Grow Fig Tree Indoor

How to Grow a Fig Tree From the Fruit – Step To Step Guide

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I’m sure there’s hardly anyone who dislikes this delicious fruit, especially when mixed with honey and lemon and cooked on a stove.

While it’s very tasty, it also can be a bit tricky to grow, and if you’re reading this, it means that you want to learn how to grow a fig tree from the fruit indoors.

It’s always better to have your own organic tree that will give the most delicious and healthy fruits.

Even though the process may be long, it’s definitely worth it.

While you can plant your fig tree either from a cutting or a young tree, the most challenging process is to grow them from the fruit.

1. Choose The Right Seeds


This is the most important thing when learning how to grow a fig tree from the fruit. Only female fig trees will give edible fruits while the male ones will only grow as a beautiful, tall tree with inedible fruits. Now you see why growing a fig tree from the fruit (seed) can be a bit risky.

That’s why I recommend choosing and germinating more than one fig seed, because in this way at least one of them will hopefully be a female tree and give edible fruits, while you can always enjoy the beauty of male fig trees – the more, the merrier!

2. Take Out The Seeds From The Fruit


You will need a bit of patience for this part because as you already know the fig seeds are very small and delicate and that’s why it takes time to get them out of the fruit and decide which ones are viable because only those will grow to give fruits.

  • The first thing you should do is soak a fresh fig fruit into a bowl of water and leave it there up to 48 hours
  • When they become soft you can use your hands to pull them apart and release the seeds and the pulp
  • Swirl the water and the viable seeds will sink
  • Leave everything like that for another 24 hours
  • Remove the seeds that are floating because those are not viable
  • Remove the pulp
  • Use a strainer and a coffee filter to hold the seeds once you pour the water from the bowl
  • Your viable seeds are ready for germination

3. Germination


After you’ve taken out the seed, you should plant it as soon as possible, preferably right away while the seeds are still moist because they’re most likely to germinate faster.

  • Take a nursery planter with drainage holes and fill it with the damp bonsai mix because in a regular potting mixture the seed could develop mold
  • Place the seeds on top of the soil and press them gently, without covering them with the mixture
  • Put a transparent plastic wrap on top of the planter because this will create humidity that fig seeds need in order to germinate
  • Place the nursery planter next to a very sunny window or under grow lights if the area you live in is mostly cold
  • Water the seeds every once in a while. The best indicator is the condensation on the plastic wrap – when there’s less or no condensation, it’s time to water the seeds
  • The seeds will need two to eight weeks to germinate, depending on the temperature
  • Once you notice the tiny sprouts, you can remove the plastic wrap for a few hours every day in order to help them adapt to the surrounding air and humidity

4. Replanting Baby Plants


When you notice that every sprout has four leaves, it’s time to transplant every sprout into a separate container with draining holes – seedling pot.

  • Fill half of each pot with the conventional potting mixture for all purposes (plants)
  • Carefully take out the seedlings from the nursery pot minding the roots because they are fragile in this part of the growth
  • Place the seedlings into the new pot, always making sure that the roots are safe and that they don’t bend too much
  • Fill the rest of the containers with the same soil mixture
  • Water the seedlings

5. Keep The Seedlings Exposed To Lights


Since they are delicate, you should keep the baby plants indoors if you care about how to grow a fig tree from the fruit successfully. Keep the planters next to a sunny window, or you can again use the grow lights if there’s not enough sunlight.

The seedlings should be exposed to the sunlight (or grow light) for about 14 hours every day, and then they can have their dark time to consume the previously created energy.

Fig seeds

6. Watering


When it comes to watering this plant when figuring out how to grow a fig tree from the fruit at home, I’ve noticed that a fig tree requires a different watering schedule depending on the stage of the growth.

Having said that, it’s important to know that during the germination, you should water the soil and the seed practically every day because the potting mixture needs to be damp. However, even though the watering is frequent, you shouldn’t exaggerate with the amount of water.

The next stadium is the seedling which should be watered once every two days, and now you can use a larger amount of water.

This regime should last for two weeks, and then you should water the fig tree when you notice that the surface of the soil is dry when you touch it.

7. Feed The Seedlings


In the beginning, you should feed your seedlings with a balanced food for plants because they need additional energy to grow better and faster. You can use either liquid fertilizers or the granular ones but keep in mind that they need to be organic so they can help your fig tree grow healthy fruits.

However, you shouldn’t exaggerate with the fertilizers since that could potentially cause the growth of the leaves instead of the fruits.

8. Transplant in a Bigger Pot or Outdoors


Once your fig tree becomes too big for the pot, it’s time to replant it either into a bigger container or in the ground, depending on the climate of the area you live in.

Since fig trees love sunlight and warmth, if you live in an area that has at least eight sunny hours during a day, it’s safe to plant your fig tree outdoors. If, however, your part of the world is colder, you’re better off with growing the fig tree indoors in a pot.

Transplant the tree as you did while it was a seedling, always minding the roots. You can use any neutral soil mixture and adjust the pH level with the water. The pH level should be around 6, and you can easily control it with a good-quality soil meter.

Soil meters can help a lot not only when it comes to measuring the pH level of the soil and water but also the exposure to sunlight as well as the moisture of the soil, so you know if it’s time to water your fig tree.

FAQs


What kind of pot should I use?

This answer depends on the size of the fig tree. But if you want to be sure that you’ve learned how to grow a fig tree from the fruit, you should replant your fig tree more than just once while you’re growing it.

Why? Because as the tree grows, the roots will develop more and more, and they need enough space to thrive and grow nicely. If the pot is too small, the roots can suffocate and intertwine, which will stop them from growing.

If, however, the pot is too large, that may slow down the growth because the roots will take more time to absorb the nutrients and create the energy for growth. That’s why many people prefer growing fig trees in pots instead outdoors where the process can be slower.

Should I prune my fig tree?

Absolutely! Be careful not to do it during the growing season but wait for the dormant period. Then you can remove all the dead leaves and dry branches that will never grow fruits, and this will allow the healthy parts of the tree to consume more energy and grow better.

When should I harvest the fruits?

This is pretty easy to notice actually. As soon as you see that the figs have become heavier and that the branches are lower, it’s probably time to pick them, even though the color may still be green.

You can also check by squeezing them just a bit. If they’re firm, they’re not ready, and if they are soft to the touch, you can pick them and store or eat them.

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