After a few months of pinching the tip on my figs every 3rd or 4th leaf, they are loaded with bredas. Now just wait and see how many of will ripe before Winter comes to town. I had a few ripened last year.
Tony
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Good luck! If that’s Hardy Chicago it should take about 90-100 days to ripen. Improved Celeste and Ronde de Bordeux are earlier ripening and fairly hardy too.
These guys had been in the ground for about 4 yrs now. I believed the varieties were Hardy Chicago, Celeste, Black Mission, and Ronde De Bordeaux. They died to the ground in the Winter and came up in the Spring. I lost all the ID tags. But all the above varieties rootings had survived -18F a foot below ground level.
Tony
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Well, the leaf looks like Hardy Chicago if that helps!
Interesting, I pinched my in ground Hardy Chicago early this spring around 5-6 leaves, but no single figs was grown on entire tree so far! My other potted figs near by, pinch or no pinch regardless all have figs either breba or new crop on the branches. Can’t figure out why
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I thought bredas only on last year’s growth. The figs seems are all on this year’s growth, aren’t they the main crops? My fig trees also all died back last winter and now set with lots of fruits. But I suspect any will mature before winter unless I move them indoor.
The figs on green wood are main crop. Those on brown wood are breba. On a slowly growing tree the wood can turn brown before the fig ripens making a main crop fig appear as though it might be a breba. But any fig that initiates on green wood is a main crop.
Fig on last yrs wood is breba.
Fig on current season growth is main crop.
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Yes, pinch method is for main crop. My in ground Hardy Chicago has some branches survived the winter, of course, grows a lot more new branches this year too. Usually , I will have some main crop regardless. But this year, I did not have any single main crop fig after I pinched 
It seems to me it really does not matter pinch or not, it will grow figs when it is ready. In fact, none of my potted figs were pinched, and they grow figs just fine.
Try to pinch every 3 to 4 leaf. That is seems to work best for me.
Tony
Ampersand,
90-100 days for CH to ripen! Not very good new for me. Hope some will ripen in time.
Mine is in pot. Pinched at sixth leave. Several figs developed after that. Next year, I will try pinching at fourth or fifth leave.
Since you are in Illinois, maybe it’s Union and decided to go on strike. 
Good explaination, make great sense 
I pinched the tips off on my brown turkey this year. Anything else I should do to get it to fruit? May have enough growing season this year since we had a mild winter.
Clark,
Keep on pinching at every 4 or 5 leaf. I would also give them some fertilizer.
Tony
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Tony ,
I pinched them back about a week ago and this is what they currently look like. So far so good?
I’m glad I don’t have that problem. Down here they grow wild with no special care.
Due to fluctuation of our weather in April, my figs are slow to grow. I am counting leaves. As soon as it hits fifth leaves, I will pinch. Not there yet.
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Looking good Clark. Keep on pinching…
Tony
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I just got around to pinch the tips at the 5th leaves of my two fig bushes. These two Celeste bushes grew back from the ground level every year with ripe fig fruits in the Fall.
Tony
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Tony,
Your figs grow way ahead of mine. But I saw tiny figs on Chicago Hardy yesterday even without pinching. I love it’s productivity and taste. Worth growing.
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