I'm in SW Louisiana. Celeste the only fig I have much experience with. It is good for eating or canning. It's the variety my grandparents grew and I started cuttings from their trees. You could look at the LSU varieties. I bought a Champagne this year from Petals from the Past Nursery. It makes a yellow colored fig.

Thanks wisner. Do you have any problems with insects or fungus with Celeste? From what I've read it has a closed ?pore? which is better for keeping ants out. Is this true?

My local nursery doesn't stock Celeste, so I'll have to hunt a little bit. Can you keep it a manageable size without hurting yield? Do you get a small harvest early and a bigger one later in the season?

Thanks so much for responding!

The Celeste has a closed eye. It helps keep out insects and moisture. I get one harvest from the end of June into mid July. You can keep it pruned but it will eventually be hard to keep it too small. I don't have any real problems except if we get excessive rainy periods the figs will split open and spoil on the tree. That happened this year and I lost about a week of harvest.

thanks. I think that this is the way I'll go.

I know one poster/forum member who grows "ALMA" with great success in Tallahassee, FL. in-ground.

If Root-Knot Nematodes are a problem, you may want to consider containerizing your fig tree(s). I use dollies under my 20 gallon containerized trees, and just roll them from place to place. If you do containerize, you will have to feed your trees often, root-prune every 3-4 years, and replant in new soil. You can do this for decades to come, and replant into the same, or slightly larger, container. A forum search for containerized fig trees will yield hundreds of postings on this subject.

Also Durio Nursery, in LA. lists figs that do well in the FL./LA. areas. If you decide to grow in a large container, and you have access to a large garage, or sheltered area free from rain, you will increase your choices of fig varieties. If you expect downpours, just roll your trees where it ain't raining. Rain is ONLY a problem when the figs start to ripen. Some fig varieties will split, and sour, when waterlogged by heavy rains.

Also check out "Dan's Cajun Fig Blog" for critiques on figs that will do well in the humid/rainy South-East, US.

Good luck, and hope this helps.

Frank

Frank,
Thank you. Extremely helpful. Will look into it right away.
-Brad