Inground Project zone 4-5
- Thread starter Vitooch1
- Start date
I wonder how much of the main crop fig growers in cold climates manage to ripen when they hardprune their trees!
It's time to prune and protect our in-ground fig trees for the winter. These two steps are essential to have a successful season and the latter has been thoroughly covered by a few members. But, I have seen some growers thinning their trees by removing most branches down to the trunk.
Based on personal experience, careful pruning is key to ensuring a successful harvest the following season. While there are plenty of videos on how to properly prune a fig tree, there is no one size fits all, especially for fig growers in cold climates.
FWIW, we avoid extreme pruning unless we use proper techniques to ensure timely fruiting and ripening the next year. With older trees (like our 7-year-old Violet Sepor), aggressive cuts can cause significant delays. Worse, in shorter growing seasons, this approach may prevent most figs from ripening before the first frost.
While some growers in very long seasons can prune heavily, in-ground trees in short seasons require a different approach. Thinning all branches down to the trunk puts the season at risk and goes against our goal of ripening and harvesting before the end of September when temperatures typically begin to drop.
One technique that has proven successful over the years involves allowing several new shoots to grow wild then protect them well during winter. Come spring, these new shoots are always the first to fruit, producing both breba and main crops. Notably, the shoots may be less than a year old, but the roots are vast and play a key role in supporting these shoots to produce and ripen loads of fruit before the summer is over, and without compromising quality or taste.
It's time to prune and protect our in-ground fig trees for the winter. These two steps are essential to have a successful season and the latter has been thoroughly covered by a few members. But, I have seen some growers thinning their trees by removing most branches down to the trunk.
Based on personal experience, careful pruning is key to ensuring a successful harvest the following season. While there are plenty of videos on how to properly prune a fig tree, there is no one size fits all, especially for fig growers in cold climates.
FWIW, we avoid extreme pruning unless we use proper techniques to ensure timely fruiting and ripening the next year. With older trees (like our 7-year-old Violet Sepor), aggressive cuts can cause significant delays. Worse, in shorter growing seasons, this approach may prevent most figs from ripening before the first frost.
While some growers in very long seasons can prune heavily, in-ground trees in short seasons require a different approach. Thinning all branches down to the trunk puts the season at risk and goes against our goal of ripening and harvesting before the end of September when temperatures typically begin to drop.
One technique that has proven successful over the years involves allowing several new shoots to grow wild then protect them well during winter. Come spring, these new shoots are always the first to fruit, producing both breba and main crops. Notably, the shoots may be less than a year old, but the roots are vast and play a key role in supporting these shoots to produce and ripen loads of fruit before the summer is over, and without compromising quality or taste.
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Vitooch1
Well-known member
Hey everyone, it’s been awhile since I’ve posted. I’ve been reading a lot your post every now and then but had a crazy busy year to really dig in. Got an updatet to share with you folks, I’m sure everyone’s curious on my inground. Well, I opened up the door of my fig box and we got beautiful healthy greenery 
live and well and looks like main figlets are hanging on as-well. Branches seem still dry and warm, we got at least 2 more months before season starts hope you guys are also as anxious as I am. 
live and well and looks like main figlets are hanging on as-well. Branches seem still dry and warm, we got at least 2 more months before season starts hope you guys are also as anxious as I am. 
Figgerlickinggood
Well-known member
Are you going to build a log cabin? 
Vitooch1
Well-known member
FunnyAre you going to build a log cabin?
, the box is only 12 inches x by 12 and height 60” inches. To answer your question no I’m definitely not building a log cabin lol I made it as compact as I could.
Vitooch1
Well-known member
We’ve hit -25 recently but we consistently been getting over -10 for a while. Without heating coils they won’t survive above ground. You’ll get full dieback, roots will survive but not the tree. Therefor, it will be pointless to have an inground tree unless you dig and bend your tree into a trench.
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Bofig
Well-known member
I’ve had great luck keeping above ground growth alive at -20 to -25 just by bending and covering with mulch for 3-4 years now. Anything covered with mulch survives. I didn’t go back and look, is your fig house heated through winter?
Vitooch1
Well-known member
I find bending and digging hard labour I know it works but it’s much more practical to have a stand up box in my small backyard. Yes it’s heated thought the whole winter, the coil is low wattage and it only kicks on when it his below -0 when it reaches 10 degrees it shuts off. I also add a light layer of concrete around the bottom base to prevent rodents living in the box. It’s easy to break off when i remove the box.
Bofig
Well-known member
I usually just chop them down to a foot tall then mulch, I’ve had 4 varieties fruit this way on the second season with nothing more than mulching. Hope to see more this year have success. I agree less labor is better so I’m testing every variety I can in ground for this ability. Majority of them won’t even put out figs until August even though they are so called “cold hardy”. For me a fig has to be pea sized by mid July at the latest to ripen before frost and I’m also going to try hand pollinating in ground trees as it sped ripening up by an average of 3-6 weeks last year on my potted trees.
TorontoJoe
Administrator
Looks great Vito.... especially after the cold we got hit with this year.
Figgerlickinggood
Well-known member
You did a great job. I have to say it beats the old Italian man way of burying it. You deserve 5 stars for your work.
