Violette de Bordeaux Fig Cuttings — Minimum 6-Inch, 5-Pack

Description

The fig is one of the oldest fruits in cultivation, and ‘Violette de Bordeaux’ (Ficus carica ‘Violette de Bordeaux’, also known as Negronne) is one of the finest-tasting compact varieties a home grower can start. You will get 5 fresh ‘Violette de Bordeaux’ fig cuttings, each a minimum of 6 inches long, fresh cut upon your order — five chances to start your own fig trees for just $20, or four dollars per cutting.

Where ‘Violette de Bordeaux’ earns its place is in small gardens and containers, and in cooler, shorter-season climates. It is a common fig with a naturally compact habit, often kept around 6 to 10 feet, and it does not need the long blast of Mediterranean heat that varieties like Black Mission and Brown Turkey demand to finish their fruit. Rated to USDA zones 7 to 10, and — as noted on our Fig Tree Information page — all the figs we sell are proven potentially hardy to Zone 6 with proper care: wrap the trunk and mulch deeply through winter and it will live. Grow it against a south- or southwest-facing wall to capture radiant heat, or keep it in a large container moved under cover for winter.

Figs ask little: full sun and a well-drained soil are the essentials — they tolerate poor, gravelly, and even alkaline ground far better than most fruit. Water regularly while the plant establishes, then ease off; figs fruit best when they are not overfed. ‘Violette de Bordeaux’ is self-fertile (parthenocarpic — the fruit forms with no pollination and no pollinator tree), grows at a moderate rate, and stays a manageable multi-stemmed shrub, easily kept smaller by pruning or grown permanently in a container.

Expect the main crop to ripen from late summer into fall on the season’s new growth, with a lighter spring (breba) crop in many gardens. Left to hang until they soften and droop, the small to medium purple-black figs have rich strawberry-red flesh — concentrated, berry-sweet, and excellent fresh, dried, or in preserves. Whether you want a productive edible shrub, a container specimen for the patio, or your first try at growing figs from cuttings, five minimum-6-inch ‘Violette de Bordeaux’ cuttings for $20 is the lowest-risk, best-value way in.

• Common Name: Fig ‘Violette de Bordeaux’ (also Negronne)
• Scientific Name: Ficus carica ‘Violette de Bordeaux’
• Growing Zone: USDA zones 7 to 10 — proven potentially hardy to Zone 6 with proper care
• Mature Size: About 6 to 10 ft tall and wide (compact shrub form)
• Growth Rate: Moderate
• Light Requirement: Full sun
• Soil Requirement: Well-drained; tolerates poor and alkaline soils
• Pollination: Self-fertile (parthenocarpic) — no pollinator needed
• Fruiting Time: Main crop late summer into fall; light breba crop in many gardens
• Cold-Climate Suitability: Compact common fig — a better bet than heat-loving figs in short, cool seasons, and well suited to containers
• You Receive: 5 cuttings, minimum 6 inches each

Rooting instructions: Fill small pots with a moist, well-draining potting mix and insert each cutting about halfway down, so a couple of buds sit above the soil line. Keep the soil consistently moist but not soggy, and keep the pots in bright, indirect light while they root. Optionally dip the cut ends in rooting hormone first, and tent a loose clear plastic bag over the pots to hold in humidity. Roots typically form in about 4 to 6 weeks; once new growth is steady, gradually acclimate the young plants to full sun before planting out.

For more on growing and caring for figs — planting, watering, fertilizing, pruning, harvesting, and winter protection — see our Fig Tree Information page, and for propagation tips see Rooting Tree Cuttings.