Desert King Fig Cuttings — Minimum 6-Inch, 5-Pack

Description

The fig is one of the oldest fruits in cultivation, and ‘Desert King’ (Ficus carica ‘Desert King’) is the variety that made figs practical for cool, short-season gardens. You will get 5 fresh ‘Desert King’ 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 ‘Desert King’ earns its legendary reputation is in cooler, shorter-season climates. It is the top-rated fig for the Pacific Northwest and other mild, cool-summer regions, prized for a large, dependable breba crop — figs that ripen on the previous season’s wood in early summer (often June to July), thirty to forty-five days ahead of the main crop and weeks before most other figs are anywhere near ripe. That early crop sets and ripens with no pollination and no pollinator tree, and the fruit holds up unusually well to rain and humidity, with outstanding resistance to splitting. In gardens where heat-loving varieties like Black Mission and Brown Turkey never get enough summer to finish a crop, ‘Desert King’ still delivers. Rated to USDA zone 7, and — as noted on our Fig Tree Information page — all the figs we sell are proven potentially hardy to Zone 6 with proper care. Because the breba crop forms on the previous season’s wood, preserve that wood through winter (wrap the trunk and mulch deeply) and it will keep cropping. Grow it against a south- or southwest-facing wall to capture radiant heat, or 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. ‘Desert King’ is fast-growing and vigorous, maturing into a spreading tree roughly 15 to 20 feet tall and wide, easily kept smaller by pruning or grown permanently in a container. One note on this variety: it is a San Pedro type, so its prized breba crop is self-fertile and stands as the main harvest — and in cool, coastal gardens it often sets a partial second crop as well.

Expect that breba crop to ripen in early to midsummer on last season’s wood, carried in generous clusters — greenish-yellow skins over striking strawberry-red, jammy, honey-sweet flesh. Whether you want a productive edible tree, a container specimen for the patio, or your first try at growing figs from cuttings, five minimum-6-inch ‘Desert King’ cuttings for $20 is the lowest-risk, best-value way in.

• Common Name: Fig ‘Desert King’
• Scientific Name: Ficus carica ‘Desert King’
• Growing Zone: USDA zones 7 to 10 — proven potentially hardy to Zone 6 with proper care
• Mature Size: 15 to 20 ft tall and wide (smaller with pruning)
• Growth Rate: Fast
• Light Requirement: Full sun
• Soil Requirement: Well-drained; tolerates poor and alkaline soils
• Pollination: Prized breba crop is self-fertile (no pollination needed); in cool coastal gardens it often sets a partial second crop as well
• Fruiting Time: Breba crop early to midsummer (June–July); may also set a partial second crop in cool coastal gardens
• Cold-Climate Suitability: Top-rated fig for the Pacific Northwest and other cool, short-season climates
• 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.