Ciao Vern. I was interested in this post. My best friend is Japanese/Chinese who came to Pennsylvania from Hawaii a few years back. I asked her about the Japanese fig. She said her family never had figs, ever. Actually, the first fig she tried was from me. A relative of mine said that Marco Polo took figs to China when he was there some time ago. I guess maybe they found their way to Japan eventually from the Mediterranean somehow. I also heard that some japanese figs were burned or confiscated during the war times for anti-Japanese sentiment after Pearl Harbor or something, don't quote me, but this is the jist of what I heard. As far as the growing zone, my friend Hiroko goes to Japan on occasion and said the temps in Japan are not unlike that of Pennsylvania, cold winters warm summers. I would imagine they would have a range of temps and zones there, but would think it would be anywhere from 5-7. I know this didn't help, but maybe something for us to start out. Take care, Ciao, Maggie

Ciao, thanks for the information. What your Japanese friend said about the temps in Tokyo were similar to what my friend said that temps there were like like Arkansas. That would be about what you suggested(6-8). If I get the cutting to live I want to plant it out side. I am not wild about dragging potted fig pots around.

My friend's mother is the last granddaughter of a shogan. Some where in the family they were in shipping. There is a fig tree down by the docks that came from Turkey. This white fig as you suggested my have also been one from that area.

Something interesting she told me that has nothing to do with figs, but I am going to tell it anyway. Her mother's husband died with out giving her a male heir. She wanted to adopt one of her grandsons. None of her grandsons wanted to be her heir. She ended up adopting a great grandson. So my friend's great nephew is now her brother.

Vern

So interesting the different cultures and how they went about doing things. My friends father was so upset not to have a male heir. It was so important to him, but as he died, he finally told his girls he loved them and so forth. Very hard family life my friend had to grow up in. My friend is descended from Samurai she said her relations guarded kings or something, I will have to ask her more questions about that when she comes over tonight for our weekly Domino Match/game. My friends family on the Chinese side was rich shipping merchants. When her mother and father fell in love ect, the Chinese side disowned her mother for marrying a Japanese, disowned her family and never got a penny. Never even got acknowledged. Anyway, I will be curious to see what your fig is like, I absolutely never really heard of Japanese figs, may have came somewhere else, but like my friend said, That wouldn't be something you would find too often with their cuisine or what they would be growing. Very interesting. Ciao

Let us know how it goes for you, your cutting. I want to see what it looks like oneday. Ciao

Ciao, I will keep you posted on how the Japanese fig cutting turns out.

Vern

According to a study done by the Hawaii Ag Dept almost all of the commercial plantings of figs in Japan were lost in a typhoon in 1960. Most of these orchards were owned by JA, a Japanese agricultural cooperative. They have since developed a new method of growing figs, horizontally rather than bush or tree form, to avoid another catastophy like 1960. All of their orchards grow only one variety of fig, Masui-Dauphine, which is known in America by the name California Brown Turkey, and 98% of all commercial fig enterprises in Japan use this fig. Several other varieties are grown in smaller quantities, and one of these is White Genoa. Could this be the fig of your friend?

Elder, I do not know if this fig cutting is a White Genoe. I do have a White Genoa in my fig orchard. If this cutting mades it to a tree I will know if it is a match. I will ask my friend how long her mother has had this fig tree in her yard the next time I see her. Maybe she can shed some more light on her mother's fig tree.

Vern

Can you describe the leaf? Just about all the figs here are indeed Dauphine, but I managed to root a cutting from one I passed in the street in Tokyo with very different leaves. The owner said to me very firmly 'It is a Japanese fig!'I'm waiting to see the fruit!

Ashita

Origin: The fig is believed to be indigenous to western Asia and to have been distributed by man throughout the Mediterranean area. Remnants of figs have been found in excavations of sites traced to at least 5,000 B.C.

Ashita, Elder suggested that my cutting from Japan maybe be White Genoa. I saw my friend last night and took a copy of the picture of White Genoa from Jon's website Encanto farms (Figs 4 Fun). That picture had all different colors and leaf types of White Genoa. She told me the leaf looked like fingers and the inside of the fruit was pink. I went back to Jon's website and looked under Genoa fig and found pictures there of what she discribed. I have come to the conclusion that my cutting is a White Genoa.

Vern

I heard that it is called HOURAISI. I used to eat the small intensely flavoured fig from my grandmother's tree. My beloved Italian Honey Fig here in Seattle still cannot match that. I have been collecting my childhood food plants in Japan- biwa, fuki, itadori, yukinosita, yusurauma, sumomo, goumi...Is there any way to get Japanese white fig, HOURAISI?

Chiakita