Desert King Potted Fig Tree

Desert King fig bears large green-skinned fruit with red flesh and is especially useful in cooler-summer fig climates. It is a San Pedro-type fig, so its crop behavior differs from common figs.

Product Details

• Plant form: Potted, own-root deciduous fig tree
• Tree habit: Standard fig; allow space or prune to manage size
• USDA zones: Listed for Zones 5–9; top growth can be damaged in cold winters, and local protection affects survival
• Harvest: Valued primarily for its breba crop on the previous season’s wood, generally ripening in summer
• Fruit: Green skin with strawberry-red flesh
• Pollination: The breba crop does not need pollination; the later main crop generally requires caprification by a compatible caprifig and fig wasp
• Pruning: Avoid heavy winter pruning if you want the breba crop because it forms on last year’s shoots

See the Figs Growing Guide and potted fruit tree planting guide. Compare varieties in the Fig Trees collection or browse all potted fruit trees.

Seasonal note: This deciduous tree may arrive dormant and leafless. Inspect it promptly and contact Customer Service within three days if it arrives damaged or in poor condition.

Protecting the breba-bearing wood

Desert King is chosen chiefly for the crop formed on shoots that grew the previous year. Retain healthy one-year wood during dormant pruning and protect branch tips from winter damage where practical. In cool-summer districts, give the canopy maximum sun and avoid overfeeding with nitrogen. Harvest when the large green fruit softens and the neck bends; skin color may remain green at full ripeness. Where the required fig wasp and caprifig are absent, do not rely on the later main crop. The early crop varies with winter survival and spring weather.