Feel free to share your successful fig tree stories. Or any other interesting stories related to your tree. If you have a photo of your fig tree posted somewhere online, post a link of it here share with the world. I’m curious to read your stories.
Figgi Stories
I need help with my fig tree. It is a dwarf and I have had if for a few years. It grows very well and has always had fruit. This summer, after a bad storm, high winds tore off all the leaves. Now, the tree is bare and no new leave growth or buds for figs is present.
Is it dead? The stems are a little brittle but white inside. So I think its living but its been weeks and not one single leaf has returned.I’m worried. Can you give me any idea or advice. I will be so upset if something happened to this tree. It was full of leaves until the storm and I doubt that could have killed it.
Thanks so much!
It doesn’t sound like the tree is dead from your description of the white on the inside. Leaves grow from new branches and in normal circumstances they should grow back on their own.
Here are a some questions that may help me troubleshoot this.
1. How long ago did this happen?
2. Are there any green branches on the tree?
3. Have you watered the tree this Summer?
4. Is this tree growing in a pot or in the ground?
5. Do you remember what color the leaves were prior to the storm?
Due to this damage, there’s no chance of seeing figs this year. Here in the Northeast, figs begin to form in the middle or late June. If there are no figs by July, then the tree isn’t mature enough to grow figs that year.
After thinking this through, it seems as though the wood has dried. Meaning that the tree may not have received enough water this season especially if there are no green branches.
Something you can try for resolving this issue is to:
1. Seal the entire tree in a large clear plastic bag (a plastic mattress cover will do). If the tree is inside a pot, leave the water drain hole open at the bottom.
2. Next spray a mist of water on the inside of the plastic wrapping.
3. Check your soil for moisture. If the soil is wet to the touch, don’t add water. Insert a wooden dowel into the soil and let it sit for a few minutes. Remove the wood and then see if it comes out dry. If it’s completely dry, add water.
4. The plastic covering will provide sufficient humidity to the tree as if it’s inside a greenhouse and you should be able to see moisture collecting on the inside.
5. Be sure to allow the soil to drain when you water it and allow it to dry before you water it.
6. If the tree is inside a pot, move it into a shaded area.
don’t give the tree fertilizer until you see green growth.
If your tree lives inside a pot and has been in the same soil for 3 or more years, you should take this opportunity to change the soil and prune the roots.
Other miniature fig trees in this situation can be uprooted, wrap the roots in damp paper towels, encased in a plastic bag, and then set inside a refrigerator (if it fits) for 2-3 weeks. Afterward, they can be replanted into a pot and placed outside with the plastic bag covering the branches. Then set out in a shaded area. Doing this sends the tree into a winter hibernation and then it behaves as if the spring season has arrived when removed from the refrigerator.