How to Grow Fig

What’s a cheese platter without a couple of fresh figs? These gorgeous fruits are best eaten when they’re fresh (they don’t store very well), so it pays to grow your own and pick as you please. Figs grow into medium sized trees, between 3-5m and will produce fruit within 2-3 years of planting. Also, depending on the climate and the variety you choose, you may be lucky to enjoy up to 2 crops in one year! Most trees are self-fertile, so you’ll only need one to produce these delish fruit.

Full Sun with Protection from Strong Winds

Fertile & Very Well-Drained

From Mid-Summer When Soft to Touch & Smell Sweet

Can be Grown Australia-Wide

How to Grow an Edible Fig Tree in a Garden

Step 1

When to grow, from mid-winter as deciduous trees or from hard wood cuttings.

Step 2

Choose a sunny spot with well drained soil. Enrich the soil with Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser. If the soil is clay based, add gypsum and fork in well.

Step 3

Dig the planting hole twice as wide and to the same depth as the root-ball. Remove the shrub from the container, gently tease the roots and cut away any circled or tangled roots.

Step 4

Position in hole and backfill, gently firming down. Form a raised ring around the plant, creating a well so that water will go where it’s needed most. Water in well.

Step 5

Mulch around the base with organic mulch like sugarcane or pea straw, keeping it away from the trunk.

Step 6

Water deeply, once or twice a week, depending on weather conditions.

Step 7

Feed your tree once every autumn and spring with Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Liquid Fertiliser. When flowering and fruiting, feed weekly with Yates Thrive Naturals Citrus & Fruit Liquid Plant Food to help promote fruit production.

How to Grow an Edible Fig Tree in a Pot

Figs can be grown in pots, at least 600mm wide and deep, to allow the roots to spread.

Step 1

Choose a pot at least 600mm wide. Position in full sun and fill with quality potting mix, such as Yates Potting Mix with Dynamic Lifter.

Step 2

Remove the shrub from the container, gently tease the roots and cut away any circled or tangled roots.

Step 3

Position in hole and backfill, gently firming down. Water in well.

Step 4

Mulch around the base with organic mulch like sugarcane or pea straw, keeping it away from the trunk.

Step 5

Water deeply, once or twice a week, depending on weather conditions.

Step 6

Feed your tree once every autumn and spring with Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser. When flowering and fruiting, feed weekly with Yates Thrive Citrus Liquid Plant Food to help promote fruit production.

Edible Fig Tree Growing Tips

What is the Best Fertiliser for an Edible Fig Tree?

Feed edible Fig trees with Yates Thrive Natural Fruit & Citrus Organic Based Pelletised Plant Food.

yates-thrive-natural-citrus-fruit-organic-based-pelletised-plant-food

Yates 1.5kg Thrive Natural Citrus & Fruit Organic Based Pelletised Plant Food

Available in-store only

Can Edible Fig Trees be Propagated & How?

Figs can be propagated very easily. In late autumn take hardwood cuttings, between 20-30cm long with several nodes. Plant the cutting in a free draining propagation mix like Yates Seed Raising Mix, make sure you cover a couple of the nodes. Water in well and keep the soil moist.

Yates 15L Seed Raising Mix

Available in-store only

Are Edible Fig Trees Frost Tolerant?

Edible Fig trees can be grown Australia-wide, however, they do need protection from frosts, especially when young. You can protect young trees with fleece or hessian, and by spraying the leaves with Yates Waterwise DroughtShield.

Yates 750mL Waterwise DroughtShield Leaf Protectant Ready-to-Use

$18.19

How Often Do Edible Figs Crop?

Some varieties of figs crop twice – a light crop (known as breba) in on last year’s wood and a heavier crop, which forms at the base of the current season’s growth.

Do I Need to Prune an Edible Fig Tree & How?

Figs will respond to a light prune in winter, but make sure you keep some of the old wood to avoid cutting off future fruits. Ensure dead and diseased wood is removed to prevent spread of fungal or bacterial issues. Well-established, mature trees may need to be pruned a bit harder to promote new growth.

When Are Edible Figs Ready for Picking & How to Pick Them?

Edible Figs are usually picked from mid-summer. Pick when they are soft to the touch and smell sweet. Only pick figs when you need them as they won’t continue to ripen once picked. As they can bruise easily, it’s important to handle them with care. To pick the fruit, twist the stalk carefully so you don’t damage the fig.

Edible Fig Tree Varieties

Black Genoa

‘Black Genoa’ has dark skin and red flesh.

White Genoa

‘White Genoa’ has pale-green skin and creamy flesh.

Brown Turkey

‘Brown Turkey’ is a prolific cropper with dark-skinned fruit.

White Adriatic

‘White Adriatic’ has green-brown skin and yellow flesh. It is a smaller fig, but excellent for making jam.

Common Problems of Edible Fig Trees

Scale

Look for lumps and bumps on stems and leaves. Keep plants well cared for by watering and feeding, and spray with Yates Nature's Way Citrus & Ornamental Spray.

yates-750mL-natures-way-citrus-ornamental-spray

Yates 750ml Ready To Use Nature's Way Citrus And Ornamental Spray

$18.11

Fruit Fly

Fruit Fly - look for pin-sized holes in fruit, often found with larvae in fruit. Best to try Yates Nature's Way Fruit Fly to control.

Yates 200ml Nature's Way Fruit Fly Control

$36.41

What is Chewing My Fig Leaves?

There are a variety of leaf-chewing pests that attack Figs including Caterpillars, Grasshoppers, and Beetles and their larvae.

If you find the surface of the leaf is chewed and the veins are left behind - a process known as "leaf skeletonising" - then the issue is more so a Beetle or Beetle larvae. The larvae of Fig Leaf Beetles look very similar to Caterpillars, however, unlike Caterpillars that have hind legs (prolegs), Beetle larvae have no hind legs.

Fig Leaf Beetle (Poneridia semipullata)

Damage from Fig Leaf Beetle Feeding

How to Prevent Fig Leaf Beetle Attacking Fig Trees

To prevent Fig Leaf Beetle, improve the health of the tree by keeping them well watered and fed.

Regularly monitor trees for adult Beetles - if you see any, pick them off by hand and squish them underfoot.

Borers

Borers are the larvae of Moths, Butterflies and Beetles. These grub-like pests chew the hard wood of plants and cause holes in the trunk. There is no effective chemical control for Borers.

Borers generally attack poorly cared for or old tress. To prevent attack, keep plants well water and fed.