| Variety. | Season. | Color. | Quality. | Size. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brunswick | Early | Violet | First | Very large. |
| Black Ischia | Medium | Black | do | Medium. |
| Celestial [Celeste] | Early | Pale violet | do | Small. |
| Green Ischia | do | Green | do | Medium. |
| Lemon | do | Yellow | do | Do. |
| White Adriatic | ||||
| White Marseillaise | Medium | White | Second | Medium. |
| White Genoa | do | do | do | Large. |
| Turkey | Early to late | Brown | First | Do. |
| San Pedro | Not mentioned |
Other lists agree in describing both White Adriatic and San Pedro as very large white figs of the best quality and very desirable where they succeed, but as being tender and nonfruitful in many locations. Celeste, Brown Turkey, and Brunswick are more uniformly commended for hardiness, fruitfulness, and general utility than any others.[[5]]
USES.
At present figs are mostly used for household purposes, comparatively few being prepared for market. They are eaten fresh from the tree or are served on the table with sugar and cream. They can also be stewed and made into puddings and pies, and when canned or preserved they make an acceptable table delicacy throughout the year. On first tasting fresh figs many people are disappointed and think they will not care for them, but on further acquaintance nearly everyone learns to like them. If picked at all green the fig exudes a milky, acrid juice that has a rank, disagreeable flavor. When fully ripe this disappears, and in learning to eat figs one should choose only the ripest specimens. The beginner will find eating them at the table with plenty of sugar and cream a pleasant introduction. It is needless to commend this method to those who are acquainted with it.
For canning, figs should be picked when still firm enough to hold their shape. To secure the best results they require the use of more sugar than do some other fruits. If undersweetened they seem tasteless and lacking in quality. The amount of sugar used and the method of procedure vary greatly in different households. A pound of sugar to 3 or 4 pounds of fruit would probably suit most tastes, though some prefer the regular “pound for pound” preserve. Ginger root or orange peel is sometimes added to give variety of flavoring, and figs are often made into sweet pickles by adding spices and vinegar. Figs are sometimes peeled before canning, and this is considered to increase their delicacy of flavor. More frequently, however, they are cooked unpeeled and with the stems on, just as they come from the tree. They hold their shape better and look more attractive when treated in this way, and the difference in flavor, if any, is very slight.
Figs are occasionally dried for household use, but as they ripen at the South during the season of frequent summer showers, this is so troublesome that it is not often attempted. A nice product could doubtless be made by use of fruit evaporators, but these are seldom used far South.
In speaking of home uses for the fig, its value as food for pigs and chickens should not be forgotten. Both are very fond of them, and on many places the waste figs form an important item of their midsummer diet. In fact, no cheaper food can be grown for them.
MARKETING FRESH FIGS.
Ripe figs are very perishable. To be marketed successfully they must be handled with great care. It is best to pick them in the morning, while still cool. They should be taken from the tree with the stem attached—great care being exercised not to bruise them in handling—and placed in small, shallow baskets, in which they are to be marketed. In large packages their weight will bruise them badly. The ordinary quart strawberry basket crate is a suitable package for marketing figs. They will carry better, however, in flat trays, holding but a single layer. This form of package is especially desirable for the larger varieties. Figs should hang on the tree until quite ripe and develop their full sweetness and flavor, but in this condition they are soft and perishable and must be consumed at once. For marketing at a distance it is necessary to pick them while still quite firm. This is unfortunate, for though they will soften and become quite edible, they will lack the fine quality of tree-ripened fruit. This fact will always be an obstacle to the successful introduction of the fresh fig into distant markets. When picked in right condition the fruit will keep from twenty-four to thirty-six hours at the ordinary temperature and may be shipped short distances by express. Figs ripen in midsummer when the weather is hottest, and this is one reason why they are so difficult to handle. Like other fruits they will keep longer at lower temperatures. They do well under refrigeration, and by using refrigerator cars it is quite possible to put them on the more distant Northern markets in good condition. This has been done experimentally in connection with other fruit shipments, but it is not often attempted. Fresh figs are not known or appreciated in Northern markets, and consequently the demand is too limited to encourage shipments. It seems doubtful if the distant shipment of fresh figs will ever become a profitable business. The fruit is more perishable than any other that is generally marketed. It can be handled only by the most careful and experienced persons, and even then it is not in a condition to show its best quality. Ripening in midsummer, when the Northern markets are crowded with many well-known fruits, and not being specially attractive to the eye, fresh figs would at best gain favor slowly. The fact that many people do not care for them at the first would be another obstacle in the way of their popularity. Moreover, the fig is a tedious crop to handle, when in proper condition for market. It is necessary to pick the trees over carefully every day during the season, or much fruit will be overripe. With large trees, this involves much labor; the acrid juice of the immature figs eats into the fingers of the pickers and packers, while rainy weather occasions heavy loss by the cracking of the fruit, which renders it unfit for market.
Notwithstanding these drawbacks, a limited demand would undoubtedly be created if the fig were placed regularly on the market, for many people are very fond of this fruit. It is quite possible that in sections especially adapted to fig culture, and favored with rapid refrigerator transportation, the shipment may become a business of importance. When a regular home market can be found, even at moderate prices, no crop is more profitable, as the trees bear regularly and abundantly. The only hope for such a home market, except in the immediate neighborhood of large cities, is in increased use by canners.