St. Rita Fig Tree
A real workhorse fig that was shared with us by one of our customers years ago and touted as having an earlier ripening main crop than Lattarulla, and they didn’t lie! St. Rita ripens one of the earliest main crops of any fig we grow, right up there with Ronde de Bordeaux and Improved Celeste. Flavor is similar to Chicago Hardy with a real strong strawberry jam punch to it. Very prolific from a young age and incredibly productive!
One of the easiest fruits to grow, and a true gourmet delight, you should not live your life without feasting on this sweet, delectable fruit. To fully enjoy fresh Figs you must grow your own. When fully ripe and at their tender, shipping them long distances is virtually impossible. Another plus for Figs – deer don’t like them (most of the time)!
Click here to read our Fig Growing Guide.
Latin Name: Ficus carica
Site and Soil: St. Rita Figs do well in a variety of soils, but require at least 8 hours of sunlight during the growing season.
Pollination Requirements: Self-fruitful.
Hardiness: Hardy to between 0° & 5° F.
Bearing Age: 1-2 years after planting.
Size at Maturity: 8-10 ft in height, smaller with pruning.
Taste: Sweet
Fruit Skin: Dark, almost black
Fruit Flesh: Bright red
Bloom Time: Flowers are not noticeable as they are inside the fig.
Ripening Time: Late August-September
Yield: 10-15 lbs. or more per plant
Pests & Diseases: Figs are not bothered by pests in our region. Cover plants with netting if birds are a problem.
Fig Mosaic Virus is a benign virus that exists in all cultivated fig trees. Yellow spotting of the leaves is a cosmetic symptom that shows more in container culture, but is quickly outgrown once trees are planted in the ground. The presence of FMV in all cultivated figs has become widely accepted, as even the national germplasm repository for figs maintained by the USDA has Fig Mosaic Virus. If the presence of FMV is a concern, then purchasing fig trees may not be the best option for you.
USDA Zone: 7