jFlowerman you really hit the right approach for having fruit trees in containers! !! What a huge difference!! We're in Norco Hills high up with cool breezy winds and hot summers! The black plastic big containers -- 15 to 25 gallons seemed big enough and are but the hot summer sun hitting the black plastic cooked the tree roots so I was dragging pots to bottom shade or wind protection... Then I discovered Paradise Nursery in Riverside and they sold us big boxes -- the ones nurseries use for trees ---wood is light blond so cooler and huge compared to the pots. We bought 3" casters at Home Depot screwed on the casters -one at each corner... four each box and now our trees are ultra healthy and I can slide them into shade or away from wind like magic! Zero effort!!! The nurseries grow the bigger trees in these boxes and my miniatures to standard are easy to prune, cool in the heat and Super attractive on the patio! Buying the soil will cost but getting half a yard for 22.00 for four boxes---plus the 18.50 per box-- is super cheap compared to whiskey barrels or bags of soil in black deco hot pots! And one can always fill boxes half way if desired! hope this helps!

Yeah, I'm still wondering about the avocados. I had trouble growing them in my back yard when I planted a tree in the ground because my soil does not drain properly, but there is an incredibly huge avocado tree just down the street from me. Anyway, I ended up planting one in a whiskey barrel planter so that I could control the drainage better, and it produces avocados. However, I noticed a few months ago that the soil level was lowered by about 6-8", and I thought the tree had used up all the soil. Last week we transplanted it to a new whiskey barrel planter, and what had happened was that the barrel had rotten at the bottom, and everything just sank down. The tree was not root-bound, but now it has a lot more new soil. Anyway, you can get avocados from trees in planters. Mine is a dwarf.

Hurray for pollinators! They are sensitive creatures who need our protection and appreciation, for sure!!! The point is, for some humans, the fig plant odor really is challenging!. A little undserstanding that we all have different sensory sensitivities, pleae. I am learning about neurodiversity and have graowing compassion for autistic people who struggle with what neurotypical people don;t even notice, such as loud music in stores and restaurants. A previos comment about how some people's urine smells strong after eating asparaus is a great example of how we cannot control these differences. This is not a dualistic debate about who is right and who is wrong about what a tree smells like; I can accept that for some people the smell is wonderful, and for some the smell is non-existent, and for some it is intolerable. Maybe our endangered pollinators are a warning to the rest of us that many of our modern ways are destructive to everyone - and the autistic or highly sensitive among us serve also as a warning.... When the most vulnerable among us suffer, we all ultimately suffer. Thank you to any who take the time to read my request for understanding that goes beyond fig trees, and especailly to those who grow in appreciation of our differences. :)

Thanks. I live in Sacramento, CA. What I'm looking for is a a twig that I can root, either a brown Turkey fig or a black Mission fig, or a small tree with roots on it that can be sent through the mail in California. I'm sure California doesn't allow fig trees to enter the state of California from outside of California. Since I'm an elderly non-driver, I have no way of taking a bus to a nursery and carrying a heavy tree in the bus, as most nurseries only have big, heavy trees. Any ideas for a solution? So far I didn't see any tiny trees for sale on Craig's list. Just thought I'd ask as I don't have any neighbors around here with fig trees. In the meantime, my 10-inch fig tree is sprouting, but the 2nd tree, the 4 foot one is still bare. I think the clay soil here has a drainage problem. Under the clay is potting soil. I've tried B-1. I'm hoping to find a small bag of compost. So far the big bags in the hardware store here are too heavy for my shopping cart. Thanks for all this great information, folks. Granny Annie