Mt Etna

Figgin' A said:
Despite my questioning at times whether this is, in fact, a Mt Etna, I am going to agree with you and others who think this is a Mt Etna.
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For me…Sometimes questioning and playing with the different varieties is part of the hobby. I think if we all had this figured out it wouldn’t be as much fun . My $0.02 anyway

As long as nobody is “fig-splaining”… it’s great 😀
 
I have a Sicilian Black originally from OTBP. Is that a Mt Etna too? How about Scotts Black? That seem to fit the description too. Of course, Scotts is obviously not from Mt Etna.
 
ktrain said:
I rooted this one last year, haven't tried it yet though.
If it is the same as the others...it may be gifted as well.
I just don't need anymore Etnas.
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I got this one accidentally (mistaken ID). It is my earliest Etna. Period. The hang time is really short. It survives the winter fine and when picked dead ripe is about as good as any Mt. Etna gets; they have some different nuances, but it will keep its in ground real estate at my home. Oh and it’s the only Etna that held all of its Breba after our spring killer frost.
 
Figgin' A said:
It's possible, though most of them go into 15g pots by 7-8 months of the first year, or the following year, so there is plenty of root space. Crozes was up-potted to 15g. Interestingly, my 1st year I-258 grew some really large figs, in the 65-110g range, which clearly was not normal, I think some were breba type figs, which is common for first year trees. The size was normal - in the typical range - the following year.

My newly rooted Crozes actually set a few brebas at the bottom of the trunk. I posted pictures on the other forum last year, and most agreed it was not main crop but breba. Those were very large. The rest were smaller, looked like typical Crozes main crop, but clearly larger than other growers had experienced. I recall a few growers complained that their Crozes were a 'small' fig, which was not the case with my Crozes. That's another reason I want to see how it turns out this year, is it going to maintain the size or get smaller, similar to what other growers reported as their 'normal' size.
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15g pots should be big enough for first or even 2nd year but your season is long(with the indoor headstart) I do know someone with couple rooted cuttings filled out 15g pots in one season in CA. It is possible to have breba in a first year cutting if it is near the bottom. Crozes are not usually considered big.
 
Gladstone1969 said:
I got this one accidentally (mistaken ID). It is my earliest Etna. Period. The hang time is really short. It survives the winter fine and when picked dead ripe is about as good as any Mt. Etna gets; they have some different nuances, but it will keep its in ground real estate at my home. Oh and it’s the only Etna that held all of its Breba after our spring killer frost.
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Well dang that's good news, thanks.
Mine has quite a bit on it so I'll get to test it soon enough.
 
This tree that Lou calls Mt Etna Unknown sounds like a good one. In 7a it has never had any winter damage unprotected. It's so early that it is ripening at the same time as RdB. I don't know how many people have gotten cuttings from that tree. Seems like one that should be shared with the fig community, if it hasn't already.

 
Found 1 variety, the big celeste

offthebeatenpathnursery.com

Chincoteague Celeste

This is a discovery by Lou Monti. It is an excellent extra large celeste with a distinct berry flavor. We both love it. The mother tree is immense. Excellent figs that do not split.
offthebeatenpathnursery.com offthebeatenpathnursery.com
 
grasshopper said:
Found 1 variety, the big celeste

offthebeatenpathnursery.com

Chincoteague Celeste

This is a discovery by Lou Monti. It is an excellent extra large celeste with a distinct berry flavor. We both love it. The mother tree is immense. Excellent figs that do not split.
offthebeatenpathnursery.com offthebeatenpathnursery.com
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I remember on Almost Eden Plants they had a variety I believe called giant Celeste. They described it as Celeste on steroids. Last time I was at their website I didn’t see it listed.
 
I’ve got a decent sized chincoteague Celeste in 3 gallons going this spring so I plan to grow it out next year in a 10-25 gallon size. Maybe lots of cuttings to share by next fall if that’s the one you’re looking for.
 
ETXfigs said:
This tree that Lou calls Mt Etna Unknown sounds like a good one. In 7a it has never had any winter damage unprotected. It's so early that it is ripening at the same time as RdB. I don't know how many people have gotten cuttings from that tree. Seems like one that should be shared with the fig community, if it hasn't already.

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I’m pretty sure … never had any winter damage until this year.
 
figpotter.weebly.com

Mt. Etna figs

Photo of Mount Etna in Scilly, Italy, where these figs get their name. Mt Etna is the worlds most active volcano. It often has snows on Mt. Etna and the idea that many of these types of figs were...
figpotter.weebly.com

A very well done site that describes some of their Mt Etna's.

mountainfigs.net

Mt Etna

Mt Etna, or Mongibello, type figs are especially productive and robust and go by many names, including: Hardy Chicago, Takoma Violet, Gino’s Black, Sal’s EL/GS, Maryland Berry, Marseilles Black, Zi…
mountainfigs.net mountainfigs.net

mountainfigs.net

Mt Etna Figs and Mountain Figs

MOUNTAIN FIGS “Mountain Figs” is the name I give to robust and relatively hardy varieties of fig trees and bushes, especially varieties with fruit that is early ripening, a crucial feature for area…
mountainfigs.net mountainfigs.net

And of course a wealth of info, Mountain Figs.
 
My sweetest so far has been Chicago Hardy here in Dallas, but the same year I was gifted another CH and it is different and so I am not sure which but they definitely grow differently. I got into th4se alot because many of them can tolerate shade better and so I want to see which are best for half sun or more shaded spots

MBvs die great for me in a shaded hoophouse even when tiny and in a little cup... but it hasn't been as great with more sun though maybe due to neglect ... CH also has great reports in shady locations

RLbv only made a great couple of figs for me one year but is said to love heat I think it just doesnt like pots and also my neglect lol same with Kesarian .. did not like 90s or hotter in a pot

One that I don't think is a true Etna that I think you should grow in this part of the world is Norella... it blew the others away on flavor... but different from etnas though it looks similar ... I had another etna stand out too but I forgot which one but smaller fruits so far, maybe salem dark or Portuguese not sure

Etnas can vary alot in pots but ill admit last year was mostly neglect here so no great reports but I can say that several did okay in half shade... some obviously dont do well with alot of sun and in pots and others such as the CH are more flexible ...

Im trying a bunch of others too maybe a dozen or so in the group... they mostly appear dwarfed and branchy compared to other figs but a couple such as Sangue Dolce Aldos Favorite and one of my CH strains seem to be crossed with more of an upright straigh trunk that form a larger tree but that take longer to start fruiting at first

I should have better reports at the end of this year for Dallas since im focused to keep a regular feeding happening and ill shade this bunch a bit more this year especially in early to peak summer
 
The best ‘Etna’ for you is so dependent on your climate (zone, humidity, potted or in-ground), your taste, and individual tree variation, that a lot if time it falls to trial and error. I thought this video comparison was good—

I have RLBV and Malta Black started this year to bolster my Hardy Chicago. I have had MB before here and it did well until I killed it. RLBV was available so I also got it. (I have grown many strains of HC as well as Sal’s EL, MB, and MBVS but not the more exotic strains). I think researching everyone else’s favorite Etnas will just give you a headache, you have to trial your best shots.
 
scott_va said:
The best ‘Etna’ for you is so dependent on your climate (zone, humidity, potted or in-ground), your taste, and individual tree variation, that a lot if time it falls to trial and error. I thought this video comparison was good—

I have RLBV and Malta Black started this year to bolster my Hardy Chicago. I have had MB before here and it did well until I killed it. RLBV was available so I also got it. (I have grown many strains of HC as well as Sal’s EL, MB, and MBVS but not the more exotic strains). I think researching everyone else’s favorite Etnas will just give you a headache, you have to trial your best shots.
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This is pretty much it. Taste wise, everyone is different, even in one household the taste buds are different. So, it’s a juggling act between what one likes, and what does well in your area.

I love Mt Etna’s, I also love honey figs. What I don’t like is when there’s too many crunchy seeds. My old neighbors, had about 20 fig trees, but they were all the same fig from Portugal that they brought over themselves, it was a good tasting berry (Mt Etna/CH) type fig but man-oh-man did it have was too many seeds! Like a little mouthful of crunchy seeds, I never had the heart to tell them that I didn’t like their figs.
 
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