Your fig, no doubt, has an infestation of true Whiteflies. They're easily killed--you might do a search to learn a little about them. Don't use dishwashing liquid full strength, of course, and don't apply it diluted in full sun or in the heat of the day (those are my few rules for sprays). Most any spray will damage plant material if sprayed under those conditions--if I were to spray at all, I'd do it after sundown, and give the plant plenty of time to recoup.

I feel it is best to grow citrus that are not readily available in stores. Obviously lemons and limes will do fine most places in the bay area. Variegated Eureka is an interesting choice with attractive foliage and unusual stripped fruit. Orange: Trovita does not require the same heat as most other orange cultivars. It is flavorful and does not have many seeds. Cara Cara Navel orange has pigmented fruit and is spoken of very highly by many people. Mine is very young and has yet to bear fruit. Mandarins: Kishu, Gold Nugget and most cultivars of satsuma are probably the best choices. Kishu and Owari Satsuma will ripen very close to one another. I highly recommend tasting satsuma before purchasing it. Many people love them, but I am not a big fan. I much prefer the flavor of the clementine-type mandarin. The Gold Nugget ripens in late winter/early spring and will keep on the tree through most of the summer. It also requires less heat than most mandarins. Blood orange: Moro is the most colorful and Tarocco is the most flavorful. Moro ripens consistently in this region. Tarocco needs more heat than Moro and may be a bit more spotty in its ability to fully ripen here. Oro blanco is a pommelo/grapefruit hybrid that requires much less heat than traditional grapefruits. Hope this helps. -Brett

No, you cannot use vegetable oil. You can find horticultural oils any place where gardening supplies and chemicals are sold. In the meantime, do some googling about 'hortucultural oils' and why they are so useful for the control of scale insects and the suppression of other pests. Scale insects can be a challenge to control. Whomever gave you this particular plant needs his/her glasses adjusted, lol. If these pests are on the leaves and stems......I'm just sayin.

But you didn't mention the flurries of little pure white insects that flutter out from the underside of the foliage when disturbed. I'm thinking you don't have whitefly. What about some pictures of the problem?