I have had a passalong fig for over 20 years. I was told it was Brown Turkey. This year it is loaded with the secondary crop after the first one frosted out. I also have Desert King and Kadota that I overwintered in 18 gallon pots in the greenhouse and they are both bearing too. I will put them in the ground this fall. I am in z 6b, but the last two years the temps have been more z7. There is one called Chicago that is supposed to be very cold hardy.

Brown Turkey, which seems to be to be pretty much the same one also sold as Texas Everbearing, is the one that has done best for me here in southcentral OK. Celeste is another one often recommended for our climate. I haven't grown Chicago Hardy, but it is supposed to be very cold hardy.

I have had mine in pots for three years, but now have one in a pot so it can go into the greenhouse and the other one is in the ground in well-drained soil.

Some years when we have a sudden very cold spell early in winter before the temperatures have really cooled down very much, you may see parts of the fig tree freeze back. Even if it freezes back to the ground, it comes back fast from the roots. Keeping it well mulched in winter helps keep the roots warmer.

In my part of southcentral OK we almost always have one or two nights where the temperature drops down to zero or one or two degrees and on those nights, the fig trees could suffer freeze damage. Their roots can be a lot more cold-hardy than their trunks and limbs. In the years when we get a night that cold in early December, that is when I see the most damage on fig trees or on any other hardy plant that hasn't gone fully dormant because we haven't had enough cold weather yet.

Figs are simple to grow here, but if you live in the country where there's plentiful wildlife, you'll have to fight them for the fruit. I usually get two crops a year, but my early crop froze this year like Dorothy's did. It was just one of those springs with too many cold nights after the trees already had fruit.

Dawn

Thanks Dorothy and Dawn--that's encouraging! I'll see which of those varieties I can find, and give them a try. I have a planting spot picked out on the south side of a shed, so am hoping that that will give some added protection when the weather gets cold.
Flis

Greenveggielover, I don't know where you are in southcentral OK, but the Lowe's in Ardmore usually has figs in one-gallon pots in early to mid-Spring, around the same time they have blackberries and blueberries. also in one-gallon pots. The last time I bought one I think the one-gallon size was $9.99. At that time of year, they usually are inside the fenced/roofed garden center area so they have some protection from late cold weather. Later on, by early May, the fruit plants usually are outside on the tables on the concrete area outside the fence. I imagine it would beabout the same at most Lowe's in the state, though the timing of when the plants are first put out on the shelves might be different in various regions of the state.

Sometimes you still can find fig trees in small pots right now, and sometimes if you find them at this time of the year, they may even be on clearance. There is no real reason to buy a bigger tree in a bigger container inless you just want to spend more money, Fig trees grow really fast. The ones I bought in one-gallon pots produced a fig or two their first year, a fairly decent harvest their second year, and a really great harvest their third year.

If you want a tree for fall planting and cannot find one locally, you could order online from someone like Bob Wells Nursery or Stark Bros. Their websites would tell you if they have fig trees available for fall shipping and what month they ship to zone 7 for fall planting.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Bob Wells Nursery

Thanks again Dawn! I'm just south of Ardmore, so the Lowe's there is a very good option. In my limited experience with trying to establish trees, I seem to do better with fall planting. So I will try to check out Bob Wells nursery!
Flis