Hi Bill - I don't know that the tree would be weakened exactly, if you left them, though I might wonder if it would divert the tree's energies from fruit production to vegetative expansion, so limiting the suckers is probably a wise idea. Any chance you could lift a number of them with roots attached, start new plants and then find homes for them? (you might have a mini-business literally growing under your feet!) Maybe someone else will add their thoughts about whether black plastic laid down would be okay or detrimental to the tree's ability to get oxygen, moisture, nutrients, etc.

Is this an area where you could simply use a weed whacker or whatever, to spare your back from hand pulling? some of us would love to have your problem, believe me (a mature Black Mission fig going gang-busters).

Hope you get more input, I'm no expert, just grow figs in containers and only a few send up suckers within their pots, so it's not been a problem I've encountered personally on the scale you have.

Sherry

Bill,

unless your tree is grafted (unlikely), the basal suckers will not weaken the tree and since you are in a summer-dry climate, lack of air circulation is unlikely to prove problematic if it is trained as a shrub (as it clearly wishes to be). Using an herbicide on the suckers would probably kill and would certainly weaken the tree and nothing can be done to prevent them (the new shoots will continue to grow under black plastic because they can obtain nutrients from the root system which is fed by the top growth).

Ryan

I just now yanked three suckers away from my Black Mission
Fig and each of them had small roots near the bottom of their
stems. I cut off all but the top two leaves. They are now
in tree pots. I will keep them in shade under a tree for a
month. I guess that they will survive.

So those suckers might be usefull!

I've been trying to encourage fruit from my three y/o fig and I want to keep this bush manageable so I've been yanking suckers. I've potted two of the suckers that had roots and, voila! much to my happy surprise they're growing!
All I have to do now is control myself! This can be habit forming!>)

what exactly are suckers?

suckers are trees that grow from the base or below the soil line of the parent tree.

Here are some suckers:
{{gwi:788452}}
Ones I was very grateful to find on my Violette de Bordeaux cutting! ~m'

and you just yank it? you dont just cut it?

I have one growing that looks very similar to the picture above. I just assumed it was another branch off shoot.

Nice sucker picture. It's more like a little twist and snap, rather then a yank. Sometimes these suckers grow from beneath the soil line inbetween the tangle of roots. It's simple enough to just snap them off then try to snip them with something. They often grow back. Periodically remove them the same way when you see them sprouting. They are also a good source for future plants. Often the base of the suckers will have adventicious roots. If you pot them up and keep them moist, they will root into new trees for you.

Two of the three suckers grew new leaves.
I gradually moved them to full sun and they
are growing now. The third one has a green
bud on its tip, so I will keep it and hope
for leaves.