Happy (late) birthday! The yard looks great and you got some nice purchases. I cant believe how nice the yard looks aleady! Congrats on the first fig of the year, I got my first in May, but the ants got to it long before I did. Should get about 50 by the time the year is over from my fig tree, hopefully I'll get even more next year. Good luck with the hardy gardenias.

-Alex

The first 15 or so figs started appearing in spring. It should hopefully have close to 50 or so. I got the plant last year as a backup for the one in Dubois for $1 off the clearance rack, ultra late in the year. It was about a 15" twig and I overwintered the pot in the garage. Hopefully it survives. I think I'll protect it this year to get some good wood on it for next year. Do you protect yours? If it's a Chicago Hardy I wouldn't think would have to.

I dont give my fig any protection and it's in a very exposed spot, It's a Brown Turkey Fig. So far no damage, but it has only been through 1 winter and that was a mild one. But I have seen figs as tall as 2 story homes in my neighborhood (and figs are really commonly planted here) so I know that they can thrive in the right spot. I may protect it this winter if I have enough time and enough materials, but it seems like they are pretty tolerant of NYC winters, I have seen some figs that are unprotected suffer from some dieback during cold winters, but the majority of them don't die back even during the cold. The 3 most commonly grown fig varieties here are Brown Turkey, Black Mission, and white figs.
Good luck with yours!
-Alex