The paradisio were large figs but not very good (The trees first year fruiting didnt help either). The D'oro grew nice but no figs last year. Both were in pots and believe it or not Morle said the reason the D'oro didn't fruit was because it was in too large a pot!

Thanks for your input. He told me not to change the pot to a very large one, that I should go 1 size up each year.

The FigMan

How large a container should be, or CAN be, depends on the 3-way relationship between plant mass, container size, and soil type, assuming correct watering habits. We often concern ourselves with "over-potting" (using a container that is too large), but "over-potting" is a term that arises from a lack of a basic understanding about the 3-way relationship noted, which should logically determine appropriate container size(s).

It's often parroted that you should only move up one size in containers when "potting-up". The reasoning is the soil will remain wet too long and cause root rot issues, but it is the size/mass of the material and soil type/composition that determines both the upper & lower limits of appropriate container size - not consecutive volume progression.

Plants grown in slow soils need to be grown in containers with smaller soil volumes so that the plant can use water quickly, allowing air to return to the soil. This (smaller soil volumes) and the root constriction that accompanies it will cause plants to both extend branches and gain o/a mass much more slowly - a bane if rapid growth is the goal - a boon if growth restriction and a compact plant are what you have you sights set on.

Conversely, rampant growth can be had by growing in very large containers and in very fast soils where frequent watering and fertilizing is required - so it's not that trees rebel at being potted into very large containers per se, but rather, they rebel at being potted into very large containers with a soil that is too slow and water-retentive.

We know that there is an inverse relationship between soil particle size and the height of the PWT in containers. As particle size increases, the height of the PWT decreases, until at about a particle size of just under 1/8 inch, soils will no longer hold perched water. If there is no perched water, the soil is ALWAYS well aerated, even when the soil is at container capacity (saturated).

So, if you aim for a soil (like the gritty mix) composed primarily of particles >1/16", there is no upper limit to container size. The lower size limit will be determined by the soil volume's ability to furnish water enough to sustain the plant between irrigations. Bearing heavily on this ability is the ratio of fine roots to coarse roots. It takes a minimum amount of fine rootage to support the canopy under high water demand. If the container is full of large roots, there may not be room for a sufficient volume of the fine roots that do all the water/nutrient delivery work and the coarse roots, too. You can grow a very large plant in a very small container if the root have been well managed and the lion's share of the rootage is fine.

Al