I buy wht. Marseilles figs from a friend -- in her rented house here is a bush type wht marseilles, which according to her, she cut it to near ground each year and it always come back next year. She lives in Mount Ephraim, NJ, zone 7a. Quite proliferating type, I would say.

HU,

Thanks for the information. It's encouraging. My niece in the Richmond, VA area wants to grow fig trees in ground, so I'm trying to determine which varieties will do the best there with no winter protection. I came up with White Marseilles, a young tree I have in a 10 gal. pot, that's just starting to crop for me, as a good starting point for her.

Moses

You know white Marceille has the reputation of being “the favorite fig“ of Thomas Jefferson, who promoted its spread in VA 200 years ago. So there is no more fitting figs than white Marceille for a niece in VA!

HU,

Yes, I did know that. Some say that the stock of White Marseilles sold in commerce, here in the USA today, is descended from the White Marseilles that Thomas Jefferson brought back with him from a trip to Europe.

My concern, however, is that did TJ's White Marseilles flourish and produce good yearly crops? I suspect our founding father may have greenhouse grown his White Marseilles.

Well, it's worth a try, nothing ventured, nothing gained. The worst that can happen is the tree outright not survive, die over winter, which I would rather it do, than limp along for years, not doing much, but not dying, trying the patience of a novice gardener, my niece.

Thanks, HU, for your input.

Moses

Is White Marseilles same like Italian Honey ?

Thanks.

Anna,

I have read that Italian Honey is another of its names.

Moses

Moses, so Marseille has more strains and one of them is Italian Honey, is that what you have read ?

Anna,

What I have read is that Italian Honey Fig is another name for White Marseilles. However, I believe there are a number of different light colored figs that have a honey like sweetness, that go by the name Italian Honey Fig. I suspect there are many different light colored fig varieties from Italy (It's a big country of avid gardeners!), that go by the generic name Italian Honey Fig.

ALso, since White Marseilles is supposed to be a French fig, yet is also called Italian Honey Fig, figs that produce light colored, honey sweet fruit no matter where in the world they come from, are probably automatically called Italian Honey Figs by some people. Confusing, isn't it?

Moses

Susan,

Thank you for the advice. I suspect the additional care of a winter wrap for a couple years will not be provided by my niece. She is not an avid gardener, more of a 'limited effort,' gardener. Perhaps a different fig variety like a Mt. Etna variety, or no fig at all would be best. My White Marseilles is really coming on, and I don't want to find out it died, or limped along due to neglect.

Moses

moses, i;d go for a mount etna in that case.

perhaps she could just dump some mulch on it in winter. the nice thing about etnas is that they will produce a crop after die back to the ground.

i protect mine anyway, just because i like crops of hundreds of figs n you won't get that after total die back, at least in a young plant.

after she tastes a perfectly ripened etna, she may be more willing to give it some care.

Susan,

Thanks for your input. I will scrap my plans for giving my White Marseilles to my niece. Of these three, Violet de Bordeaux, Petite Negra, or Little Miss Figgy, which do you believe would most likely produce well, unprotected in the Richmond, VA area? Or, are there any varieties you know of other than a Mt. Etna fig, that will thrive and produce well for my niece without winter protection?

Moses

may i ask why you say ''other than a mount etna''?

you might talk to mountainfigs , he has trialed dozens of figs unprotected

Susan,

Of my little pot orchard the most mature trees that I believe could be tip hardy over winter without protection are those three. I would like to give my niece the most mature tree I have so that she would be encouraged to get into figs. The three I asked you about are the most likely candidates for winter hardiness that I have. All the others are definitely not good candidates because of their tenderness to winter, which trait is irrelevant to me since I overwinter all my figs in my fruit cellar.

Thanks for your recommendation of Mountain Figs. I will follow through with your lead.

Moses

you are welcome.

note that your collection is incomplete without an etna.

i have 5 because of the quality of the fruit.