Fig Database is all about simplicity. For this reason, we use mostly the flavor grouping created by Pete R. (AscPete) from OurFigs forum. If you want to see the complete Flavor Group created by Pete, Click here to read his post.

What we use for Flavor Group on Fig Database:

Adriatic Berry - Ranging from lightly sweet to very sweet with berry flavor, yellow or green skin and usually red pulp, with more complex additional flavors developing when fully ripe.

Bordeaux Berry - Sweet, with a berry taste which is rich with a slightly complex additional flavors, when ripe (jammy interior), other wise it has a standard Dark Flavor. Fig flavor can range from none to light.

Honey - Honey sweet, ranging from lightly sweet to very sweet with rich (creamy) and or complex additional flavors. Fig flavor can range from none to light.

Sugar - Sugar sweet, ranging from lightly sweet to very sweet with added flavor from light maple to brown sugar and range from simple to complex additional flavors. Fig flavor can range from none to strong.

Other...

5-1-1: Potting mix consisting of 5 parts pine bark and 1 part each of spaghnum peat moss and perlite.

AF - Adriano Ferreira: The AF strain of the Genovese Nero is attributed to him. You can watch a video of him and or visit his website.

AP - Andreas Pratras from Patra, Peloponnisos, Greece: He sheds a lot of light on Greek varieties and there may be a few fig varieties circulating within the US that are sourced from him.

Baud - (Pepinieres Baud) is in Vaison la Romaine, France. Pierre Baud is known to be one of the most influential and highly respected fig growers in the world.

BC - Belleclaire Nursery: Some variety strains are attributed to this now closed nursery.

BTI - Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis - A bacterium used in the prevention/extermination of fungus gnats and other dipteran larvae.

Capri = Caprifig: An individual fig tree of certain species of Ficus. Caprifig tree only produces male or pollen-yielding flowers. It is a wild variety of fig of South Europe and South West Asia. It is used in the caprification (a method of artificial pollination). These trees are not useful as fruit producers. They are indeed vital as pollinators for other types of figs. The fig wasp transports their pollen to the flowers of other fig tree. Wasps live and breed inside Caprifig flowers and don’t breed in the flowers of edible figs. According to researchers, there is no other insect which can be as successful as fig wasp. They are the best source of pollination. Therefore, the presence of Caprifig is important. It lures these insects for edible fruit production in fig trees.

Common Fig - It is a deciduous, spreading, multi-trunk tree type (unless trained) , also known as Ficus Carica. It grows to heights of fifteen to thirty feet. Though, Ficus Carica was native to the Middle East and West Asia, but now it is grown throughout the world. The fragrant leaves of the tree are 12-25 centimeters long and 10-18 centimeters wide. Unlike other types, it does not need pollination to bear fruit. It bears one to two crops in a single year and produces fruit on the current season’s growth. Because of its less pollinating demands, it is quite popular in the United States.

Cutting - Part of an existing plant used to propogate. Generally, about 6 inches long and wider than a pencil with 3-4 nodes with figs.

DE - Diatomaceous Earth: Often used as a soil amendment and/or as a treatment for ants and other insects. Also used as an absorbent for spills and such. Goes by many brand names, one of which is Opti-Sorb.

• You can learn how to root using DE by having a look at "Radical Rooting -- 100% DE"  ginamcd created.

DFIC - D=Davis, FIC=Ficus: It is the identification system used by National Clonal Germplasm System to track its fig varieties. Sometimes referred to as the Site Identifier. For example DFIC 81 has the common name Genoa White.

EL - Edible Landscaping: A popular nursery for figs and other fruits. Some fig variety strains are attributed to this nursery.

Fig Pop - Is a rooting method used by people that includes your favorite mix and a bag instead of a cup per se. Here is a great article written by Ben B. You can also check his videos on how to:

• Video Method 1
• Video Method 2
• Video Method 3

Fig-Tator - The title only a fig king can earn. He who is above it all. No self given title (like fig boss) can match it's TRUE power of fig collection and or wisdom. A title only Eric holds.

FMD - Fig Mosaic Disease: See FMV

FMV - Fig Mosaic Virus: A common problem with fig trees that can stunt growth and productivity, but many trees overcome the virus with maturity.

Francesco Lorusso - Is an Italian fig-grower who has discovered over 100 varieties of figs. Many still to be tested and few to be collected here in the U.S. Some of his more known varieties are San Agostino, Lorusso #3, Oro Rosato and many more.

FS - For Sale

FT - For Trade

Gene - Refers to Gene Hosey. One variety tied to him is Sal's (Gene).

GH - Gene Hosey

GM - Gorgi M: Gorgi had a very large collection of figs from Malta as well as other varieties. His trees were initially identified with GM and a numbered suffix (e.g., GM-125). Later, some of his varieties were given more common names. For example, GM-172 was given the name Gozo Girl.

Graft aka Grafting - Joining tissue from one plant onto another so that the two sets of vascular systems grow together. Commonly used to propogate plants or to grow multiple varieties on one root system. You can find many grafting items here.

GRIN - Germplasm Resources Information Network

Grow light - Artificial supplemental lighting for indoor growing.

GS - Gene [Hosey] Strain: See GH.

ISO - In Search Of

JFE - Just Fruits & Exotics: Some strains of fig varieties are attributed to this nursery.

JM - Joe Morle of figtrees.net

JOMF - Just one more fig.

KK - Keith Karausky: Most notable for the strain of Black Madeira KK.

LSU - Louisiana State University: In the context of figs, this refers specifically to the LSU AgCenter fig-breeding program. Known to have bred figs many years ago with some introduced to the public.

MA - Mark Albert

MP - Monserrat Pons

MWIMBIBMCA - My wife is mad because I bought more cuttings again.

NGRP - National Genetic Resources Program: See GRIN.

Noob = newbie: Someone new to growing figs and all the idiosyncracies involved.

NPGS - National Plant Germplasm System: A collaborative effort to safeguard the genetic diversity of agriculturally important plants, including figs. The mission of the NPGS is to support agricultural production by acquiring, conserving, evaluating, documenting, and distributing crop germplasm.

Peat Moss - Harvested dead moss that had sunk below the living spaghnum. It is actually the dead, decayed plant matter of sphagnum moss that settles at the bottom of the sphagnum bogs. Dried and ground.

PI - Plant Introduction: Another identification system used by the National Plant Germplasm System to track its fig varieties. For example PI 18847 has the common name of Bourjassotte Grise and is also known as DFIC 339.

PH - Potential of hydrogen - measure of acidity or basicity of aqueous or other liquid solutions. 7 is neutral.

Pinch - to remove the apical tips of growing tips to induce side branching. Usually done during active growth.

PITA - Pain in the Arse

Pleaching aka plashing - Interweaving branches together. Can be used to "fuse" two trees together so they look like one.

PP - Petals from the Past, commonly used on the LSU Black variety.

Pre-rooting - Using any number of methods to get roots started on a cutting. The more popular methods are cups and bags but some even direct plant into the ground.

Prune - to cut off parts for better shape or more fruitful growth. Usually done while dormant. Here is a very helpful writeup and explanation by Pete.

RH - Relative Humidity of the ambient air.

RKN - Root-Knot Nematode: A root parasite that can be a problem for figs.

Root aka rooting - Getting a cutting to grow roots using any number of methods. " Rooting figs is the process of taking seemingly dead sticks of wood and turning them into fig trees". Read more...

San Pedro - This tree type does not need to be pollinated to set a breba (the first crop which grows on old branches and develops properly without cross pollination). But, it does need pollination for the second crop later in the season, which is also known as the main crop. This type actually bears two crops of fruit in one season. The first crop is based on the previous season’s growth, while the second (main) crop relies on the current growth. Just like Smyrna Fig tree, Sand Pedro type also requires pollination from the Capri fig especially for its second growth to produce edible fruits. The farmers and the homeowners stay immensely careful during the second crop process. Since, the lack of pollination from the Capri fig often destroys it on a massive scale and drops the fruits on a frequent basis.

SIP aka SWP - Sub Irigated Planter aka Self Watering Planter. A self-watering container or raised bed planter is perfect for a gardener who is trying to conserve water in a drought ridden climate. Here is an interesting thread you should take a look at.

Smyrna - Smyrna Fig tree produces all female flowers, which have to be pollinated by Caprifig. Pollinating is compulsory of Smyrna. It facilitates this tree to produce ripe fruits. But, these types don’t just need pollination; they need ‘proper’ pollination. Since, if they are not pollinated in a proper manner, their fruits will drop from the tree before they are developed. For that reason, the role of fig wasps becomes more important here. The farmers of the Smyrna tree often put small baskets of Caprifig along with the fig wasps (that Caprifig is hosting) near Smyrna fig trees to make 100% certain that pollination will take place.

Spaghnum Peat Moss - Gathered while live intact dried moss comprised of long fibers. Commonly used in pre-rooting. Long fibered sphagnum moss Heavy fibered, fluffy, clean For any gardening project such as transplanting, growing bulbs, ending soil erosion, rooting cuttings, soil mixes Absorbs and retains 20 times its weight in water, twice as much as a cellulose sponge Use as hanging basket and pot fillers, soil less gardening For soil mixes, it offers excellent root aeration and also used for rooting bulbs, cuttings and swamp gardens Bagged

TC - Tissue Culture: An alternative to rooting propagation that produces seedling like trees. Most in the US are produced by AgriStarts and resold through many nurseries.

TD - Thierry Demarquest is a very well known fig collector in Europe and is becoming increasingly so in the US. His collection, Figues du Monde (Figs of The World), is a nursery dedicated to fig varieties from around the globe, with more than 600 varieties.

UCD - University of California, Davis: Fig variety strains with the UCD heritage often contain the UCD suffix, (e.g. Black Maidera UCD).

UCR - University of California, Riverside: The fig varieties which are from the UCR breeding program contain the UCR prefix. For example, UCR 278-128 is also known as Golden Riverside.

Unknown aka U. aka Unk. - denotes that a variety is previously unknown or may not resemble the variety that it was labeled.

Up Pot - Transplant to a larger container. Here is a huge selection of topics on the subject, posted by members of and on OurFigs.

USDA - United States Department of Agriculture: Also known as the Agriculture Department, is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of farmers and ranchers, promote agricultural trade and production, work to assure food safety, protect natural resources, foster rural communities and end hunger in the United States and internationally.

VS = Vasile Surugiu: Herman2 was his screen name on figs4fun. Hermansur is his eBay name. Some fig variety strains are attributed to him, (e.g. Marseilles Black VS).

WTB - Want To Buy

WTT - Want To Trade

These are predefined searches used often by other members of the community. These are not complete and will changed as more information is entered and or added to the database. If you have a search request, please send us a message with your search list or suggestions.

• Black Madeira
• Eric Durtschi's (Fig-Tator) Finds
• Bluemalibu's (Doug) Finds
• Monserrat Pons's (MP) Collection
• Common Varieties
• Dark Berry Flavored
• Adriatic Flavored
• Sugar Flavored
• California Figs
• Early Varieties
• Cold Hardy
• Produce Brebas
• Dwarf Grow Habbits