How do I get my fig tree to bear fruit?

Asked by: Marshall Maysey

If your fig tree is putting too much of its energy into branch and leaf growth, rather than setting fruit, identify the new growth branches – they’ll be more flexible than old growth – and pinch off their tips. This setback will encourage them to set fruit, instead.

Why is my fig tree not producing fruit?

The most common reason for a fig tree not producing fruit is simply its age. Trees, like animals, need to reach a certain maturity before they can produce offspring. Fruit is how a fig tree creates seeds. If the fig tree is not old enough to produce seeds, it will also not produce fruit.

How long does it take a fig tree to bear fruit?

three to five years

Harvesting Figs



Some varieties produce one crop of figs each year, while others produce two. Figs typically form on new stem growth each year and ripen months later. Most fig trees take three to five years to start ripening fruit.

What fertilizer is best for fig trees?

A general-purpose fertilizer with an analysis of 8-8-8 or 10-10-10 is fine. It’s easy to overdo it with stronger fertilizers. It’s best to provide fertilizer for fig trees only when the tree shows symptoms of slow growth or pale leaves, but there are a couple of exceptions where fig trees need regular feedings.

How can you tell if a fig tree is a male?

Look for five stamens that stick out of the bottom of the fruit surrounded by petal-less, outward-facing bracts of tissue that’s similar to that of the fruit skin to identify a male caprifig. Stamens do not protrude out of the synconium on female trees.

Should you prune a fig tree?

While it is not essential to prune your fig tree, especially when its more mature, doing so in the early years can encourage it to produce more fruit and cultivate a more aesthetically pleasing tree. ‘Figs are produced each growth season on old wood (branches produced the previous season).

What month do fig trees bear fruit?

Fruit. Fruits generally ripen from August – October depending on cultivar and climate. Some trees produce what is called a breba which are fig fruits that develop during the spring on the previous year’s shoot growth, followed by the main fig crop that develops on the new shoot growth and ripens in late summer or fall.

Is there a dead wasp in every fig?

No. While female wasps lay eggs within a fig fruit, the crunch you experience when eating a fig does not come from those eggs. All wasps have either exited the fig or their exoskeletons have been broken down and absorbed by the fruit.

Does every fig have a wasp?

Figs Without Wasps? Most commercial figs, like the ones you buy at the store, are grown without wasps. While wasp bodies may add some crunch to a tasty fig, you probably won’t find a wasp inside a fig you are about to eat, even if you look really hard.

Why do figs have wasps in them?

The crunchy little things that you notice when eating a fig are the seeds, each corresponding to one flower. Such a unique flower requires a unique pollinator. All fig trees are pollinated by very small wasps of the family Agaonidae.

When you eat a fig you eat a wasp?

Well, mostly. When you eat a fig pollinated through mutualism, you are technically eating the wasp, too. But fig wasps are very small, usually only about 1.5 millimeters long. So if you get a little un-enzymed wasp with your fruit, it’s not really that much when you compare it to bug content in other foods.

Why can’t Vegans eat figs?

Vegans, as far as practicable, should avoid eating any animals or animal products. The way some varieties of fig are pollinated means every edible fruit of some fig varieties contain at least one dead wasp – so by eating a fig, you are eating a dead insect. So far, so not vegan.