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Mature fig tree wanted
moneyistooshorttomention
Posts: 17,940 Forumite
in Gardening
Thought it would be simple to find a firm supplying a large mature fig tree.
Found a firm easily and price is probably the correct one for the size - but they have absolutely outrageous delivery charges:eek::eek::eek:. A 3 figure amount or not far off just for a delivery that one expects to pay about £5-£10 for!! I don't think so.
Checking out other firms and their delivery charges are much more normal (ie around £5 - even for large trees/even for outside London) - but they seem to be "out of stock" currently.
Does anyone know of a supplier of good-quality mature fig trees - with normal level delivery charges and that arent currently "out of stock" please?
Found a firm easily and price is probably the correct one for the size - but they have absolutely outrageous delivery charges:eek::eek::eek:. A 3 figure amount or not far off just for a delivery that one expects to pay about £5-£10 for!! I don't think so.
Checking out other firms and their delivery charges are much more normal (ie around £5 - even for large trees/even for outside London) - but they seem to be "out of stock" currently.
Does anyone know of a supplier of good-quality mature fig trees - with normal level delivery charges and that arent currently "out of stock" please?
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Comments
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What counts as "large"? They are really fast growing; the cuttings I put in here two years ago are now four foot and bushy, while the pot-grown one that was four feet tall/wide is now the size of a transit van.
Do be aware: a mature one is probably three times as likely as a small one to die soon after arrival, and the cost of that death is, obviously, much, much harder to bear.
As to suppliers, I'd strongly suggest you source one locally. And, yes, there are suppliers out in wildest Wales. They'll advise on type. The commonest, Brown turkey, does not appreciate wind and rain...0 -
Ah right - obviously there is the weather problem here and I was thinking Brown Turkey might be the best bet.
I've been googling and unable to find anything saying how fast they grow - so it's reassuring to know they are fast growers (as that's what I want).
What type of fig would you recommend for the wind/rain in this area? I would say my garden possibly wouldn't be described as particularly windy by someone that is from this area - but it's very windy by my standards iyswim.
EDIT; Ideally - I'd like to get one that was around 7'/8' high at the outset (and...yes...I know mature plants cost more - but there's a couple of neighbouring windows I'd like to block out of sight asap).0 -
PS; A supplier locally tells me they can sell me a "Brown turkey" fig tree and am wondering all round whether I should go with it or no (as they know what this area is like and have seen my garden).
They say it's 2.5 feet tall at the moment is all......so....:think::think:0 -
Brunswick does better in wet climates, I believe, and has a longer growing season than Brown turkey. I have a few varieties, but they are growing against a South facing wall, and we are dry here. Well, except when it floods!
If you get a smallone, you could get two varieties. It might take a year longer to block that window, but it would cost less, and one will be better than the other.0 -
Getting anything that is mature, tree-sized and growing transported will be expensive. If it's not dormant and won't fit in a box, it will need special handling of the sort carriers don't do at standard rates.
That's why those of us who buy big stuff did it some months ago. :A
But buying big isn't great. My wife bought a large fruit tree from a fancy nursery, which cost 8x more than the small one I bought mail order. Now, 3 years on, I have the better-shaped tree and it's giving the bigger one a run for its money....
Figs are easy to propagate. I stick bits of mine in the polytunnel border and most of them grow. No idea what it is, but I suspect 'Brown Turkey' which has an AGM....just saying.
Up in the little town, every other house seems to have a fig tree. At 500' you'd think it not the best place to be the fig capital of Mid Devon, but then most of the houses have walled gardens. Ideally, figs should be up against a wall. They're also not a great thing to block a view, because they're deciduous and the branches are quite sparse.
I'm sticking one of mine against the south wall of the barn this year..... once I've got through the 157 other jobs. Even in a wet, windy area, there are places where the microclimate is that of a location somewhere else. The barnyard is in Salcombe.
Pity the house isnt! :rotfl:0 -
Where I've got in mind to put it is in a corner and south-facing direction against a wall. I gather figs may or may not be deciduous - and, obviously, my biggest privacy concern is in the warmer months of the year - ie when I might have decided to sit in my garden.
Just about to ring Local Nursery I know that's been here before and remembers my garden and say "I was thinking of putting one in such-and-such place. Whadya think?"
I know my garden has a weeny bit better microclimate than some other parts of this town - as I go from being "blown around" in it sometimes to "blown to bits strongly" at those times just walking into the next road over - so hopefully it's worth my while taking a punt on buying a smaller one and hoping it grows fast (with my usual combination of throwing everything but the kitchen sink at it to help it grow).0 -
Some members of the family ficus may be evergreen, but the figs for eating are definitely deciduous. They leaf-up pretty quickly in spring.moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »I gather figs may or may not be deciduous - and, obviously, my biggest privacy concern is in the warmer months of the year - ie when I might have decided to sit in my garden.0 -
Deciduous in this ckuntry. A!so, not the best in windy conditions, as leaves will rip and look ugly.0
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Fingers crossed then...but it is only a small (ie cheap) tree - so not large amount of money at risk of going down the drain then.
I've been talking to a "local" here that lives in a noticeably worse microclimate in this area than I do (ie lots more wind than I have in my house etc) and they tell me they've got one in their garden and it's doing okay. According to them - it may not look like I'm used to seeing fig trees look (ie the ones I'm picturing back in my home area are very large and lush) - but should be perfectly presentable. Fingers crossed that local definition of "presentable" is the same as my definition of "presentable" (having found local definitions of "good weather" and "big shops" are very different to mine LOL).
I'm guessing I should be okay - as they are telling me here that I can't have my grapevine here I always knew I'd have - wah! So - hopefully they're being accurate when they tell me I can have my fig tree I also always knew I'd have...0 -
Figs are notoriously variable in quality. I have a neighbour whose lifelong ambition was to have his own fig producing tree... and who tried supplier after supplier, both local and national, all with useless results.
In the end, he obtained one for free from his local Freecycle and is very happy with it... after spending a fortune on duds...0
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