Espalier Fig IV

My most recent blog post about figs quickly generated lots of good comments. But one comment in particular stood out from the crowd. Check it:

"When I saw the headline I was SOOO excited that finally I was going to see what happened to the espalier you hacked off. What a tease... Please don't make us wait too much longer... Helen"

Well Helen, this post is for you.

On March 15, I did what some would consider a barbaric pruning job of my espalier fig. I sawed off all the vertical limbs just above the very bottom growth nodes. It was a job that even George Washington of great cherry tree chopping prowess would have to acknowledge with a tip of his hat.

Heavily pruned espalier fig on March 15, 2012

I'll admit at first I was a bit worried about the recovery of this fig tree. But at the same time, I was aware that fig trees are nearly impossible to kill. So basically I sawed, then sweated, then decided to sit back and let Mother Nature take it from there.

What does the espalier fig look like approximately 100 days after pruning? You wouldn't even know that I laid my hands on it.

Espalier fig on June 27, 2012. Most of the vertical limbs are nearly 7 feet tall. My dog Scout is in the picture to show you my fierce and formidable fig defender. I trained her so well to protect my fig trees from any number of different predators that she barely lets me near them without a promise from me to share the spoils.

The majority of the vertical limbs are now 7 feet tall, covered in lush foliage, and loaded with unripe figs. I'm also attempting to extend the right-most horizontal arm of the espalier. Last year I accidentally broke it off and it didn't re-grow. This spring, it shot out another arm and I quickly started to train it horizontally.

Slowly extending the length of the right-most vertical limb of my espalier fig near the shed door. I hope to train two vertical growths from this new extension over the next year or two.

Because I'm a bit clumsy, I also accidentally broke off two vertical growths early this spring. I'm still kicking myself about it because one never grew back and the other caused some lasting damage to the tree.

A sad reminder of what dragging a heavy garden hose can do to the tender new growth of a fig tree. Snapped it right off. Now it's just an ugly stump.

This growth was also damaged by a garden hose that I was trying to un-kink. The hose swung up in the air and snapped off the original growth that started in March. This skinny shoot that is now almost horizontal is a second growth. I'm waiting for it to harden off a bit before I train it vertically, otherwise it may break off again.

As a result of breaking off the growth in this second area, I exposed the fig tree's right horizontal limb to excessive direct sunlight due to lack of protective foliage. Believe it or not, a fig tree can get a pretty nasty sunburn and this is definitely the case with my tree. Have a look at the sun-damaged bark.

Sun damage on the right horizontal growth of my espalier fig. Hopefully it will recover. Some literature suggests that you can whitewash the exposed trunks of fig and other fruit trees to protect them from sun damage. Cue the SPF jokes...

Lastly, here are two pictures showing the new vertical growths. The first pic shows the base of a growth, and the second pic is take from above to provide a different perspective.

This year's growth directly above a pruned area. I stripped off two leaves to expose this area for the photo.

This is the same vertical growth depicted in the photo above. Note the figs growing above nearly every leaf. I can't wait for these babies to ripen, and neither can Scout (and every other bird, squirrel, ant, and creature in the yard).

So there you have it, Helen! A post about my espalier fig just for you. Hope you enjoyed it.

March Madness

The madness has set in. Not college basketball madness. I'm talking spring garden madness. Average temps have been consistently warm for the past few weeks, and I think the plants in the yard believe it is April. Enjoy the following picture tour of March Madness at .09 Acres:

Still harvesting Chantenay Red Core carrots from the garden.

This 18.5 oz carrot dwarfed the 14.1 oz carrot I harvested 2 months ago. I don't have the largest hands, but this octopus-like carrot is ridiculous. This carrot is grown from seed I purchased from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange (SESE).

Japanese maple waking up from winter slumber. This tree was a seedling from parent's old house in Virginia Beach. I also gave a second seedling (now about 8 feet tall) to my friends Elsa and Matt in Norfolk.

Gardeners know that mint is extremely invasive. Here is a half-barrel of mint scrambling for more real estate. 

Rosemary. Yum.

Rosemary blooms. Yum?

Cold hardy mache appears as if it will be going to seed very shortly. It doesn't like hot weather.

Arugula in full bloom. I save seed from this plant every year. It's very easy. Just wait for the seed pods to dry on the plant, then cut the flower stalk and shake the dry pods in a brown bag. Voila! Seeds!!

A 4-foot row of various Swiss Chard. This stuff is versatile in the kitchen and grows in all weather conditions.

Ruby Red Chard from SESE.

Kale. I grew my kale exposed all winter. No plastic, floating row cover, or hoop house. Resilient for sure. Try kale soup with chorizo. You won't be disappointed.

Red bunching onion grown from SESE seed sown last fall.

This Calabrese broccoli is destined for pasta with olive oil and garlic.

Winter Density has been the top lettuce producer in my garden for the past two years. The only problem I have is dealing with slugs and aphids that crawl inside the wrinkly leaves. Nothing a little water won't solve.

A row of trellised Fall Gold, Kiwi Gold, and Heritage Red raspberries. These are a must-grow in the Mid-Atlantic and Tidewater area.

Thornless Ouachita blackberries busting loose.

Potted lemon tree preparing to bloom. Looking forward to a better citrus harvest in 2012-13. This past year was disappointing. I only harvested a handful of lemons and limes.

Russian Red Pomegranate (8 feet tall) from Edible Landscaping in Afton, VA.

Russian Red Pomegranate leaves reaching for the sun.

Celeste fig tree (appx. 6 years old) from the now-closed Paradise Nursery. I've pruned this every year in order to encourage a low, wide shrub-like growth. More branches = more figs.

The tip of a Celeste fig tree branch. Notice the combination of new leaves and tiny figs. Some varieties of figs produce 2 harvests per year. The early figs are called brebas.

Another view of the Celeste fig tree. Note the multiple growths on each branch. If I didn't prune, I would have a tall, lanky tree rather than a dense shrub.

My fig espalier at the corner of my garden shed. 3 days ago I pruned off all of last year's vertical growth near the two main horizontal arms. I left a single vertical node from last year's growth in order to allow the new branches to grow from those same locations this year. I will repeat this process year after year. Grow, harvest, prune. Grow, harvest, prune.

Detailed photo of a vertical node extending from a horizontal branch of the Celeste fig espalier. New growth will appear on the rough area of the top portion of the vertical node. New growth will also likely appear elsewhere, but I will prune or rub off the new growth before it negatively impacts the desire appearance of the overall espalier. 

I hope you enjoyed your tour of March Madness at .09 Acres. My apologies for not posting here more consistently during the past few weeks. Work has been eating me alive, and it's great to be back outside again. Wishing you good growing and great harvests in your gardens!

Late September

Late September at .09 Acres is a transitional period in the garden. The fig trees are lush and still loaded with a secondary crop of figs, reminiscent of mid-summer flavors. The slightly cooler weather, ripening pomegranates, and newly planted lettuce and spinach seedlings welcome the arrival of fall.

I put together this photo-mosaic on September 29 to give you an idea of what's taking shape in the yard. Please disregard the sunbathing hairless terrier lounging between the raised beds.

September at .09 Acres in Newport News, Virginia.

If you compare this picture with the main photo in the banner of my blog, you'll notice some pretty significant changes. The fig trees are quickly filling out against the south-facing fence (left). The espalier fig is reaching for the sky agains the shed (back left, near center). The raspberries and blackberries are looking a bit rough after the hot summer (back right). The peach tree has been replaced by 3 small rabbiteye blueberry bushes (right). I've found that peaches are nearly impossible to grow organically in this climate. And the pomegranate tree is flourishing (near right). I've also kept the grass and weeds in check with diligent digging, weeding, and mulching.

The raised vegetable beds look nearly naked, with the exception of a few emerging seedlings. You can see beet and carrot seedlings mid left and lettuce planted at staggered intervals near right. Within 30-45 days I'll be harvesting lettuce, spinach, radishes, and chard. I also plan on covering most beds with hoop houses to extend the growing season. They will also act like outdoor refrigerators keeping plants growing slowly but well preserved even during periods of frost and snow.

Espalier Fig III

It's time for another update on my espalier fig. I planted a young Celeste fig in the ground at the corner of my garden shed about 18 months ago. Since that time, I've continuously trained it and pruned it. My previous two posts (Feb. 8, 2011 and June 10, 2011) show the process from its early stages, both in active growth and dormancy.

The tree has flourished this year and is now almost at or above the roofline of the shed.

Fig espalier.

I am continuing to train vertical shoots at 9" spacing. This is fairly easy to do when the growth is new, but you don't want to try it with very new green growth. I found out the hard way when I accidentally snapped off the horizontal leader on the right arm of the tree. You can see that the right arm terminates well before the end of the support stakes, visible in both pictures. Now I wait for the new growth to transition between green and woody surface before I train it in any given direction.

Close-up of main trunk and arms of my espalier fig.

I cut off the lowest leaves on each vertical shoot to clearly show the main limbs and vertical shoots. I am using green plastic tape (not sticky) to secure the limbs to the wood and metal guides. The tape is strong but somewhat stretchy and doesn't cut into the tree's bark. Periodically I cut off the tape and re-tie new tape slightly looser to accommodate continued growth. The main limbs have thickened quite a bit since I first started training the tree, and the vertical shoots just keep growing and growing. The tree put on loads of figs this summer, but I cut them off to put most of the plant's energy into new growth. Next year I'll leave the figs in place in expectation of a decent harvest.

I'll post more pictures of the espalier fig this winter after it goes dormant and drops all its leaves to show the structural "bones" of the tree.

Espalier Fig II

Celeste fig espalier at the corner of my garden shed.

My Celeste fig espalier is now in it's second year of training and is beginning to look decent. I chose a Celeste fig for a few reasons. First, I had a few available whips to experiment with. Second, it is hardy in this region (7b) so I won't have to worry too much about frost damage. Third, it is productive and can withstand drought conditions once established. Fourth, it grows very quickly. And fifth, it is darn tasty.

I planted the tree a the southwest corner of my shed and started to guide it horizontally in each direction. I hadn't seen any espaliers growing on two different planes so I figured "What the heck, why not?" I selected the strongest shoots approximately 9" apart and encouraged them to grow vertically. I pinched off all undesirable growth elsewhere along the espalier. I screwed small metal eyes into the shed walls at even distances along the paths of the vertical growth. I tied each shoot to the eyes with plastic ribbon when they reached the appropriate height. You can see the metal guides in the first photo just above the top of each vertical branch.

Detailed picture of the right side of the fig espalier.

The second photo shows the right side of my espalier. You can clearly see each vertical growth that branches off the main arm of the tree. I accidentally broke off the end of the horizontal leader about 2 months ago so the plant has not extended as far to the right as I intended. I'm hoping it will regrow from that spot next season. Individual figs are now growing well just above each leaf. It remains to be seen whether or not the ants will use the espalier training posts as a super highway to sugary goodness later this summer. Regardless, my intent is to grow a unique looking espalier rather than to focus on heavy fruit production. Are any of you growing espaliers in your yards for decoration and/or fruit? If so, what types of trees are you using?

Espalier Fig or Stepover?

I've been attempting to espalier a Celeste fig against the corner of my shed since last summer.  It's a young plant so I've had some success with the flexible new growth, but I've got a long way to go.  The following picture shows the tree in mid-summer 2010.

Fig in early stages of espalier training.

When I first planted it I thought "Okay, I'm going for an espalier." Most of you probably know it's a bit more time-consuming than that.  My first mistake was not building a strong framework to guide the plant's growth.  I got lazy and simply dug a few metal supports into the ground and tied down the growing limbs with string.  I know most plants want to grow upward, but I was still surprised when the young limbs were strong enough to pull my supports out of the ground.

Note that the lowest limbs are generally horizontal to the ground.  I say "generally" because the nice lush leaves hide alot of my mistakes. The top 2/3 of the plant grew last summer.  Talk about some serious growth.

I finally wised up this past weekend and built an appropriate "ground level" support/frame for the lowest limbs.  I drove 2-foot cedar stakes into the ground and used a plastic coated metal pole for the horizontal guide section.  I used plastic ribbon to firmly secure the pole to the posts. I then pulled down the wayward growth and secured it tightly (but with enough slack/space to allow for growth without strangling the limbs) to the horizontal pole.

Cedar stakes and horizontal pole to train lowest limbs.

I didn't build a massive structure because I'm still deciding whether or not I want to have a multi-tiered espalier or opt for a stepover.  A stepover is essentially a 1-tier espalier close to the ground.  I'm thinking that I'll probably go with a stepover because individual fig limbs can grow multiple feet in a season.  All new growth starting close to the ground will have plenty of vertical space for full growth. It also means I'll prune the central leader back to the level of the horizontal limbs.  And the greedy ants will likely thank me for creating orderly tightropes that lead to tasty figs in late summer.  Sybil knows that it's a race between human and ant when fig harvest begins!

If I opt for a stepover, I will cut the central growth you see at the corner of the shed.

If you think I'm crazy for considering cutting off such lush growth, you need to check out the following pictures of stepover figs in Japan. They get multiple feet of growth per growing limb each season and the farmers heavily cut back each limb every winter, leaving a unique appearance.

Vertical summer growth from a stepover fig tree trained horizontally.  You can also see small figs in this picture.

Lush stepovers in active growth.

Stepover figs in the fall after leaf drop.  Note the massive limbs that grew during the main growing season.

Here is a set of heavily pruned stepovers.  They don't necessarily look pretty, but they are extremely productive in a relatively small growing space.

What do you guys think of this?  Does anybody have experience with espaliered fruit trees?  Do you have any pictures, links, or suggestions to share?  Let me know, I'd love to hear from you.

Figs!

I'm a fig junkie.  Right now many of you are probably rolling your eyes thinking about grandpa's nasty dried figs.  But if you haven't eaten a fig plucked FRESH from a tree, you don't know what you're missing. I eat them whole, sliced, chilled, and even grilled.  And yes, also dried when not in season, but it's like comparing apples and oranges.  There are many tasty varieties that do well in southeast Virginia.  Right now I'm growing Violet de Bordeaux, Black Jack, Celeste, and Peter's Honey.  I've been growing them for a few years and they are still relatively small.  Violet is definitely my favorite, Black Jack is so-so, Celeste is old reliable, and Peter's Honey is a green fig that hasn't done very well this year.

Unripe Violet de Bordeaux figs.  They are very dark and droop when ripe.

Ripe Violet de Bordeaux figs.  Notice the distinct change in color and size when ripe.

It's actually quite easy to propagate figs by rooting dormant cuttings.  I took cuttings of my uncle's Celeste fig tree late last winter and rooted them in perlite this spring.  Then I moved them to 1 gallon pots and now they are growing like weeds.

2-3 feet tall rooted cuttings from a mature Celeste fig tree.

I'm also growing an espalier fig against the corner of my shed.  I'm training two long branches very close to the ground (much like a stepover) and growing two more branches a few feet up, similar to a traditional multi-tier espalier.  It will take a few years to train the fig for the right appearance, but I'm looking forward to the challenge.  Notice the growth from the left picture (early June) to the right picture (early August).  The tree currently stands about 5 feet tall and is developing nicely.