Q. My Grandfather had fig trees
in Southern California. They were the most incredible figs. He would cut it back to a stump every winter.
Every year it would have tons of fruit.
He would pick a lot of it early in order for the other fruit to get big
and ripen. He claimed that planting fig trees close to a house caused the roots
to grow under the house and cool the roots. His trees were huge. In the desert of Moapa Valley, we have several
fig trees that are old, but they are small, dry, the leaves are burned and they
have been stumped, but only every 2 or three years, not every year like my
Grandfather did. The trees are fed water with a slow drip system and there is
mulch on the ground around the trees. But
the fruits are small and terrible! Many fruits just dry up and drop. They have
no shade and are hit with direct heat. Suggestions?
Fig tree being grown without enough water will look like it doesn't have enough, sparse canopy, little new growth and small scorched leaves and will not produce fruit. |
A. Everything I have seen so far regarding figs and the production of fruit in the desert is focused on water. I have grown over 15 varieties of figs over a period of 25 years in the Mohave Desert and all of them have been productive. Problems with the figs are few.
Dried Fruit Beetle
Dried fruit beetle |
Metallic Green June Beetle
The next problem I had is with the green metallic June beetle. They love fig fruits in particular the white or yellow types like Kadota. They attack and feed on this fruit but the presence is gone in a short time during the summer. I ignore them.Green June Metallic Beetle |
Fig Mosaic Virus
The last problem I have encountered is fig mosaic virus. Not a huge problem but it gets into all of the fig trees eventually. Probably spread by insects from tree to tree. Doesn't hurt the tree and it doesn't hurt the fruit much so I ignore it.Fig Mosaic Virus |
Lack of Water
The really big problem with figs growing in the Mojave Desert is lack of water. Fig trees are big users of water. The tree can grow and look fine with a moderate amount of water. But if there is not enough water the fruits will either drop from the tree early or they will be small and hard, not edible.If fig trees get enough water for new growth it is still possible they will not produce a decent crop of figs. |
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