What a 30 year old neglected fig tree looks like
Here is a fig tree in Port Richey, FL that is by the owner's admission totally neglected. It's about 30 years old and has never been fertilized, pruned, or even watered
There must be two hundred figs on the tree right now. The nice lady tells all passersby to just stop and help yourselves to all you want any time. Sweet deal for me! Seems to be Brown Turkey variety. Rust on leaves, but so what. This tree answers the question of whether the brown rust on leaves will hurt the tree or limit the fruit. Not always!
So maybe there is hope for fig tree growers... let it grow long enough, and just maybe it will begin to bear lots of fruit.
Comments (13)
centurion_
11 years agobudbackeast
11 years agoHi Centurion,
Yes, the difference in appearance is remarkable. I'm guessing that the top is suffering from drought. We're getting tropical rains this week, but it's been a rough year. I figure the top half of the tree has been damaged by the sun and the heat and the drought.
Still, it is one huge tree, just loaded with fruit.
Try to count the figs in this one photo. The whole tree is like this. I am so impressed, as my little trees have given me less than twenty ripe figs all year. But wait- I am given permission to go eat this lady's figs any time I want!
It's a good year. A very good year.
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How to prune old neglected apple tree - need advice
Comments (16)I am well aware of what modern day experts recommend. I disagree. I have experimented for 40 years on every kind of tree in my yard. An open wound, like all unsealed drying wood, cracks. Water enters the cracks along with debris and causes rot. Bugs find the moist rotting environment enjoyable and take up residence. Next thing you know you have one of those trees that are all hollow in the heart. The experts say the tree shuts the wound off and everything's Ok. Well if you don't care how long the tree's life span is and it just has to live as long as you do, Ok, otherwise, it's crap! Just like collar cuts. Under the right conditions, with a branch at a good horizontal angle, they're great, but not every situation is ideal and when you have three or four branches intersecting a crotch to remove it's going to take close cuts and sculpting with chisels to get cuts that will drain and heal and not rot. Keep in mind, these new methods are designed for todays professionals who must temper perfection with time is money. Sterilization takes time. Reworking the cut with hand tools takes time. Periodically inspecting and renovating the wound takes time. Properly treating the wound takes time and an improperly dressed wound is worse than no dressing at all. If you can come up with a reasonable compromise then you have saved a lot of time, therefore, money. None of this applies to the home orchardist. He can do a little at a time and do it right. Remember, these same experts are the ones who prune maples in March along our highways and byways, instead of waiting until just after bud break which would promote an almost immediate callus to form, and no bleeding. Lastly, fruit trees seem to be about the slowest to heal and the most prone to fungal diseases, so any precaution, no matter how time consuming is warranted. Methods like clean, close cut and wound dressing were developed over thousands of years by the people who developed most of our fruit and nut cultivars from wild, inedible plants, the Chinese and the Italians. Even if my own experiments hadn't convinced me, I'd still ere in favor of the ancients!...See MorePruning my Neglected Fig Tree
Comments (3)That tree will always be leggy and upright growing in that location. Pruning to half the size means cutting all the major branches at 8 feet from the ground. You won't have many figs next year, then succeeding years will produce more inconvenient figs. You might try putting weights on the new post-pruning growth and force the branches to grow sideways....See MoreWhat a 2 year old, undisturbed bin looks like
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11 years agobudbackeast
11 years ago
noss
11 years agoTiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
11 years agobudbackeast
11 years agoHey purpleinopp,
The largest fig tree I ever saw was in Spartanburg, SC about 20 years ago. Loved living there. Just some guy's front yard, but the tallest, bushiest, healthiest and most fruitful tree. But I must say... yours is one awesome tree.
I have two Chicago Hardy trees here which are both 3 years old. In the spring of 2011, I took a cutting and potted it and gave it to the FedEx guy. This morning, I went to his house to fix his dishwasher, and there was my former cutting. He said that last year, he got about 40 figs. Heck, the mother plant only gave me about 15 of them. Here is the FedEx guy's tree today:
No mulch, some weeds. Just dirt. Doing great!Whatever you are doing, just keep doing it!
sueanne777
9 years agoThis fig tree is 25 years old and still producing. Have another one in front of it the same size, It is between two houses so is protected from winds. Do thin them out for air circulation and picking. Fertilize them starting in Feb when they get new leaves. Each tree fruits at different times. Gives me time to prepare them for freezing and sharing.
Bradybb WA-Zone8
9 years ago
dirtguy50 SW MO z6a
9 years agosueanne777
9 years agoLive in Central Florida so the trees get enough chill time and plenty of sunny days to produce. Have a well for irrigation so the leaves stay green. Fertilizing does help keeping them producing.
budbackeastOriginal Author