Fig question

[Suffolk-Matt]

What would cause this? They are all like it, always have been (50 year plus).

 

Nothing eats them at all.

 

Any ideas?

[Beardie]

If you mean 'why are they hollow?' it's to allow pollination to take place. Figs are basically inside-out flowers with the stamens and ovaries facing inwards. The wasps which do the pollination squeeze in through a tiny pore at the butt end. They lay their eggs which hatch into male and female wasps which mate immediately, the females fly off dusted with pollen to other figs and the males die.

So a wild fig which develops into a fruit will have the remains of several dead fig-wasps inside. Yummy! Fortunately, modern cultivated figs are self-fertile and the wasps aren't required.

[Suffolk-Matt]

Might have it there Beardie, the story goes that the old boy whom use to live at the house planted it approx 55 years ago, Im guessing it isnt self-fertile.

 

The inside is un-pollinated as you say, no colour, completely sterile.

 

Interesting, it came up in conversation while quoting today so ill pass on the info.

 

Thanks

[Steve Bullman]

If you mean 'why are they hollow?' it's to allow pollination to take place. Figs are basically inside-out flowers with the stamens and ovaries facing inwards. The wasps which do the pollination squeeze in through a tiny pore at the butt end. They lay their eggs which hatch into male and female wasps which mate immediately, the females fly off dusted with pollen to other figs and the males die.

So a wild fig which develops into a fruit will have the remains of several dead fig-wasps inside. Yummy! Fortunately, modern cultivated figs are self-fertile and the wasps aren't required.

 

Thats interesting information. Came across a fully laden fig tree a few weeks back and made a proper pig of myself on the ripe fruit. If there were dead wasps inside they sure tasted good!

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

Bit of an aside (blatant de-rail)!

 

2 things really...

 

Second flush of fruits - remove or leave them on?

 

Anyone else seen the biggest second flush ever this year (qty & size)??

[Beardie]

A second flush won't ripen in our short summers. In fact, we barely have time to ripen the first. This may be the reason for the unripe state of the figs in the OP, rather than lack of pollination

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

First flush went from just under, to way over, ripe in the blink of an eye this year. Missed a lot spoiled on the tree, although the flies and wasps had a party!