My huge fig tree has hard green medium gumball size fruit all over it. They don’t seem to want to get any bigger than that. I had the same problem last year. But the previous year we picked 400 in a day, and those were just the ones we could reach. It’s 20’ tall!
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Assuming you are in the northern hemisphere those look normal for this time of yr. They should start to ripen up in 4-8 weeks. Figs are like peaches. They have a stage where they just sit there at the same size. Then they begin to swell and ripen. Mine look just like yours at the current time.
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A lot of fig varieties can take up to about 90 days for their fruit to ripen, almost 13 weeks, 10 weeks is the fastest they can ripen depending on variety, these times I speak of is from when a tiny fliglet first shows up to ripe, you may not even notice the figs until they are much bigger than the tiny figlets. It will be at least July or August until those figs start ripening.
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I’m in SC on the Coast. We haven’t had a lot of rain. I am mostly worried I will go two years in a row without ripened fruit 
I’m on the coast in SC. I’ve never waited until mid summer. But I’ve also had so little rain this year. We will see. The change of seasons has been slow so maybe the tree is just following.
Here in North Carolina none of our fig trees had the first ripe crop of the year yet, I don’t think that we have ever had first crop figs of the year before mid June before, once we even had a first crop of the year fig ripen in November. That is very very rare, yet it can happen if the tree is slow to start producing for the year. This year that fig tree is going to have figs earlier than ever, all other years it was a late cropper.
One of our fig trees took it’s 10th season in the ground to have ripe figs ‘not the tree mentioned above’, and all figs on the tree before that either did not have time to ripen or they aborted before ripe. That is very very rare, yet it can happen. One year that fig tree had over 40 aborted figs, no ripe ones.
Because they’re not ready yet. They will ripen. Be patient.
Figs don’t grow a little bit each day. They grow to the size you have, then sit forever. Then they will begin growing/changing color when they hit their programmed time of the year. For some fig varieties, that time is earlier. For other fig varieties, it is later. It is all controlled by the genetics of the particular cultivar you have as well as how much heat/sun it has accumulated. So in a colder location, that ripening time is going to be further back, if you were to decide to dig up your tree and move it to a colder state in the US.
We are also on the SC coast (near MB). Our productive figs are at same stage. The late cold in April killed the breba crop and the main crop is late and the added drought does not help. But this rain now should put the figs back on track. Don’t fertilize too much or the plant will try to grow instead of making delicious figs.
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JoannieH
That is so helpful to know from someone just up the road. I’m in MtP. The rain somehow skips this part of Chas. It hits the entire section on 17 on the south side of the city and it hits inland up I-26. Then as it comes together over the Wando and Cooper rivers something on the air always seems to take the storms and send them north to Awendaw. I want that rain so badly.
I have an arborist coming tomorrow. I’ll let you know what he says.
Thanks again
Renee and my humongous Tree
2 yrs ago this tree had 3 crops in one year. Spring and two summers. That was the year we picked 400 in a couple days. Those were just what we could reach. It’s 20 years old. I’ve been in this house for 10 years and knew the previous owners. Since I’ve been here, last year is the only year I didn’t get an edible crop. The tree is so big I pick 2/3 up the back from out of my bedroom window. I pull branches to myself and as I pick I drop them to someone below with a basket. I don’t even eat them. People come from all over to pick and take home to their families. It is just a joy to watch.
Ripening has not been a problem anymore!
500 figs were picked last week. I left town for three days and the birds had a field day. I picked 150 right as I walked back in the door. That was maybe 1/8 of the tree. Tomorrow should be fun out there.
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So envious. We have one fig that has ripened but our trees are loaded.
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I won’t see anything from my Celeste for another month.
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My two year old in ground White Marseilles just set some figs but I’m skeptical as to if any will ripen.
I made it to 1000 figs picked from my one tree!!! Actually at 1003. I just can’t believe it. I looked at it this evening and there is even more picking to do.
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Any evidence that keeping figs well watered will hasten ripening?
Or pruning ends of branches?
My Chicago Hardy Fig… has 10 shoots 8 ft tall now and figs all over it. Most are still quarter sized… I am getting impatient too… so ready for some to get ripe. Hopefully soon some will start ripening. We got figs last year until Dec 3 after they started ripening.
TNHunter
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I’m in zone 6b, so we don’t have as much time.
But same here …shoots are 8-ft high, with no sign of stopping,
and loaded with quarter size figs.
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My tree is so huge I would put a rainbow sprinkler on underneath it, turn the water to full power and leave it for an hour 2-3 days a week. I only did it because we were having such a dry summer. So to answer your question, I don’t think extra water helps, just the water it’s used to getting.
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