So far, all of my cuttings, except the chicago hardy that I planted on 3/9/14, have begun to sprout One of the Hardy Chicago cuttings has only sprouted a little fig, but no leaves so far. In discussions on the internet I was informed that if I want to ensure that the fig trees make fruit in northern Virginia, I need to protect them for the winter. That is my plan for next fall. Before the first deep freeze, I plan to tie the fig tree's limbs together; cut a hole in the bottom of a plastic garbage bag; and slip it over the fig tree, bottom of the bag first. I will then fill the bag with leaves and tie it at the top to keep moisture out. If the tree is too tall for one bag, I will use two in the same manner, but tieing the bottom of the second bag to keep the leaves in. Finally I will mound mulch around the bottom of the tree. I will remove the protection after the last frost of the spring. Has any one in zone 7, almost 6, tried something like this?

She is cool. I liked the vid. I think the willow water may also be a fungicide.

First, welcome to the Propagation Forum. But next, posting links to a commercial blog (which yours seems to be) is against GardenWeb's TOS. If you missed that rule when you signed up, you may want to go back and review those documents. I have no personal experience with propagating the tree in question and I doubt many forum members do either. I would recommend a Google search using the proper scientific name. Assuming you have Ficus benghalensis, which is the species most commonly referred to as banyan fig, I'd review the search results at the link below. You could also try variations, but I think you'll find lots of info that way. Here is a link that might be useful: Google search for Ficus benghalensis propagate aerial root cutting

Vermiculite is winning, but it is still early. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Follow-Up Postings: RE: Fig propagation Posted by: girlfromtheGarden z5 Indy metro (My Page) on Sun, Mar 20, 05 at 0:13 Jon - great pics! how long (on average) were the cuttings' length inserted down into the vermiculite or perlite mix? I tried using longer cuttings this go-round for mine, probably anywhere from 3 1/2 to 5 inches. Wondered what you find roots best size-wise in your trials, or if other factors (like the mix used, or moisture level, or type of cutting) was more significant. (Don't you love the helpfulness of see-through rooting containers? I've recycled pop bottles, fast-food soft drink cups, anything that gives me a "window" to the root zone to double-check progress.) Sherry -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RE: Fig propagation Posted by: pitangadiego San Diego, CA (My Page) on Sun, Mar 20, 05 at 1:42 You can see how long the cuttings are above the rooting medium - many of the Davis cuttings this year were quite generous. I try to "bury" them almost to the bottom of the cup - so about 4ish inches. Interestingly, the vermiculite doesn't clump, so when I remove the rooted cutting from the rooting cup, most of the vermiculite falls away, revealing the roots. Some cuttings root only at the very bottom, some at a node further up, and some all over the cutting. Also, with several cuttings of the same variety, some have shown roots for two weeks or more, and some of the same variety, potted at the same time, still show no roots, even though they have leaves. Go figure. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- refrigeration Posted by: Joxo1990 CA (My Page) on Fri, Mar 25, 05 at 23:05 I was wondering if the refrigeration process was nesacery? I took cutting of my figs and stuck them directly into the ground, and I was hoping they would grow. I am still waiting on that though. So far they have not changed at all. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RE: Fig propagation Posted by: pitangadiego San Diego, CA (My Page) on Sat, Mar 26, 05 at 0:34 Joxo, I do not know, but a fellow that has been doing this for 30-40 years said this was his method, and I was having less that stellar success, so I went with it this year. I have planted some directly into pots, and sometimes they do OK, and other times it has been mostly a loss. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RE: Fig propagation Posted by: Georgia_Jack z7 GA (My Page) on Sun, Jun 19, 05 at 21:02 I've never tried to root anything but dormant cuttings before. However, I had to cut a path between two of my larger fig trees about three weeks ago. They were already leafed out and even had small figs on them. Short on time, but not wanting to waste the cuttings, I cut the limbs into 12-inch lengths, crammed about 25 of them into a large planter, filled it up with dirt from the garden, and placed it in the shade beside a water faucet. I've kept it watered and new leaves are sprouting out everywhere. Even a thumb-sized fig that I left on one looks healthy. Roots? Can't tell right now, but I'm optimistic. I hope to distribute some well-rooted plants to the local garden club that indicated an interest. At my lake place where I have a huge Celeste, I covered a foot or less of some low-hanging limbs with dirt and put a rock on them several weeks ago. When I uncovered them the other day, they looked like millipedes! Thoroughly rooted. I clipped them and gave them to a neighbor. That is definitely the surest way to root a fig. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RE: Fig propagation Posted by: Chills 6b (??) Mi (My Page) on Mon, Jun 20, 05 at 16:21 Re: Davis cuttings. The White Texas Everbearing 2 of three cuttings rooted out nicely as of this morning. I used dip-n-grow on these about 3 weeks ago. I've still got three other kinds that I've had in meduim for 3weeks to 7 weeks. One, maybe two, Celestes looks promising. Maybe one Golden Celeste too. Panachee not doing anything (as far as I've noticed) All are outside at this point, I'm hoping for a little warmth to cause the cuttings to start in earnest. ~Chills