I am very jealous. We have a fig tree in our backyard that every year produces hundreds upon hundreds… that never ripen. Ever. It’s like the ultimate organic tease.

Argh…other than in a newton I hate figs. Actually that’s harsh, I hate the trees. The roots are invasive. The limbs are perfect for rats to get up there and feed. I don’t know how many Mickey, Minnie and friends I blasted out of the tree during feeding frenzies before I got rid of the tree.

I too have an inedible fig tree in my backyard. I have a massively delicious fig tree at my office that makes up for my backyard disappointment, though.

Here’s the thing about the figs that don’t ripen… there’s a tiny wasp, Blastophaga grossorum that three trees varieties need to be pollinated by in order to bear fruit. They are the “Smyrna” the “Caprifigs”and the “San Pedro”. You probably have one of these. Maybe you could get the wasps and release them in the spring when there are flowers….

Will, some fig varieties don’t ever ripen. But often unripe figs are due to stress. If you want your figs to ripen, try covering the soil with mulch and manure out to the drip line.

Growing up we lived in a house in North Hollywood for a couple years that had a couple fig trees, and my main memory of them is that they attracted Green June Beetles. I’d find dozens of them embedded in the figs, chomping away without a care.

I’m pretty sure that the fig I have in my backyard is ornamental. It grew back from being cut completely down by my landlord, so I wasn’t able to really tell if it would produce fruit until it grew in.

I am in San Pedro, though, so maybe it just needs some wasp on blossom action? The wasp thing explains why we’ve had years at Angels Gate where our fig tree was a disappointment, and years where I’ve got more than I know what to do with.

Strange. Our fig tree (15 years old) only ripens late August. We get about 3 gallons and we have trouble keeping up with the eating/canning/and giving away of all of em.
We usually make a kumquat/fig chutney and normal jams that just rock the house. Or grill. You got a good point there.

Here’s how I like to eat figs:

Take some prosciutto and cut it into squares with kitchen shears. Lay the squares on a cookie sheet and bake at low heat until all of the moisture in meat evaporate and you have, in essence, prosciutto crackers. Top each cracker with a dried fig and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

My own recipe, as far as I know (though it is possible that I read about it in the past and forgot about it). Call it Figs a la Samba.

Yum! Figs a la Samba, gotta try that. I love the idea of making prosciutto into crackers. Brilliant!