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red454

Reviving fig cutting

Red454
11 years ago

I received a fig tree/cutting from a friend this winter. last year he said it did fruit and when i got it it still had a few dry leaves on it. ive re-potted it from the small nursery pot to a larger one. it is about 2' tall and just a single stick with no branches. what can i do to revive it? taking into account it is an indoor plant and was cared for very poorly this winter it was dry as dry could be when i got it

Comments (10)

  • fignewbies
    11 years ago

    Hi,

    It looks really dry! You can give some water to it but
    don't overdo it. I was told by someone who has
    30+ variety of figs that a fig tree can be killed if watered too much!

    Good luck!

  • Red454
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    i water it 2 times a week or when i see it is dry the other times it is moist because i dont want to over water it.. only time i kind of over watered it was when i first got it because it hadnt seen water in over 6 months because my friend heard you shouldnt water it during the winter even then it was only really wet for about a week then i re-potted it

  • frankcbd
    11 years ago

    The top half looks dead. It's not good when it turns black. See what happens in the next month or so.

  • soaht
    11 years ago

    Might still be dormant if you still have cold weather. Do a scratch test by using a knife and scraping the top portion to see if it's still green. Green=still alive, brown and dry=dead then do it to a lower part below and if the top is indeed dead just cut it off. There will be new growth soon from the lower part that isn't dead. Figs are pretty hardy, just when you think it's dead and a few months later new growth will surprise you. So just wait it out and see what happens next.

  • Red454
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    i have it indoors if that makes a difference? i figured that black stuff was dead.. i am getting green when i scrape back the top layer of bark just past the bend, if i go deeper get brown so i dont want to mess it up more.. ill trim the dead off and see what happens.. i dont want to trim 8 inches off it every year tho it is still a cutting so if it doesnt branch out ill have a stump in a year

  • soaht
    11 years ago

    Yep, just cut off that dead part and don't worry figs respond well to pruning. There should be branching once the new growth starts.

  • soaht
    11 years ago

    Did you also check the root ball when you repotted the cutting? If it is black then it will most likely have died since you also mention the wet and moldy easily peeled bark at the base. If it's still white/brown then there might be a chance it's still alive and will take a longer time to recover. If you don't mind just any kind of fig then ebay has some cheap ones that are only $6.99 for 1 1/2 year old brown turkey variety. Almost as big as yours and should produce this season.

    Here is a link that might be useful: brown turkey fig

  • Red454
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    ya the root when i pulled it out was black with a white mold like substance all over the main root.. its gone now.. i found out the nursery so after shipping and customs to get one shipped to canada it costs about the same

  • fignewbies
    11 years ago

    Hi,

    If you still want to grow fig and don't want to deal with
    the custom issue, you can order fig plants from the following
    companies:

    http://figsforlife.ca/catalogue/figs/
    A nursery in BC.

    http://brugmansia-quebec.com/Catalog 2013.html
    This one is in Quebec.
    I've order 4 figs from this company so I am waiting
    for my plants in May.

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