Fig | Ortho

Plant:

Fig

Adaptation

Grown in warmer parts of the country.

Pruning

Lightly thin out branches, and head back long shoots to maintain tree vigor and shape during the dormant season. Remove any weak, diseased, dead, or crossing twigs and branches.

Soil

Any good, deep, well-drained soil.

Water

Water deeply but infrequently.

Fertilizer

Fertilize with an all-purpose plant food.

Harvest

Harvest figs when they have fully ripened. They are ripe when the fruits bend over at the neck and the flesh is soft. Remove the fruit with the stem still attached. Wear gloves and protective clothing when picking figs to avoid irritation from the milky sap.

Bird Damage -

Bird Damage

Fig Mosaic Virus -

Fig Mosaic Virus

Rust - Fig

Rust

Scales - Fig

Scales

Souring -

Souring

Bird Damage -

Bird Damage

Description

Ripened figs have holes in them and may be partially eaten. They may have been knocked to the ground. Birds may be feeding on ripening figs.

Analysis

Some birds feed heavily on ripening figs. When the fruit is fully ripe, birds peck at the soft flesh, leaving holes in the fruit. The wounded figs may decay, becoming inedible.

Solution

Check the tree every morning and harvest daily to save as many ripe figs as possible. Throw nets over the tree to reduce bird damage. Nets can be purchased at your local nursery or hardware store.

Fig Mosaic Virus -

Fig Mosaic Virus

Description

Leaves are mottled yellow and may have translucent areas. Often the fruit is spotted yellow. The leaves may be stunted, and foliage and fruit sometimes drop prematurely.

Analysis

This plant disease is caused by a virus. Mosaic rarely causes a plant to die, but it can weaken the plant extensively and greatly reduce the fruit yield. The virus may be spread by microscopic fig mites (Eriophyes fici), which feed on diseased figs and transfer the virus to healthy trees at later feedings. The virus is also spread by infected cuttings.

Solution

Reduce the number of fig mites by applying a horticultural oil spray in the winter. If you are planting new trees, select healthy stock from a reliable nursery.

Rust - Fig

Rust

Description

Rust-colored, raised spots appear on the undersides of leaves. On the top side are dark brown, smooth spots. Infected leaves turn yellow and die prematurely. Fruit yields may be reduced.

Analysis

This plant disease is caused by a fungus (Cerotelium fici) that infects figs and several other closely related plants. The fungi spend the winter as spores on the bark or in plant debris. Infection starts in the spring as soon as the tree begins to grow. Wind and splashing water spread the spores to healthy leaves. They germinate on wet foliage, causing spotting and eventually premature leaf drop. Although rust infects the leaves rather than the fruit, premature leaf drop may weaken the tree after several years, causing a reduction in fruit yields.

Solution

Spray the tree with a fungicide labeled for rust, following label directions.

Scales - Fig

Scales

Description

Brownish crusty bumps; thick, white, waxy bumps; or clusters of somewhat flattened yellowish, gray, or brownish scaly bumps cover the stems or undersides of the leaves. The bumps can be scraped or picked off; the undersides are usually soft. Leaves turn yellow and may drop. In some cases, a shiny or sticky substance coats the leaves. A black sooty mold often grows on the sticky substance.

Analysis

Several different types of scales infest figs. They lay their eggs on leaves or bark, and in spring to midsummer the young scales, called crawlers, move about and then settle on leaves and twigs. These small (1/10 inch), soft-bodied young feed by sucking sap from the plant. The legs usually atrophy, and a hard crusty or waxy shell develops over the body. Mature female scales lay their eggs underneath their shells. Some species of scales infesting figs are unable to digest fully all the sugar in the plant sap, and they excrete the excess in a fluid called honeydew, which often drops onto the leaves below. A sooty mold fungus may develop on the honeydew, causing the fig leaves to appear black and dirty.

Solution

Isolate infested plants as soon as scales are discovered. Remove as many scales as possible with a cloth or toothbrush dipped in soapy water. Apply an insecticidal soap or horticultural oil, following label directions. Avoid bringing scale crawlers into the house.

Souring -

Souring

Description

A pink, sticky fluid may drip from the tiny hole (the ''eye'') at the end of the ripening fig. The fruit is soft and mushy. When cut open, an infected fig has a strong fermented or alcoholic odor.

Analysis

This plant disease is caused by various types of yeast. The yeasts that cause souring are spread by insects (including the dried fruit beetle and the vinegar fly). The insects enter the fig through the eye. If the fig is infected, the insects become contaminated with yeast cells while crawling around inside the fig. They can then infect healthy figs. The dark, moist conditions inside the ripening fig provide an ideal environment for the rapid decay and fermentation of the fruit.

Solution

Pick off and destroy infected figs. Remove all unpicked fruit from the area to reduce the population of dried fruit beetles. Plant closed-eye fig varieties.