What is your earliest fruiting fig? Also what is your best tasting early variety?

FamilyPhishFigs

FamilyPhishFigs

Well-known member
Just wondering what is everyone’s earliest fruiting figs? Also what is your best tasting early fig varieties?

This is my first year figging ( in 7a south eastern pa) and when I was buying some non-dormant cuttings from someone in my area in September they were telling me they have had hundreds of varieties and named a ton I see on everyone’s wishlists, and gotten rid of most of them because he couldn’t get the fruit to ripen in time. I went nuts this year and bought a bunch of trees and had several that I didn’t get to enjoy the fruit from because they didn’t ripen in time.
Since we are in cutting season I figured I’d ask around these parts so that I have some varieties to research and potentially pick up.
Thanks
 
I'm in 7b, Eastern Shore MD. Almost all of my trees are 1st year in ground, started from cuttings in Feb. 2025 and planted in ground around 5/1/25. I consider myself a newbie, so there will probably be more/better recommendations from others.

I got a surprising number of figs for a 1st year plant off of Chicago Hardy, Olympia, and Ronde de Bordeaux.
 
Campaniere is the earliest fig for me. Ronde de Bordeaux is not far behind. In terms of taste, RdB is super good. I think if you climate is suitable, RdB will reward you. I noticed that my RdB tasted meh the first two years or so. In year three it improved greatly. This year they were next level good.
Campaniere is no slouch either. The figs are really dense and super sweet complex berry flavor.
 
Colosanti Dark produced a few fruit before it's first year even though it was grown from a cutting January 2025. It currently is still in a pot and it produced faster than my older trees (2nd-3rd year) and 40 other 1st year varieties that also were in a pot. Marsilles Black VS (2nd-3rd? year) was planted in ground this Spring so perhaps that delayed the fruit production but once it produced it was tasty.
 
All great answers above. A slightly different perspective - you can make just about any fig ripen early if you give it a headstart. I know many fig growers who do that on a regular basis, including one in PA. With this method, it's not unreasonable to have even a lare variety like Black Madeira ripen in June-July. Mine finished ripening by early July last season.
 
Figgin' A said:
All great answers above. A slightly different perspective - you can make just about any fig ripen early if you give it a headstart. I know many fig growers who do that on a regular basis, including one in PA. With this method, it's not unreasonable to have even a lare variety like Black Madeira ripen in June-July. Mine finished ripening by early July last season.
Click to expand...
How early would someone need to headstart a Black Madeira to ripen in June/July? In February?
 
oat said:
Campaniere is the earliest fig for me. Ronde de Bordeaux is not far behind. In terms of taste, RdB is super good. I think if you climate is suitable, RdB will reward you. I noticed that my RdB tasted meh the first two years or so. In year three it improved greatly. This year they were next level good.
Campaniere is no slouch either. The figs are really dense and super sweet complex berry flavor.
Click to expand...
The one big tree I bought this year was an RDB, unsure of the age but it’s gotta thick main leader and is in a 15 gallon pot. It gave me some great fruit this year and I am looking forward to next years fruits. Will have to look more into campaniere
 
Figgin' A said:
All great answers above. A slightly different perspective - you can make just about any fig ripen early if you give it a headstart. I know many fig growers who do that on a regular basis, including one in PA. With this method, it's not unreasonable to have even a lare variety like Black Madeira ripen in June-July. Mine finished ripening by early July last season.
Click to expand...
I am going to try to wake up my figo preto a little early, but my lights may be too tied up with all the cuttings I am starting. Hoping to do so as I didn’t get any of the fruit to ripen in time this year. If I don’t get to taste the fruit next year it might get traded or gifted.
 
Figgin' A said:
All great answers above. A slightly different perspective - you can make just about any fig ripen early if you give it a headstart. I know many fig growers who do that on a regular basis, including one in PA. With this method, it's not unreasonable to have even a lare variety like Black Madeira ripen in June-July. Mine finished ripening by early July last season.
Click to expand...
Yes, that is true. I have noticed that many of the figs don't ripen all that late if they get a proper start in the spring. The ones that got a sluggish start are way later in my orchard.
 
julie said:
How early would someone need to headstart a Black Madeira to ripen in June/July? In February?
Click to expand...
Last year, my completely unpruned Craven's Craving was brought indoors on January 1st, started ripening by early June, and was mostly done by the 2nd week of July, with 2-3 figs hanging a bit longer. The very last one ripened on 7/23.
 
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