My First Year Wrapping a Fig Tree!

[wyanokie]

This is my first year having a fig tree in-ground. In May, I placed a 3-4 year old Pananas Purple tree in-ground, and once winter came, I needed to protect it. Distilling some concepts from research I did about wrapping/protecting, I came up with a plan that included:

1) Rodent protection
2) Dead air space for insulation
3) Minimization of contact between the wood of the tree and any of the wrapping materials, which may cause molding
4) Solid protection against wind

Here's what I came up with:

Step 1: wrap the tree in hardware cloth, buried at least 6 inches below ground.


Step 2: create a frame with a tomato cage.


Step 3: wrap the cage with landscape fabric, and fill the space between the hardware cloth and the landscape fabric with dry leaves to create the dead air space. Note that neither the leaves or the fabric are directly touching the tree.




Step 4: Wrap that in heavy tarp for wind protection. After taking the photo below, I uprighted it with stakes in the ground (it no longer looks like the Leaning Tower of Pisa).


Boy am I glad I decided to wrap it, because this is the first year in quite a while that we're having a real winter! Here's hoping my beloved Pananas Purple survives!

 

[bushdoctor82]

Looks good.

My only comment would be to mulch around or bury the bottom of tarp to prevent cold air entering from below. You’re right on this Winter in NJ; it was colder the last few years in spurts, but for the last few weeks it seems we’ve been getting highs around freezing and lows in the upper teens daily.

Please report back your findings this Spring.

 

[Figgerlickinggood]

You did a really good job. At first I thought you wrapped tarpaper around the hardware cloth then I read underneath it’s landscape fabric. That work deserves 5 stars.

 

[ktrain]

Good work, That will definitely help.
I probably should have done that with mine, but I'm trying to see how well they can survive.

 

[wyanokie]

@Figgerlickinggood @ktrain @bushdoctor82 thanks for the feedback!

@bushdoctor82 I'll mulch around the tree, and report back. Thank you!

 

[bushdoctor82]

@Figgerlickinggood @ktrain @bushdoctor82 thanks for the feedback!

@bushdoctor82 I'll mulch around the tree, and report back. Thank you!

If the forecasted weather is to be believed, we’ll get our first shot of single digit weather in 10-days.

I only covered two out of ten trees, so I’m hoping if the forecast is correct, it’s very brief. I still haven’t found any concrete data, anecdotal or scientific, if it’s the low temperature (somewhere in the 0-5F range) or sustained cold temperature (teens) that causes the most damage and/or kill.

 

[wyanokie]

If the forecasted weather is to be believed, we’ll get our first shot of single digit weather in 10-days.

I only covered two out of ten trees, so I’m hoping if the forecast is correct, it’s very brief. I still haven’t found any concrete data, anecdotal or scientific, if it’s the low temperature (somewhere in the 0-5F range) or sustained cold temperature (teens) that causes the most damage and/or kill.

Hopefully your trees (and mine) live through it. Part of me is relieved that we're having a real winter this year though. Hopefully it kills a good number of the ticks. I love spending time in the outdoors in NJ, and the ticks are brutal, especially in the Pine Barrens!