Planting Certain Figs in ground for zone 7
Dennis AKA Snaglpus
14 years ago
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figsin7b
14 years agoDennis AKA Snaglpus
14 years agoRelated Discussions
Planting Figs in ground zone 5 Ohio
Comments (13)Joe, Just read some of your questions. A five gallon bucket might be a little too small. Sooner or later it will hold your trees back. Better to convert a 18-gallon storage tub by adding drainage holes along the bottom SIDES of the tub, and fill it with a quick draining mix. Plant your tree in this, and you will be good for 4-5 years. Containerized trees MUST have there roots pruned every 3-5 years, and potted back up with new growing mix. You can still use the original, 18 gallon container indefinitely, as long as it is in good condition. Home Depot sells these storage tubs for less than $10.00. They are also straight-sided, so, take up less room when storing. If you group four containers together into a square, a fifth container can be stacked on top where all four corners come together. Saves space. (Use a dolly to roll the trees around. Dollies prevent hernias). An unheated garage will probably be warmer than outside, and the killing, drying, winds will not be a problem. Try to do whatever it takes to avoid the deep, hard freezing around containerized roots. Maybe a thermostatically controlled heater can come on just to keep the trees above freezing....heating cables around the tubs...small light bulbs under each tub...large cardboard boxes, inverted over each tub will hold/trap residual warmth from the cement floor...etc. It depends on how many trees you will plant to store. Even very low-wattage Christmas lights woven around the tubs will help with the warmth, and only costs a few cents a month to use. When growing season arrives, you can place the containerized trees into a shallow hole, container and all, and pile mulch up the sides of the containers. Roots will eventually grow out of the SIDE HOLES of your tubs, then into the ground. Your trees will love the extra, root room in the cool soil. You can run a sharp spade down and along the sides of your tubs when it turns cooler, and time to store the figs in the garage once again. If you drill drainage holes into the flat, bottom section of the tub, wandering roots will be impossible to sever with a spade without a lot of back-breaking digging. Growing your fig trees will be easy. Keeping them alive, and undamaged, from year to year, not so much. You will be able to do it without any problems if you plan for the harsh winters. Your unheated garage will be an asset, and will save your trees. Grow in containers and do the "fig shuffle". Bring trees into, and out of, storage like many other fig fanatics. Like I said....Zone-5 Ohio ain't sunny, Greece. Good luck. Frank...See MoreHow often are you getting decent breba crops in ground zone 7 DC?
Comments (5)I'm not sure if you're likely to see them except in these very warm winters, from what I've seen and heard. No matter how many brebas form in the fall, only a very mild winter will allow them to overwinter successfully; I don't see it happening on older trees any more than younger ones but will start keeping better tabs on this. I don't think we've been seeing these kinds of winters with any great frequency in the past; time will tell if they happen more regularly in the future. The winter prior to this one the temperature was in the low single digits, and that is more typical for the overall climate. I had some breba fruit on several of my young (2-3 years old) trees this year and found it to be less than exceptional compared to the main crop fruit I've been getting, for whatever it's worth. It may be variety dependent to some extent....See MoreMeyer lemon in ground in zone 7b?
Comments (16)Hi Parker, that’s interesting you mention grafting to another rootstock. There is actually a type of citrus tree directly next to the area I’d like to plant. I don’t know if it is wild, or was planted by previous owners (+ 12 years ago). It has the trifoliate (sp?) type leaf and produces two or three perfectly golf ball sized inedible fruit. It is the thorniest tree I have ever seen, so I just prune it to six feet tall or so, to keep it neat looking. The southern blight had no effect on it. So I suppose this might be a sign that a citrus rootstock may be able to survive - I could plant the original which is grafted. Thanks....See MoreIn ground figs, zone 7, I'm underwhelmed
Comments (12)For Zone 7, it would be much better to keep them in pots and shelter them in an unheated garage or shed for the winter. They will die to the ground with your winters. Just a freeze won't kill the stems, but sustained sub freezing weather will. I am in Zone 8a, north Texas and all of mine died to the ground last winter. For Sherry, North Alabama is right on the border of Zones 8a and 7b, so she likely has some better winters. Being in the South, you will also see longer summers. Zone 7 is a large area, and depending on where in Zone 7 you are, you may end up with longer seasons or shorter seasons. This will determine if the fruit would ripen for you or not. If you are in Zone 7 CT, you have a much shorter growing season and i would not recommend Figs at all. You will also want to check on any micro climates that you have. up against a southern facing wall you could have a nice micro climate that allows you to grow figs in the ground. When I lived in Zone 5 NE, I planted some chicago hardy figs against the south wall of my house, and it provided shelter from the north winds, warmed the soil faster, and avoided the early frosts. Because of this, i was able to get a harvest from the Chicago hardy figs. Figs peaking really depends on variety. My Olympus were peaking in late August, while my Ischia are peaking now. I have one other variety that is producing and those won't be ripe until October. Speaking to Chicago Hardy, you must be careful with these, I ordered some from the same mail order store as the ones i planted back in NE, but the ones i got here in TX were much smaller fruits and no where near as tasty. So some places will send you a Chicago Hardy type of fig, not necessarily a proper named Chicago Hardy fig (I hope this makes sense). Correct, anything that hasn't ripened by frost will die. Also, do not pic figs too early, they do not continue to ripen after being picked. Once you pick it, it is as good as it will ever be. Make sure that the fig is soft, and that it is nicely drooping on the plant when you pick it, that is the best way to tell when they are ready....See Moretoken28001
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14 years agoDennis AKA Snaglpus
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