Q: I have a potted fig tree about 5 feet high. It has borne fruit for the last three years. I put it outside in the spring as it begins to bud and bring it into a garage in the fall before any freeze. The garage is heated to stay above freezing and is usually dark. I plan on repotting it in the spring since the present pot is falling apart. I really haven't fed the tree except for some horse manure. Is there anything special I need to do in transplanting it or any suggestions you could give for its care⢠People are surprised when I tell them it is real and that it has figs on it in the summer and they are quite good. Your thoughts would be appreciated.
A: Congratulations on your successful adventure in fig growing! How wonderful that you have been able to harvest fruit for the last three years. You are doing everything right as far as caring for the tree, though I might suggest you begin using an organic liquid fertilizer like liquid kelp or fish emulsion on a twice-monthly schedule during the growing season only. Since the plant's roots are contained and unable to spread into the soil to access more nutrients, you would be providing them with adequate nutrition without overdoing it.
Not only is it important to repot your fig because of the condition of its current container, but also because every few years it needs a bit more room for subsequent root growth. Choose a container only a few inches wider than the existing one and use good quality potting soil mixed with a few shovels of compost or aged horse manure. Gently loosen the existing roots if they are pot-bound before placing it into its new container.
For gardeners interested in beginning a fig growing adventure of their own, they can follow your advice and overwinter their plant in a garage. Or, if that seems like too much work, they can select a hardier variety like "Hardy Chicago." This newer selection is known to be winter-hardy all the way to USDA hardiness zone 4 and is great for both in-ground and container culture. It does not have to be overwintered in a garage as you do with yours.
"Hardy Chicago" does die all the way back to ground level during cold winters, but newly produced spring shoots often set fruit by autumn, which is not the case with other varieties. You can allow your "Hardy Chicago" fig to fend for itself or, if you want to be absolutely sure it will produce figs, you can wrap in-ground trees with a circle of fencing filled with straw or collected autumn leaves for the winter, or grow "Hardy Chicago" in a pot and overwinter it as you do yours.
