The Fig Tree Guy

A Fig Grower’s Journey

  • My Newest Acquisition: Pastilliere

    My Newest Acquisition: Pastilliere

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    Good golly, Miss Molly! Look at the first cutting—just look at it! It’s HUGE! This is the thickest cutting I’ve ever purchased. There was a tiny fracture at the bottom, but I trimmed it with my pruners. I washed them with cold water and dish soap, then brushed them with a toothbrush. I added a…

  • IT’S ALIVE! IT’S ALIVE!

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    My first blog post was about a fig cutting that I almost tossed onto the compost pile because it was just too small. Well, look at it now! It’s grown a tiny leaf and is alive and well. It took nine days for this leaf to emerge, and the cutting was in water for about…

  • Double Cup When Rooting Fig Cuttings

    Double Cup When Rooting Fig Cuttings

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    While winterizing a friend’s fig tree, I pruned several suckers with established roots. I separated and immediately processed them upon returning home to prevent the roots from drying out. For each cutting, I used two same-sized plastic cups, poking holes in one and placing it inside the other to catch excess water. After adding potting…

  • Pruned a Neighbor’s Fig Tree

    Pruned a Neighbor’s Fig Tree

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    This morning I pruned a neighbor’s fig tree. I’ve been pruning this tree for several years and my neighbor lets me keep the cuttings. As you can see this fig bush has grown quite a lot this year. I brought the branches home, cut them to root them, and although I haven’t counted them, there…

  • Battery Operated Pruner

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    On November 20th, I posted about my new RYOBI pruner. While using it earlier today, I heard a rattling sound coming from inside it. I returned it to Home Depot of Newburgh, and they replaced it. Upon testing the new one at home, I found no unusual sounds. Phew! Please use my contact form to…

  • Green Fig Preserves

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    What do you do with all of end-of-season green figs? Don’t throw them out! I have an easy-to-follow recipe that will use these green figs and turn them into something delicious. You can find this recipe on my YouTube Channel.

  • Processing a few Magnolia Cuttings

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    In its first year, my Magnolia/Brunswick fig tree produced 19 sweet, dormant cuttings, most of which were very thick and full of energy. To prepare the cuttings, simply wash them with clean water, scrub them with a brush, and dry them with paper towels. After that, I mark the top of each cutting with ‘MAG’…

  • My Battery Operated RYOBI Pruner

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    If you have to prune several trees, and each tree has 10 to 30 branches, having a battery-operated pruner is a great idea. The purchase was a bit stressful, but I survived it. I went to a local big-box store where they had them in stock and bought their very last pruner. The box contained…

  • Getting Hay to Winterize Trees and Raised Beds

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    Here I am transporting three bales of hay from the Orange County Arboretum for our suburban garden. I first received permission from the Arboretum officials in charge to make sure I wasn’t stealing. By the way, I buy all of our vegetable seedlings from them every year because they offer such high-quality varieties. I also…

  • Wood Chips for your Garden

    —

    by

    Evan Panagiotopoulos

    I found this amazing mountain of wood chips off Route 208 in Orange County that has been sitting there unattended for a couple of years. Well, I go there once or twice a day with four buckets and a pair of gloves. I fill the buckets and take them home, where I use them to…