Fig varieties with a long harvest window

[FarmerGreg]

mountainfigs had this post on Brooklyn White,

"Seems no matter if picked within a range of a week or more, whether field ripe, store ripe, dead ripe, or fairly early with raw sap pouring out of the end of the neck like this one, Brooklyn White packs enough sugar and flavor to be jelly good"

This post raised the question, how many other fig varieties have a longer harvest window where the flavor and quality remain good. For those of you have have the experience I would love to hear your opinions about which other varieties share this trait.

[Rewton]

Among the figs I'm growing Mt. Etna types, Ronde de Bordeaux, Bari, and St. Rita would qualify as having a long harvest window. I'll probably add others to this list as I characterize them better. Atreano (in my hands) has a quite short window.

[AscPete]

LSU Improved Celeste has also been a variety with a longer production window at my location, along with the typical Mount Etna Types and Unknowns, but most will produce till fall if provided sufficient moisture and balanced fertilization. The only exception has been the Celeste cultivars which produce over a period of only ~ 2 weeks.

[mountainfigs]

To me there's a combination of factors at play, and to an extent it can depend upon the season, the type of weather. However, in general, here: If a fig tends to the watery (Conadria, Lyndhurst White, maybe O'Rourke, others) then that shortens its window. Also if the fig lacks strong walls (Improved Celeste, Celeste, Atreano, sometimes RDB) then that can shorten its window. If the fig is deceptive where it's difficult to say if it's ripe because it doesn't droop or change shape necessarily much (the Kadotas, the Marseilles, others) then sometimes I pick it too early and so the good flavor window is unclear. A few that taste good over a particularly long range of ripeness, and with good hang time: Brooklyn White, the Violette de Bordeauxs, the Mt Etnas, among others. Kind of a tough and tasty quality gives them a relatively long range of good flavor and good hang time. Maybe it's just me, but cultivars like these seem to develop a kernel or lining of sweetness and flavor early on, a little syrupy touch that builds as it does with most all cultivars but is there early as opposed to being only diffused and slowly concentrating. It's possible also that these traits are more particular to my growing conditions than they are general.

[jrdewhirst]

I'm fairly new at this, but my established in-ground plants all seem virtually everbearing (until cold weather) once they begin to ripen figs. That includes early figs (Florea, RdB), mid-season Mt Etnas (HC, MBvs), and a late season Adriatic (Paradiso). These plants are all growing well, and there's a fig at almost every leaf node. It seems that as long as branches grow and the weather stays warm, figs will ripen. The growing branch is like an assembly line.

In contrast, I have a few new plants, both in-ground (Sal's, Brooklyn White) and in pots (Takoma Violet) that are so loaded with figs that there is little vegetative growth. These have held roughly the same number of ripening figs for more than a month. When those figs are ripe, I think the plants will be done.

So I'm guessing that sustained production depends on a well-developed root system that can support both developing figs and continued vegetative growth.

[AscPete]

Greg,

Most individual figs are ripest when the interior pulp / flowers are translucent and a jelly consistency. Some cultivars will ripen slowly while others will ripen quickly. Larger figs above ~ 45 grams usually take longer to ripen especially in cooler zones, ripen from the bottom up and in humid areas will often sour before they ripen fully. Although they may have some developed sugars at the earliest stage of ripening they often taste like watermelon rind instead of their distinctive ripe flavors, this is often the differences between Commercial Ripe and Tree Ripe figs.


Ripe is subjective and based on individual taste, my ripe fig is when the pulp is approximately 80% - 90% translucent. At my location most figs (large and small) start to ferment and sour when they reach the 100% translucent stage also larger figs with open eyes will sour much sooner than those with small or tight eyes.

Based on most expressed individual taste preference the harvest window for an individual tree ripe fig is usually only a day or two.

[Rewton]

Pete, I don't think he is asking about the ripening window for an individual fig but the window that a plant is capable of ripening a main crop of many figs.

[AscPete]

Steve,
"... if picked within a range of a week or more, ... with raw sap pouring out of the end of the neck like this one, Brooklyn White packs enough sugar and flavor..." "... how many other fig varieties have a longer harvest window where the flavor and quality remain good ..."

My read was for the harvest window of individual figs from different cultivars.

[Rewton]

Sorry, you are correct. I have had the other question in my own mind for a while and so I superimposed that question onto post 1 when I read it - oops. Maybe I should start my own thread to address the question of how long a variety continues to put out main crop figs.

[fruitnut]

The way I read it he's asking about individual figs. If so one fig I've read about with a long harvest window is Grosse Grise de Notre Dame:

This fig grows in the region of Caromb in France and it goes under the name of Grosse Grise de Notre Dame (Big gray of Notre Dame). Pierre Baud had a look at the pictures and the actual figs and he has not been able to id. this fig. Rough translation from French
Big Gray Notre Dame :
It is a bifera fig (breba and main crops). The fig fruits are large and elongated (around 3.1 inches long) and breba are ripe in our region in July. The figs are shaped round, nice size (about 60 to 70 grams) with a light-colored flesh, fragrant and sweet. Their particularity is that, when at maturity, they keep very well on the tree, and the main crop fruiting period is very long, from mid-August until late October. The tree is large and has a diameter of 23 feet and at least 6 feet tall.

According to that account GGdND has both a long hang time of individual figs and a long period of producing main crop.

Normally one would think about how long the fig produces ripe fruits. In that case it seems largely a matter of keeping the plant growing. Do that on something like Strawberry Verte and you have figs as long as the weather stays warm enough to ripen the fruit.

[newnandawg]

For me it is:

Kesarani
Macool

They both started ripening 7/13 and are still going strong.

[Rewton]

Mike, it looks like you interpreted the question the way I did. However, it appears he is asking about individual figs.

[FarmerGreg]

I love all of this information. I was asking about individual figs, but I see that I could have been clearer in writing the question. The basis for my question was the ability to pick a larger number of figs from a plant at one time rather than smaller numbers more frequently. Again thank you to everyone, I am learning a lot from this.

[AscPete]

Greg,

In commercial fig growing regions many of the cultivars are grown for just that trait.

The LSU cultivars were originally bred and selected for commercial production and LSU Champagne may be a cultivar that meets that requirement of "larger number of figs from a plant at one time" but usually within 1 - 2 weeks in my zone.


Celeste and O'Rourke are cultivars that ripen in "Batches" also mature Mount Etna types like Hardy Chicago @ 12 O'clock in the photo, tend to ripen in multiple batches over an extended time period.

[Fygmalion]

Great picture taking ... leaf, fruit, coin for size comparison.. all on a perfect background to display all desired features in one bite... I am going to use your composition style for my own picture taking... Thanks!

[AscPete]

Thanks.
Borrowed the layout from other fig forum members...
@kiwibob uses a 12 x 12 floor tile as the background,

https://sites.google.com/site/kiwifruitsalad2/f2-1-light-colored-figs

[Harborseal]

As was mentioned it depends on what you're willing to accept from a fig. I'm not very tolerant. to me a fig has its best flavor when the 'meat' - the white part between the skin and the pulp - is translucent. Then the flavors concentrate as it dries. Unless of course it starts to mold. We all have to manage our crops according to our needs.

[Harborseal]

The reason I use the meat as my indicator is that pulp color and texture are more subtle and take years of experience to really know what they should be. To try to get new figgers to fine tune their picking times, meat translucency is an easier quality to see.

[FarmerGreg]

"The reason I use the meat as my indicator is that pulp color and texture are more subtle and take years of experience to really know what they should be. To try to get new figgers to fine tune their picking times, meat translucency is an easier quality to see". Thanks for that tip, I will definitely use that

[AscPete]

As a fig growing novice I found it much easier to tell when the figs were ripe by the pulp's translucency.


The white filaments of the flowers / pulp become visibly translucent, if you are fortunate enough to have warm and dry ambient temperatures the figs will ripen further and the translucency will continue into the rind, but in my location the figs often spoil well before the rinds are completely translucent.

A simple tell before picking is not only the often recommended "hanging down", but also the wrinkled neck and shoulders which actually indicates the "translucency" / ripening of the rind in that area. IMO this is one of the easiest ways of determining ripeness before picking since figs ripen from the bottom up towards the neck and stem, but ripeness and ripening may be different for each each cultivar.

[fruitnut]

As usual Pete you're the best.

[AscPete]

Thanks.

[Harborseal]

As a fig growing novice I found it much easier to tell when the figs were ripe by the pulp's translucency.

The white filaments of the flowers / pulp become visibly translucent, if you are fortunate enough to have warm and dry ambient temperatures the figs will ripen further and the translucency will continue into the rind, but in my location the figs often spoil well before the rinds are completely translucent.

A simple tell before picking is not only the often recommended "hanging down", but also the wrinkled neck and shoulders which actually indicates the "translucency" / ripening of the rind in that area. IMO this is one of the easiest ways of determining ripeness before picking since figs ripen from the bottom up towards the neck and stem, but ripeness and ripening may be different for each each cultivar.

I completely agree about the wrinkled neck and shoulder. The white filaments are variable. Check out the very ripe fig pictured in the first post of this thread

https://www.ourfigs.com/forum/figs-home/103796-col-littmans-black-cross-2016-main

Often (usually) the filaments will disappear. Not always. Usually a fig does ripen from the bottom up. I occasionally see a fig that's more ripe at the shoulders than at the bottom. I sometimes wonder if that's from some kind of trauma.

[AscPete]

I agree, the translucency of the white filaments is variable, note the Champagne photo in post #9 any riper and the figs start to ferment. even with the sealed eyes, the brown "sugar" spots spread and the skin gets chewy.