Hardy Fig Tree Care 101

This page is an introduction to taking care of your Hardy Fig Tree. We are only presenting the minimum you have to do to have some success. This is based on what we learned and on our experience. This is specific for growing figs in containers! The varieties we grow and sell are zone 6 hardy, which means they would die in KW's zone 5b's winters. There are some experiments to grow Chicago Hardy outdoors here, but that's not what this page is about.

Note that you can always optimize for production, for looks, etc. The internet is ripe with information! Besides awesome YouTube videos, you can find more information in FigBig, Epic Gardening, Attainable Sustainable or StarkBros, for example. If you have questions, OurFigs has a great Forum!

TL;DR

• Get a 3 gallon pot, add 2/3 potting mix and 1/3 compost. Transfer your fig tree to the pot.
• Bring it outdoors slowly for a week, slowly increasing the amount of sun exposure. Then leave it in full sun.
• Water when the soil is very dry, but don't let water stand.
• In the fall, when it looses its leaves, take to a dark, cold place like a garage.
• In the winter, prune it back into the shape you desire.
• When it wakes up in spring, bring back outdoors, slowly, and take care to avoid cold spells and frost.

First Spring/Summer

• The Fig Tree Sapling you will receive was rooted from cuttings over winter. You must slowly harden them off outside. This means for around a week, take them outside in the shade when it's not too cold. This will make their new leaves get used to wind and light. Slowly introduce them to sun.
• Initially, make sure to water your pot from below (prevents mould from developing). Just put the pot on a deep plate with water for a couple of hours. The pot will suck the water and get moist. Then throw the remaining water away. Do this when you feel the top is very dry and the pot is light, usually every 2 or 3 days.
  
• Depending on when you got your sapling, it will be ready for a new pot. You don't have to go very large in the first year, a 3 gallon pot is enough.
• Figs like moist soil, but they do not tolerate standing water. Thus, make sure to water them plenty, especially during dry spells. Use 2/3 of a lightweight potting mix (e.g. peat moss, vermiculite, etc) and 1/3 of compost for nutrients. This mix drains very well and is also light, so you can carry the pot around with ease.
• You may want to add fertilizers for better production (in subsequent years). In spring its good to go heavier on Nitrogen to push for plant growth. In the summer, use a more balanced fertilizer to promote fruit growth.
• Figs love sun! Whenever possible, put them outside in the sun! But they don't like frost and cold. So if the forecast is for snow or low temperatures, bring them inside, especially in early spring.

Fall/Winter

• In the Fall, the fig tree will go dormant. There's some debate on when exactly to take them indoors, but a rule of thumb is when they loose their leaves. This is how our fig trees look like when they go into our garage late in fall.
• You have to keep them in a dark, cold (-2C to 5C) place. We keep them in our garage. It's important that it's dark otherwise they will wake up too early in the spring.
• Water them very little, once a month, just to keep the soil a bit moist. It's better to err on less water or the roots may rot.
• At some point in mid-winter you will want to prune them. We prune for form (try the goblet shape!) and to keep them small and healthy. Remember that only new growth produces figs, so you can use the first years to create a permanent structure and always prune back to it. You can also try to propagate your figs from the cuttings you made! These are our figs in the garage after pruning, including 3 smaller first year ones, and some cuttings we took while pruning.

Next Spring

• You will notice that your fig will start to wake up in the beginning of April, depending on variety, pruning and storage conditions. Once they have leaves, you will need to take them outdoors or they will grow weak. Make sure to bring them back indoors if it gets too cold or if there's frost coming! Taking them out and in again is called "The Spring Fig Dance"!
• At some point you may want to transfer your tree to a larger pot. You can go as large as you want, but remember that it makes it harder to move! Some people say 5 gallon pots are the ideal.
• Every few years you can remove the fig from the pot, prune half of its roots and repot with new soil. This will make sure the tree is not root-bound in the pot and will keep it vigorous. There are easy to find youtube videos with lots of details.

 And finally, this is how our 2022 spring saplings are looking like in early April.