Fig Varieties: A Monograph - uri=ucce.ucdavis

378 Hilgardia
[Vol. 23, No. 11
Trees are generally vigorous, developing naturally into a compact, rounded head
(plate 1); terminal, dormant buds are green, as described by Donno (1951a). Leaves
medium, dull to somewhat glossy above, variable, with nonlobed, 3-lobed, and 5-lobed
leaves on the same tree, as shown by Condit (1927); upper and lower sinuses mostly
rather shallow; base cordate; margins serrate to coarsely crenate.
Breba crop none, or fair; fruit medium to large, pyriform, often somewhat oblique;
average weight 52 grams; neck thick, up to 7/8 inch long, sometimes curved; stalk
variable, from short to 1/2 inch long; ribs present, moderately elevated, but mostly
inconspicuous; eye medium to large, open, with thick, chaffy scales; surface fairly
glossy; bloom delicate; white flecks few, but large and conspicuous; color green to
yellowish green; meat thin, tinged with violet; pulp amber. Flavor rich and sweet;
quality excellent; seeds few, hardly noticeable. (Plates 7; 20, A.)
Second-crop figs variable from early to late part of season and under different
climatic conditions; size from below to above medium, or even large (1-3/4 inches in
diameter by 2-1/4 inches in length); weight ranges from 30 to 80 grams; shape spherical
to obovate, with or without short, thick neck; stalk variable, short and thick, or
sometimes up to 1/2 inch long; ribs fairly prominent in larger specimens, or practically
absent in smaller fruit as used for canning; eye medium, apparently open, but closed
within the orifice, often sealed with drop of gum; scales straw color; surface glossy, with
delicate bloom; skin rather thick, rubbery in texture, resistant to injury in handling;
color green in cool climates to golden yellow in hot interior valleys; meat white, or
often tinted violet in coastal climates, as pointed out by Condit (1950); pulp amber;
seeds few, small, seed coat hardly or not at all sclerified. Flavor sweet, but lacking
distinctive character; quality excellent, especially for preserving and canning; skin of
dried fruit somewhat thick and tough. (Plates 12; 20, B.)
Caprified figs larger, grass green; pulp strawberry; seeds fertile. Good for drying.
(Plates 8; 11.)
Early White (syn. Jaune Hâtive). Described by Lindley (1831); his account was
apparently copied by Hogg (1866); also described by Eisen (1888, 1901). Figs small,
turbinate-spherical, pale yellow; pulp amber, not highly flavored.
Edeisi (syn. Blati). Described by Grasovsky and Weitz (1932) as a variety grown in
the Jerusalem subdistrict. Figs medium, spherical, flattened at the apex; neck and stalk
both short; color light green; pulp amber; quality fair.
Florentine. Described by Gould (1923) as a local variety found at Alexandria,
Louisiana, and labeled Florentine; no mention, however, was made of this fig in the
1935 edition of Gould’s publication. Fruit medium to large, pale green; pulp amber.
Fracazzano (syn. Fracazzano Bianco). Described by Guglielmi (1908), Vallese (1909,
with illustrations), De Rosa (1911), Tamaro (1948), and Donno (1951b). According to
Vallese, this variety is grown throughout Lecce Province for its two crops of fruit, the
second maturing into early October if the weather continues favorable. De Rosa
reports that caprification is practiced, but Vallese maintains that the reason growers put