PRUNING FIG TREES for IN GROUND Planting

[@theflamingsword4197]

Fig trees are a blessing!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

That's true - they're literally Biblical! They're my favorite fruit tree, hands down! Thanks for watching.

[@DrODWest]

I have watched several of your presentations and I grade them A+ because they are well thought and well presented. Keep up the good work and you will have me watching you with a desire to learn from you.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you! I really appreciate that. I'm glad you're enjoying them.

[@brianauclair2890]

Just signed up for your channel. Very clear and concise explanations in all your videos.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Glad you like the videos! Thank you for the sub.

[@jeantupas8046]

Another bright idea ,thanks for sharing,Godbless.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks for watching!

[@まるはち果実園]

Thank you for sharing your useful knowledge with us every time!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

My pleasure! Glad it was helpful. Thank you for watching!

[@lindag9975]

Thanks! My fig tree is in ground because it usually doesn't freeze here. But I headed mine at about 4 feet during the dormant season. I need the branches far enough off the ground so that my small dogs can't get the figs. But there shouldn't be any fruit above 6 feet. But next dormant season, I will take your ideas and head them a little shorter. I'm learning a lot from you.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Ah, more dogs that like figs. Every morning, I give Dale one dried Turkish fig. As soon as I get out the bag, he drools all over the place. Sometimes, I think he likes figs better than he likes meat. Thanks for watching!

[@WeatherwithSeth]

Thanks the video is very helpful.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you for watching! I appreciate it.

[@WeatherwithSeth]

@@TheMillennialGardener yw

[@nickka2009]

great video. thanks. I would add another major reason for heading in-ground trees to 16 to 18 inches. That's for backyard culture orchard, which allows for smaller spacing between trees to maximize plantings in smaller gardens

[@TheMillennialGardener]

That's precisely why I espalier. Tall trees are for the birds - literally. All of the fruit I grow in my backyard are either on dwarfing root stock or pruned very low to minimize height. Thanks for watching!

[@nickka2009]

@@TheMillennialGardener thanks. i must say, i never heard of golden dawn. all others appear to be great varieties

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@nickka2009 Golden Dawn was a seedling from Sacred Origin in California. I was testing the variety. I believe she said the seedling has since perished, so I may be the only person in the world that has this variety. I have not given out copies to anyone.

[@stevebattista6686]

Nice . I have to try a way to espalier a couple of my trees up here in zone 6b..

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Have you seen my video on espaliering figs? It is here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3nLmnR4ra9lb5o Some folks in colder climates espalier their trees very close to the ground - think 6-12 inches or so - then cover them with row covers like a low tunnel to protect the wood all winter. Here is a sample image: photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4519/3188/320/japanese%20figs%204.jpg The ground sort of keeps them warm, plus the low tunnel provides frost protection.

[@stevebattista6686]

@@TheMillennialGardener sure did thanks for the tips..

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@stevebattista6686 you're welcome!

[@royhughes1331]

You are very educational indeed!! I bought my first fig tree this year from Home Depot (it is called a CHICAGO fig tree). Where do you get all these different kinds of fig trees? I live in South New Jersey, can I grow these figs here?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Hey small world, I was born and raised in Atlantic County. The fig tree you're speaking of is called Chicago Hardy and is one of the most commonly propagated fig trees. It's very popular, fruits quickly and holds up well to rain and humidity, so it's a top choice for growers in the Northeast. Most of my original rarer fig cuttings were from Figbid, Big Bill at Off The Beaten Path Nursery and Harvey at Figaholics. They have many rare and unique varieties. Since I've built up a collection, I now trade a lot with folks locally and friends I've made on Ourfigs, which is a popular fig forum. I like testing new varieties from California.

[@royhughes1331]

@@TheMillennialGardener 😀😀 Obviously then, you know of Hammonton!!! Since this is my first time ever trying to grow figs, I am going to do a 20 gallon pot instead of in the ground. I will check out the "OURFIGS" forum later on today!! Do you need me to send you some Italian Long Hot seeds & PA Dutch Crook Neck Squash seeds to you? All from my garden and the crook neck squash is what the Amish use to make all their pumpkin pies from, ya know.

[@briannasoth-barr3562]

Great video! Can you do an update on your paw paw trees?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Right now, there is nothing to update. The first season, they must have spent their time growing roots because they didn't grow so much as an inch. Right now, they have no leaves and haven't budded out yet, so they look like pencils sitting in the ground. I've heard pawpaw's don't really grow until Year 3. If I see some growth this year, I'll probably plan an update, but there is a good chance there won't be much. I've heard pawpaw's are a 4-6 year investment to get large enough to fruit, even grafted.

[@MyLadyAmalthea]

Do you find the landscape fabric making the space too hot, or are you utilizing it for earlier ripening as well as weed suppression?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I use it for weed suppression and added heat. As hot as it gets here in the summer - and it is HOT - we usually get 50+ days over 90 a year - the figs just love it. I seriously cannot give them enough heat.

[@blenderbenderguy]

I've got 2 Chicago Hardy's in zone 6 in central Western Pennsylvania. They've died back each of 3 winters despite heavy mulching and insulated covering. In early spring I cut the dead stalks back to just a few inches and ultimately they send up new shoots and branch out in every direction. They are more like fig bushes growing in a big clump I suppose. I'm just learning about figs having watched some of your videos which are excellent. I'm not sure how to deal with this big clump or even if I should. At this point can or should I even try to get a single leader and have it grow into more of a tree? Thanks!

[@alfpiccolo]

Great videos! You have inspired me and bought three figs and going to plant them in ground. May I ask if this week is too late to prune figs? I am in zone9 in California. Or should I let it grow for spring and summer and prune them? Your advise is greatly appreciated. I like to espalier fig trees....will continue to follow.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Excellent! Your pruning question is tough to answer. It's ideal to prune during the dormant season, not now. What I would do in your position is only remove wood that's really poorly formed or growing "into the tree". I would mostly let it grow its first season, then prune it into the shape I desire in January or February.

[@sandalsandshorts93]

Really enjoying all your videos about growing figs! We live in Vegas and our fig tree has started blooming and has new fruits set. But we noticed the lower side of some fruits are turning black (we have Desert King) and some have dried up and fall off. Any idea why this is happening? We fertilized about a month ago when it was coming out of dormancy. Thanks!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Are the fruits that are drying up forming on the previous year's wood? My guess is they are a breba crop. Breba crops are prone to fruit drop. It's normal for most breba to fall off, especially on trees that aren't fully mature. Since it's a Desert King, I'm guessing you're growing for breba and that's what's happening. Brebas can be finicky.

[@sandalsandshorts93]

@@TheMillennialGardener Thanks for the response! You are spot on. 😀 It is from previous year’s wood. I will keep my fingers cross and hopefully not all will drop! Thank you!

[@MetaView7]

You have cut the main trunk at 16". Will it grow taller from there? How much more will it grow? Since you are going to tie the branches to a wire, will the increase in height affect the tied brances?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Oh yes. Fig trees are extremely vigorous and typically put on 5-8 feet of new growth every single season depending how long your growing season is and how hot your summers are (hotter and longer = more growth). These trees will probably be 6-8 feet tall by October. It's difficult to explain. I suggest checking out my two videos on espaliering so it's more clear. One is setting it up and the other is pruning: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3nLmnR4ra9lb5o kzbin.info/www/bejne/nae8aYN5o7yaoK8

[@MetaView7]

@Homestead at Honey Creek Thanks !

[@MetaView7]

@@TheMillennialGardener Thanks !

[@ahmadghosheh3104]

Hello I live in Kansas City, Zone 6 more or less LOL. I bought a Chicago Hardy variety last fall and planted it in the ground. It was about 15 inches tall. When the temp was getting cold I wrapped the small tree in insulation and put a bucket over it to keep it from the severe cold we had this year. I checked it this month and uncovered it. Looks OK, feels soft an alive. it's too small to prune now. This is my first time planting fig tree in the ground, mine been always containers that i bring into the house in the winter. Should I worry about it because of the bad winter or just wait and see? It's supposed to be hard to 10 degrees.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I wouldn't worry about it. Figs are extremely resilient. If the tree sees some dieback, it'll likely come back from the roots. They're tough to kill when they're protected from the desiccating effects of the wind. If you can keep the cold wind from drying them out, and you apply a thick mulch layer around the roots to insulate the roots, they can survive a lot. It's important to note that the hardiness rating is for fully mature trees. A Chicago Hardy tree that's mature with a 6-10 inch caliper and fully dormant can probably survive 10 degrees unprotected, but a seedling certainly cannot. It takes many years for them to fully mature and harden off for maximum cold hardiness.

[@biglou4452]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks for watching!

[@asifahussain6959]

Hi, I planted my fig tree in the ground about 2 years ago in autumn. I just discovered this style of pruning. Can I still fig tree this way (heading at 18 inches from the ground)? It is end of March here in the West coast. Our last frost date is April 23rd.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Yes, you certainly can if it hasn't begun to leaf out yet. If your buds are still unswollen, it should still be "dormant enough." If you cut it, I would recommend fertilizing it generously with a higher nitrogen feed like in my playlist to help it recover. kzbin.info/aero/PL1gY7BoYBGIFNbJEUdApbh_E57uNBLG2j I also strongly recommend giving it fish emulsion to help it recover.

[@asifahussain6959]

@@TheMillennialGardener unfortunately the buds are swollen now but no leaves yet. Should I wait till summer to do the knee high pruning or should I wait till winter when it is dormant?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@asifahussain6959 I would prune it now. I pruned my fig trees for their final cuts when the buds began to just barely open and they're fine, so I expect them to recover. I recommend watering them with fish emulsion after pruning to help them recover, though. It's great stuff for recovery.

[@asifahussain6959]

@@TheMillennialGardener Thank you. I will do that.

[@asifahussain6959]

@@TheMillennialGardener Can I give my tree bonemeal? Also after I knee high prune it, do I wait for frost date to pass before feeding them?

[@abdelouahabamor1304]

Very educational, would it be possible to buy all the 8 cuttings? if not possible, can I make reservation for next year?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you. I have been providing my excess cuttings since January, and I'm pretty much done for the season. These cuttings I will actually be using for cloning. I just planted 15 of them today, actually. If I have excess trees, I will be offering them. I'll have more cuttings in January.

[@abdelouahabamor1304]

@@TheMillennialGardener Thank you,

[@donnastormer9652]

I just bought 2 large figs that need to be put in ground ASAP. Should I prune lightly and seal the cuts before transplant

[@TheMillennialGardener]

How cold are your winters? I only plant fig trees in the spring so they can establish all year in case of a bad winter. Figs are pretty cold sensitive, so if you plant them late, you run the risk of them not establishing well. If you have a cold winter and they die back to the ground without being established, they may not come back. If your winters are warm, it may not matter. I don't seal any cuts, ever.

[@donnastormer9652]

@@TheMillennialGardener We have very mild winters here in Northwest Florida maybe four or five very mild freezes and frankly the small figs that I transplant in late July or August seem to do better than the ones in the spring so I know they will establish well I just didn’t know whether I should prune them while they’re very leafy right now. This is the biggest fig I have ever transplanted it’s about 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide and it’s coming out of a big pot and is completely root bound.

[@Shelby2880]

I’m in central Alabama and have a Brown Turkey fig in a large pot. Leaves are just coming out. Can I do this now? I would like to keep the tree in the pot. Last year it had a great number of fruit, but it dropped all. I read that it could have been either not enough water or too much. Well that wasn’t helpful. I also watched a vid where the tree was pruned as well as root pruned and returned to the same pot in the early fall. I’d like to try espaliering it, but just not ready yet.Advice?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Yes, you can still prune your tree. I'm probably a little ahead of you in my climate, if not exactly the same, and I just cut mine a few days ago since this winter was so cold and miserable. It's unusual for all your fruit to drop on a Brown Turkey. Have you harvested ripe fruit off the tree before? Espaliering is something you do in-ground. I don't see it working out well in a container.

[@Shelby2880]

@@TheMillennialGardener Yes. I’d gotten a small harvest year before last, the second season since I purchased it. I was excited at all the fruit last year, but they all fell off before ripening. I’m Leaning toward the reason was under watering since I’m so afraid of over watering. I had intended to trim back roots and limbs and return it to the same pot in the fall, but it just didn’t happen. Green leaves are already peeking out of the buds so I was afraid to prune the limbs at this point. Weather has been unseasonably warm this last week, in the high 70’s. I’m in Zone 7b.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@Shelby2880 I would lean toward drought stress as well. Fig trees need a tremendous amount of water in the summer, especially when they're loaded with fruits. My guess is the fig tree dried out completely and reacted by dropping all its fruits (which require the bulk of the tree's water) to protect the tree itself. Overwatering is only a problem with fig cuttings and during the winter when they're in dormancy if you're storing them indoors. Trees that are actively growing have a very high demand for water and are almost impossible to overwater as long as they aren't sitting in standing water. It's almost impossible to overwater an actively growing fig tree. People have preached restricting water to increase sugars in the figs, and while that's true, if you underwater, the tree could literally die. It's not worth it to me. I think this has been, literally, the first consistently nice week here since before Christmas. What a bum winter we had, but I'm hoping for a nice spring.

[@avraamavramopoulos5567]

sir please advise which variety of figs mature ealiest and which at the latesr.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

There are, literally, tens of thousands of fig varieties, so it isn't really possible to classify them all. I can only tell you that varieties like Celeste, Improved Celeste, Chicago Hardy and Ronde de Bordeaux are unusually early. There may be figs that are earlier, but 90+% are going to be later than those.

[@winrockywin331]

Hi - I pruned my fig tree as you suggested (down to a 16-20 inch stump) in the late fall and wrapped it for winter protection (zone 6 - Connecticut). I unwrapped it three weeks ago and it hasn’t produced a single bud. I did a scratch test yesterday and it’s alive (green layer still present). Any suggestions???

[@TheMillennialGardener]

You'll need to do two things: 1. Give it its first dose of fertilizer. I recommend following my fertilizer schedule here: kzbin.info/aero/PL1gY7BoYBGIFNbJEUdApbh_E57uNBLG2j 2. Be patient and give it time. It will take a couple weeks of direct sunlight hitting the wood to force bud swell. Fig trees require direct contact with warm, strong sun to swell buds. Simply put, it isn't consistently warm enough in Connecticut yet, and since you just unwrapped it, the wood hasn't received enough sunshine yet, to force bud swell. You should start seeing some activity in 2 weeks or so. Giving it a nitrogen boost with my fertilizer schedule above will help, but don't overfeed the tree trying to force movement.

[@winrockywin331]

@@TheMillennialGardener ok thanks! I fertilized it with your program as soon as I unwrapped it. Thanks for the encouragement. Guess I need to learn patience 😂

[@assaadal-azem5308]

Hi Thanks for your Video, I enjoyed it and learned a lot, keep the good work. I have question how can I can get fig tree cutting? from your garden? Thabks

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you! I had cuttings available in January and February, but now it's too warm here and my trees are awake and fully pruned. I will have more cuttings available next January and will announce when the time comes.

[@spencercox8972]

Would you sell any of your White Madeira #1 cuttings? Thanks for your great informative videos!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Most of my cuttings are going to be used for propagation. If I took too many, I may throw the last few up on Figbid. I will be providing more in January again.

[@elsaz8783]

Hi I I've in Wilmington! Do you sell them locally?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I've been providing cuttings since January and I will have more next winter. These final cuttings I'll be propagating into trees for the summer, so I don't intend to sell these cuttings unless I have too many in the end.

[@nexxogen]

In your opinion, should figs be that size before being planted in ground? Mine will be planted in what is pretty much a perfect fig climate in the Mediterranean so I don't have to worry about cold damage.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Figs easily grow 2-3 meters in a single season, so if you want to plant a rooted cutting, it can be planted as soon as it forms a nice root ball. I do find they transplant better if you place them into a larger container first to fill out, but they're very vigorous either way.

[@maitran3952]

Do you cut them back to 16” every year?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

No. This is for the initial hard pruning only. If you want to see how I prune my espalier figs, you can see here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nae8aYN5o7yaoK8

[@gabinodelacruz8946]

Like always great video! Are you planning on selling some of those cuttings?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you. I had cuttings available throughout January and February, but now my trees are awake with high sap flow and are mostly pruned down. I will have cuttings available again next January when my trees go dormant.

[@skyblue314]

How low should you prune the tree the year after and every succeeding year?

[@khaledgorila]

I have a question by mistake I cuted fig roots by will it die please answer im worried

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Do you mean root-pruning? If the tree is mature and well established, you can cut fig roots while the tree is dormant. If it's a freshly rooted cutting and the roots are damaged, the cutting will often die.

[@amtulnaseerahmad4244]

Love your garden n dog Very informative video are you work at agriculture university

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you! And Dale sends his warmest regards. I come from a family of Italian gardeners and I spent all my teenage years working on a farm, so I always loved growing things. I'm an electrical engineer, so I'm just naturally extremely calculating and methodical and I'm always trying to perfect things (sometimes too much!). I appreciate you watching.

[@clarasclara6010]

Spring coming

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I cannot wait! I am hoping for no more frost this year. Thank you for watching!

[@meilichou775]

👍❤️👍

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you for watching!

[@emanfawzy5074]

Do you sell cuttings

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I had cuttings available in January and February but it is too late in the season now. All my trees are awake and sap flow is too high. I’ll have more next January.

[@matthewfarrell317]

I honestly don't think people understand just how fast figs can grow, I have checked ours and it is close to 6 metres high. I can lop a 3-4 inch thick branch off in winter and by the following winter, the tree will give me a 5-inch branch as replacement lol. To be fair our growing season for most things is Sep thru to Apr, for the most part, and then cold crops during winter.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

It's true. People with experience with figs have no fear pruning figs because their growth is nuclear fast. Figs are, honestly, the *perfect* fruit tree to learn how to prune on because you can totally botch the prune job, cut the tree down completely and still wind up with a 6 foot tall tree by frost 😅

[@420.........]

You're NC correct? They auto prune in our climate..

[@TheMillennialGardener]

My last 2 winters have been Zone 9. The lowest temps I’ve recorded since I moved into my house in September 2017 was 19 degrees. My in ground trees have never had dieback. Out of my 40 potted trees, 2-4 have some tip burn because the exposed roots wake some up too early. In ground figs seem to be very resilient here.

[@gaminawulfsdottir3253]

When he says "There is no right way to prune a fig tree," he means there is no wrong way. Which is not strictly true, but it carries a world of difference in meaning from saying you can't find a right way to do it.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

No, it's actually the opposite. There are no right ways to prune - only wrong ways. A grower that wants a 25' shade tree, a farmer that wants commercial fruit production over hundreds of acres, a backyard gardener that has a 1/6 acre plot and a gardener that wants to espalier all have different pruning techniques they'll have to follow and can't stick to the same rules. However, the things "not to do" remain true across all goals. The "right way" is specific to your specific goals, but wrong ways remain true 100% of the time.

[@gaminawulfsdottir3253]

@@TheMillennialGardener Then, what you mean to say is that there is no ONE "right" way to prune. Saying that there is no right way to prune means every way you do it is wrong.

[@roccoconte2960]

cant espieler them in Mass.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Actually, you can. A strategy some growers use in cold climates is to espalier their trees very low to the ground in a single line, then cover them with low tunnels throughout the winter. See this image: photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4519/3188/640/japanese%20figs%204.jpg The figs are cut back to that form after a few light frosts knock them into dormancy, then covered with row covers (low tunnel) to shelter the wood during the more intense cold.

[@roccoconte2960]

@@TheMillennialGardener It would be very diffacult to cover them in that form and get them thru the winter.

[@slamrock17]

You will have a fig explosion this summer!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I hope so. Last season was rough because we got over 90 inches of rain and the figs did poorly in the wet conditions.

[@dawnlemerand1857]

Might wanna add a little fertilizer to that grass lol Just kidding

[@TheMillennialGardener]

It’s centipede grass. Southern grasses go dormant in the winter and turn brown. It isn’t like northern grasses that stay green all season. Every lawn you’ll find down here is brown from November to March. They wake up and green in April. They also go dormant during drought. With southern grasses, they need extremely low fertilizer. Any more than 2 applications a year can kill them and you must use very low nitrogen.

[@spencercox8972]

Would you sell any of your White Madeira #1 cuttings? Thanks for your great informative videos!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

The final cuttings I took from this video I will be propagating. If I took too many, I'll probably toss the extras on Figbid. I've been providing them since January, so I'm pretty low at this point and will have more next January.