I asked for experiences growing figs in a recent column. The responses testify to the toughness of the Mediterranean tree (Ficus carica) that bears them.

“Thirty years ago I purchased a fig tree, supposedly a Brown Turkey, at the CSU Fullerton Green Scene. Potted it, and that year had a few delicious, light-skinned, pink flesh fruit. I think it’s actually a White Genoa. It has produced excellent fruit each year. It is now in its third potting, in an approximately eight cubic foot container, and by the looks of the new growth is still going strong. Looking forward to teasing my granddaughter as she raids my little tree this summer.” – Jim Cvitanovich, Seal Beach

“We have two fig trees in our front yard that are over 50 years old. My in-laws started the trees in San Gabriel, moved them to San Marino and then Huntington Harbour. When we tore down their old house and rebuilt on the same lot, we saved the trees during construction and replanted them once we moved in 2011. During the spring and summer, they produce an abundance of fruit that is thoroughly enjoyed by our neighbors, but especially the crows if we don’t get to them first.” – Mary Taddeo

And while this is a long story, it’s well worth your attention…

“Here is my flourishing fig story, or maybe it’s really a fig can survive anything story. Back when my wife and I were looking for a house, I only had one real requirement, which was for the whole yard to be paved. We couldn’t find that, so we settled on a house with a run-down backyard and a 14-foot-tall fig tree. I could see by looking around that the fig was very messy and considered tearing it out. However, my wife saw that the grandchildren had carved a love note to their late grandmother in the tree and felt we should leave it alone.

“That said, I was still committed to trying to pave the yard over as much as possible, so my first act to improve the yard was to encase the fig tree in concrete so I could have a patio. It was at this time, however, that my view on gardening started to change, and I actually started to plant things, and as time went on I grew attached to the remaining yard and the fig tree.

“A few years later we decided to remodel. The plans were designed to protect the tree, but in execution, a third of the trunk and all the associated roots were cut away. The contractor apologized for the mistake but recommended that we remove the tree as it would die anyway. I refused, saying that the house is here to complement the tree. Not knowing what to do, I smeared black tar on all the open wounds and talked to gardeners and nurseries about what to do to save the tree. Everyone I spoke with said that the tree might live on for a year or two but would eventually succumb to the damage.

“Resigned to the tree’s fate, I took cuttings so I could grow back-up trees. The year was 2002. Anyway, nobody explained this reality to the fig, so the tree just kept growing and providing somewhere around 40 pounds of figs a year. What the raccoons don’t eat my wife turns into excellent jam, and I make fig rakija (brandy); my wife’s of Croatian descent otherwise it would be fig grappa. We then eat and give away what is left.

“Over the years, the fig has been the centerpiece of numerous parties and family celebrations, so this story is not really about how you can help a damaged fig tree, but rather how a fig tree can help you.” – Al Basiulis, San Pedro

Avian plundering of fruit trees is a common problem. If you have succeeded in keeping birds from dining on your tree crops, please tell us how you did it in an email.

“A number of years ago, I had a small planter that seemed to have a weed growing that I wanted to get rid of. I didn’t know it at the time, but it was a volunteer fig tree. I tried to kill it. I kept cutting it off at the soil line. I didn’t want a weed to compete with the seeds I had planted. It kept coming back. Finally, disgusted, I took it out of the planter and stomped on it; I hit it repeatedly with a shovel. It survived! Then, when leaves reappeared, I finally recognized it as a fig tree. Around that time, I read an article, I think it may have been in your column, which stated that volunteer fig trees were ‘hit or miss.’ Sometimes they produced good fruit, sometimes not. I figured if this tree could survive all I put it through, I will plant it. It is now over 20 feet tall and has been producing delicious figs — Mission figs I think.” – Dr. Martin Ross, North Hollywood

That’s quite a story but you should feel free to give your fig variety a name of your own choosing. Mission fig and all other named fruit tree varieties are clonally propagated. What grows from the seed of a tree fruit is a new variety, not exactly like – and sometimes not at all like – any variety ever seen or tasted before.

Finally, Rana Azimi asked, “Where can I buy an organic fig tree?” Organic Fruit Tree LA is the nursery you seek. It’s located in East Los Angeles at 663 S. Record Avenue. A large variety of fruit trees, many of them exotic tropicals, are available there. It is open seven days a week, but it’s best to call (213-503-8135) to make an appointment prior to your visit.

“We’re big fans of citrus and grow yuzu (a rare Chinese citrus used for zesting and juice), Meyer lemons and Mexican limes in our little urban LA food garden. We also grow lots of herbs and edible flowers – it’s amazing how much food a small yard can generate.

I’m writing because we have something unusual in our yard. We grew a 60’ x 5’ espaliered passion fruit vine from a seed. The vine produces the largest and sweetest fruit I’ve ever seen. These are the more typical purple passion fruit (Passiflora edulis), not the yellow giants (Passiflora plavicarpa). Once fully ripened, they hold in the refrigerator for about a month. Crazy.

We figured out that the proper amount of exposure for passion fruit is actually part shade. The largest and best fruit are shielded from direct sun most of the time. Vines in full, all-day sun produce small fruit that don’t ripen properly. – Moira Kamgar, View Heights (near LAX)

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It’s noteworthy that readers have harvested impressive crops from a fig tree and a passion fruit vine that grew from seeds. Seedling plants, unlike cloned varieties, are unpredictable as to what they will become, but sometimes the quality of their fruit surpasses that of their parents. The seed Kamgar planted was from the fruit in “a friend’s yard in Laguna Beach, but her fruit wasn’t as big as mine. This vine produces really massive fruit.  I’ve never seen anything like it.”

It’s a good argument, in any case, for planting some passion fruit seeds and waiting to see what happens.

Please send questions, comments, and photos to [email protected].