Italian Honey Fig Tree

1. Planting: Plant your Italian Honey Fig in an are that receives full sunlight (6 to 8 hours daily) and well-draining soil. You can place a thick mulch around the base of your fig tree to help retain moisture and add organic matter over time.

Figs prefer a slightly acidic pH, ideally between 6.0 and 6.5, but are somewhat tolerant of a range of soil pH so long as it is not overly alkaline.

2. Watering: Water evenly and regularly in the first two years to establish the root system. Once established, fig trees are very drought-tolerant and should only need regular rainfall, but supplemental watering may be needed in exceptionally hot or dry climates.

3. Fertilizing: Potted fig trees usually need regular fertilizing. Use a well-balanced fruit tree fertilizer and apply according to label instructions. Be careful not to over-fertilize because excess nitrogen will encourage growth at the expense of fruit production. This can often cause figs to ripen improperly or not at all. Figs grown in the ground generally don't need fertilizing and can tolerate many soil types, but an organic compost can be added if desired.

4. Pruning:  Prune back dead or diseased wood and redundant branches in late autumn after all the fruit has been picked, or late winter before the tree's dormancy ends. Pruning out root suckers is also recommended as they receive little sunlight and typically don’t produce many figs. Summer pruning may work as well if you want to reduce vigor on your plant.

5. Pollination:  The Italian Honey Fig Tree is self-pollinating, so you will get fruit from just one plant.

Harvesting:  You can tell when a fig is ripe when the neck starts to elongate just a bit and if you tap on the branch next to the fruit you’ll see the neck elongate slightly more. Figs should be almost to the point of falling apart when they are fully ripe. Figs do not ripen much, if at all, off the tree, so picking them at the peak of ripeness is essential to get the best flavor out of them.