Vasilika Melissi, what is your experience?

[greenfig]

Yes, it look nice inside but... it splits badly and you want it to be way overripe to see this color. Most likely you will have bugs in your mouth too while eating the fig.
The taste was just OK. My Strawberry Verte is much tastier and problem free compared to this one.
The fig was pollinated, the seeds sink.

This is just my experience growing it for the first year.

Anybody else grow it to share your experience?

[Altadena Mara]

How many Vasilikas are there? I'm confused.
F4F Varietal Info only lists one: Vasilika Sika. I'm growing two: Belleclare's Vasilika Sika that's the same as Dalmatie and Marva Vasilika Sika, μαύρα σύκα, that originally came from island of Chios, Greece. Neither have fruited yet. I did a search and people discuss a Vasilika Melissi growing in Europe. How is it different from the other Vasilikas?

Have you tried the little mesh bags over the fruit? I find that keeps most of the bugs out if you fit it tightly. It's a nuisance, but it's saved a number of fruit here.

[greenfig]

Andreas or Chris could tell you more about this but I believe there is a number of different Vasilikas. It meas Royal and sika means Fig. So if it is a good fig, it must be royal
I tried mesh begs on small trees, you need some extra protection against the birds and rodents because they learned that there is always something tasty under inside a bag! In general, I do not use any bags any more, regardless of the color ( I started with green, btw).

[HarveyC]

Mine has grown very well, 5'+, but no fruit yet. I fully expect it to produce great figs this year. It seems you are being very premature in your judgement of this variety. Is yours still in a pot? Can you find room to plant it in the ground?

[Altadena Mara]

Andreas or Chris could tell you more about this but I believe there is a number of different Vasilikas. It meas Royal and sika means Fig. So if it is a good fig, it must be royal
I tried mesh begs on small trees, you need some extra protection against the birds and rodents because they learned that there is always something tasty under inside a bag! In general, I do not use any bags any more, regardless of the color ( I started with green, btw).

Thanks for the info. I guess it's a popular name in Greece, like Paradiso in Italy.
I find that keeping the bugs out is the main thing thing the little bags are good for, especially when the figs split a little at the end. The bags discourage birds but are completely useless with critters. The fig tree closest to the bird feeder was a Pete's Honey with skin so tough the birds tried tearing the skin in strips before finally giving up on it. The bird feeder keeps the birds focused and busy (fighting with each other) in one location so they are less likely to try to peck through the mesh bags on the figs.