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Should I dig it up & pot it, or leave it alone?

18 years ago

I don't know much about figs, but I do know that it's not growing. This is a Celeste fig that I bought in May, 2004, and it has not grown at all. I bought my Dad one at the same time (from the same place), and his grew a couple of feet the first year (they've since moved, so I don't know the current size). It looks healthy, but just won't grow. When I bought it, it had quite a few figs on it, but last year it made less than 5. I don't know if it's just not happy where it is or what! It gets plenty of sun. For the first couple of years, it may not have gotten as much water as it needed, but it is now. I was having to haul jugs of water, but now it's accessble by hose, which makes the watering much easier! I'm trying to water deeply 2 or 3 times a week. We are having record high temps for April (in the mid 90s) and haven't had rainfall in recent (or distant) memory. We are officially in a drought. The last couple of summers have been drought conditions too, although we've gotten some rain through the winter.

Should I dig it up and pot it, or give it another year, given the change in watering. If I dig it up, can I grow it in a pot? If so, what size? Keep in mind that I'm in southern Louisiana, and fig trees usually get fairly large.

I appreciate any advice that some of you experts can give me. I'm really getting tired of looking at a fig tree that wants to stay 2 feet tall!

TIA,

Janet

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Comments (4)

gene_washdc
18 years ago
I'd probably lean towards finding a new spot for it -- but with highs in the 90s, it's not the best time to be moving it.

Figs in the ground generally don't need fertilizer, expecially N or any application after late spring, but you might giving that a try.

You might want to dig up a few roots to see if they appear normal or whether they have nodules, in which case it might be infected with nematodes (see this thread). Nematodes might explain its poor performance. If infested you might want to stick to potted figs (you'd need to buy a new plant, and use a commercial potting mix, and don't set the pot directly on the soil where the nematodes could migrate up.)
janet_la
Original Author
18 years ago
Thanks, Gene. Since it's still doing absolutely no growing, I don't really have a lot to lose if I move it and it doesn't make it. I think I'll dig it up and pot it and see what happens (and I'll buy another one at our Master Gardener plant sale next month, just in case!). We did have a "cool front" come through, so the temps are a little better.
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bjs496
18 years ago
Janet,

I second Gene's recomendation to dig up a few roots and check for nematodes. Dig a few inches down about a foot away from the trunk. If you have nematodes, the roots will look like a string of golden brown pearls.

~james
pitangadiego
18 years ago
I would fertilize it until it overdoses. I have had some figs that did not grow very much, and I have had to jump start them with what would be considered overfertilizing. I have a couple more newer figs which are going to get this treatment this year - a good handful or two every week. I am used to "dumping" fertilizer on my bananas, so a handful on a fig is nothing at all.

Do NOT fertilize a dry tree. Water it first, and then fertilize and water the fertilizer in the next day.

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