Acquired a sad fig tree, help?

7 years ago

Hi everyone! I recently acquired a fig tree from a girlfriend who is moving from our current city. I have a pretty green thumb and I have everything from succulents to a very thriving fiddle leaf fig among many other plants in every room in my house. I was thinking about repotting to 5-1-1 and putting this guy in a terra cotta pot. This thing does have a drainage hole but he's been pretty abused over the past year. I know most of the basics that I'll take care of next week when I get back from vacation, but where should I begin after new soil and a new pot. Any recommended size pot? I don't know the size it's in now off the top of my head. It's apparently always leaned like that. Where should I prune to get him more...treelike? Any advice would be very very helpful! Should I just try to root a branch? I bought some highly rated rooting hormone to try on my fiddle leaf to make some babies.

Looking forward to hearing from you all! I hope I can make him less sad!

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Christina M (zone 10a)
Original Author

7 years ago

I love all of your enthusiasm for this!! She got it from Home Depot in Houston on sale for $9 last year. That is about the extent of what she knows about it! She offered it up to me because she knows I've already turned my house into a jungle in the past 8 months or so.

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Comments (7)

Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b
7 years ago
Your tree looks like it already has a couple branches you could train to be a lead branch. I'd clip off the leaning one, but not till it goes dormant. Many figs are grown in bush form with many trunks. That looks like what you currently have. You could do an air layer or two on that leaning branch and get a couple babies. Figs are tough, and the only thing to remember is they like well drained soil and no wet feet. Think of their natural environment. They come from Mediterranean climates. Hot and Dry. That is their favorite conditions in which to thrive, but they are also like weeds and will pretty much grow anywhere. Quality of fruit can be affected depending, though.

Size is up to you. The bigger the pot, the bigger the tree, the more figs.

Good luck to you!
baldeagleomelette
7 years ago
I would just air layer clones in new pots. That tree looks tore up from the floor up. Stick the leading branch through a pot of soil and in a month or two you'll have something in a fresh pot of dirt.
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Christina M (zone 10a)
Original Author
7 years ago
I'd love to say that you guys are sooo helpful! I thought I already knew a lot, but this air layering is new to me. I've heard about it, but now I'm reading into it. Do any of you know specifically what kind of tree this is? Is it a Brown Fig? I've only googled a little bit.
baldeagleomelette
7 years ago
At that age it is guesswork telling what type fig it is, since leaves vary so much on a tree. Still I like to guess, I'm going to say some type of white fig based on the soft roundness of most of the leaves.
Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b
7 years ago
Why not ask your friend where she got it? That might give you a clue. There are hundreds of fig varieties out there! One tree can show 3 shapes of leaves!! I have many such trees! It's crazy for sure! The only way we can ID your fig is if you wait for one to get dead ripe (It's drooping, soft, showing color, and almost falls off into your hand) Then you take a photo of it on it's leaf with a quarter next to it for size comparison, cut it open and take another photo, then describe the flavor. MAYBE we can decide which of the hundreds of varieties you have.
Actually, you probably have a common one that anyone can purchase at a big box store, but if your friend got this as a cutting from a Greek relative, sky is the limit.

Watch the leaf joints for a little bump. That will be where a figlet appears. Is your tree to small to have figlets? Maybe, but figs often produce their first year.

The eye of a fig can often indicate the color inside. If it's reddish, it will usually be a reddish color. Brownish, sort of a bronze color. The outside can be green forever and then suddenly turn violet or yellow, or just stay green. Most dark figs will show their dark color earlier. They will be reddish then turn purple then black. or not. LOL!!
Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b
7 years ago
I'll guess it's a Brown Turkey. BIG figs! Remember figs love sunshine!