Mature dormant fig wood can tolerate down to -9C/14F. At that temperature the less mature and green fig wood on the fig tree will still be killed.

How long has it been in single digits for you? We have had this weather for 3 weeks.

Burlap on its own can only provide some wind break.

There are many creative methods to wrap fig trees. do a google search on "wrapping fig trees".

here is one link; http://figs4funforum.arghchive.com/post/fig-wrapped-for-winter-3093610

Basically it entails piling up mulch/leaves around the tree base, tie the branches to get compact shape, wrap some insulation material and then wrap a tarp or plastic around the whole thing and tie down so it doesn't blow away.

In my zone 6 I also need to provide supplemental heat source during winters like this. You may not need that in your warmer zone.

Thanks, that's very helpful. We've been in single digits for two days now, with one more day expected.

I did watch several YouTube clips, but my tree is more "tree-like" than those I saw. It's not composed of a bunch of flexible canes; it's four sturdy main trunks, about 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter, branching out. It would be impossible to gather it into a cone shape for simple wrapping. So i wrapped each main stem separately. Fingers crossed only the green wood will be killed; the tree could stand a good pruning in any case. Thanks again!

I have some fig trees that are >20 yrs old they don't bend either. So for those I build a box, fill with wood chips and cover with a tarp. You may not need the wood chips in your zone maybe just the box and covering.

Old wood doors work great for a simple box that can be assembled quickly.