Sweetest fig for zone 6

13 years ago

I have a brown turkey in my backyard, and I am thinking of planting one more fig tree.

My kids like sweet, so I am looking for a sweet specie with honey flavor that can do well in zone 6 (Washington DC suburb).

I searched previous posts on this forum and found that LSU gold or Brooklyn white might be a good choice for me. Are they indeed sweeter than Brown Turkey according to your experience? Any other possible choice for me? Any suggestions or comments would be really appreciated.

Featured Answer

robert_2007

13 years ago

Brooklyn white is one of the figs in our cold hardy fig test plots. It appears to be to late for our area

It has not performed that well here in our 5b/6a part of Connecticut. I'm considering pulling it out or top working it to a more early ripening fig like Marseilles Black VS or Danny's Delight. Danny's delight out performed Marseilles Black VS, this year, 2012.

We are growing and testing for cold hardiness and other attributes needed to successfully grow cold hardy figs in the north, Brooklyn White, Danny's Delight, Hardy Chicago, Hardy Hartford, Ronde de Bordeaux, Sal's Corleone, Sal's EL, Abruzzi, Hanc's English Brown Turkey, LaRadek's English Brown Turkey, Atreano, Kathleen's Black, Bayernfeige Violetta, Gino's, Rocco, and others.

The sweetest fig we have in our collection of maybe 20 or so figs is Bayernfeige Violetta. It is so sweet we have to cover it with mosquito netting to keep the flies off of it.

Plus, it needs extensive management to grow it in the north. Because it is ever bearing we have to remove 75% to 80% of the fruit around July 15th, to avoid having a tree full of green fruit, when frost comes. But, we still end up with over 100 fruit on the tree.

Bob zone 5b/6a Connecticut

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Comments (9)

tony_c_m
13 years ago
A Celeste fig is very sweet. I had the pleasure of trying a few this summer. They are like eating sugar, so I think your kids would really like those. There is a tree growing in Pittsburgh, PA that is never covered and it's about 12 to 14 feet tall and about that wide. Hope to get cuttings from it soon.
fignewbies
13 years ago
Hi,

I had heard from other members of Italian fig
growers saying that fig were like candies in Italy
when they were kids many years ago.
The fig fruits are much better for the children as
they are loaded with nutritional values.
But make sure the children rinse their mouths
after eating figs or anything sugary
as this can cause acid to develop, damage the children's
teeth.
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nanozhou
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks for your kind reminder, fignewbies. I will make sure my kids take care of their teeth after enjoying figs. :-))
nanozhou
Original Author
13 years ago
According to previous discussions on this board on similar topics, LSU Golden Celeste and Dan's Cajun Honey Fig are probably the sweetest figs out there. I will try to buy these if I could find a supplier, and plant them in pots.
bronxfigs: New York City/7b
13 years ago
Most figs, when properly ripened will be very sweet.

In Zone-6 which will have a very short ripening season... a grower needs to select the varieties that will most likely ripen in August, into early-September. The sweetest variety grown in the wrong area will yield disappointing figs.

Try:
"Hardy Chicago"..."Celeste"...."Black Mission" in addition to the varieties mentioned in other postings. The LSU figs might be better down in the Southern states, like Louisiana, where they were bred.

"Atreano" is a very good short-summer fig. Its large, sweet, prolific, dependable, vigorous, and fairly easy to find.

Those in Zone-6...don't waste your time with long-season, heat/sun loving varieties. Zone-6 will never be Southern California.

Happy hunting.

Frank
budbackeast
13 years ago
Frank AKA BronxFigs is right on.

I have four varieties here in Florida, and I give cuttings away for free, but they would all fail way up north. Cold hardy varieties are the way to go for you. Choosing climate-appropriate varieties is key to long-term happiness for all growers.

Also figs, ripened to the drooping point, are always at their sweetest.

Note: I am getting several figs a day now, in mid-November, here in Florida. No way that these trees would give figs up north, being late-season trees.
nanozhou
Original Author
13 years ago
Frank and budbackeast, Thanks for the kind suggestions!

Yes, I agree that I should go for hardy and early-ripen varieties. I will probably try Brooklyn White Fig.
nanozhou
Original Author
13 years ago
Bob, thanks for your very helpful information.
I'll try Bayernfeige Violetta. I searched a bit and found this variety may have another name "Violet Bavaria?
I live in Washington DC suburb, so hopefully Bayernfeige Violetta figs have enough time to ripen before the first frost day.

It seems that my backyard will soon be packed with various Fig trees. Hope my wife won't complain...