Cold Hardy Fig Trees: Best Varieties and How Cold They Take

The Most Cold Hardy Fig Varieties

The cold hardy fig trees that university extension services name again and again are Chicago Hardy, Celeste and Brown Turkey. Chicago Hardy is the hardiest of the three: Iowa State University gives it a hardiness range of zones 5 to 10, and Penn State Extension rates it hardy to 10°F. Celeste is listed for zones 6b to 10b and Brown Turkey for zones 6a to 9b. According to Rutgers, mature trees of all three survive winters that drop to 0°F when they are properly protected outdoors.

“Cold hardy” has a narrower meaning for figs than for apples or pears. A hardy fig still loses top growth in a hard winter. What sets these varieties apart is that they resprout from the base and ripen a crop on the new shoots in the same summer. Brown Turkey, for example, fruits on new growth even when its branches are winter-killed.

Variety	Listed zones or rating	Size and habit	Fruit	Why it suits cold sites
Chicago Hardy	Zones 5 to 10, hardy to 10°F	Grown as a bush in cold zones	Light brown to violet skin, strawberry pink pulp	The one fig Penn State exempts from damage below 15°F
Celeste	Zones 6b to 10b	6 to 10 feet tall and wide	Small, light brown to violet, closed eye	Very hardy and early ripening
Brown Turkey	Zones 6a to 9b	10 to 30 feet tall and wide at full size	Purple-bronze skin, pink pulp, two harvests a year	Crops on new growth after dieback; protect below 10°F
Violette de Bordeaux	Rated hardy by Penn State	Suits containers	Sweet, rich flavor	A good pick for a pot that winters in a garage
White Marseilles	Rated hardy and reliable by the RHS	Not listed	Large, sweet, pale green	A green fig with a record in cool British summers
Alma	Well adapted in the Southeast	Not listed	Golden brown skin, amber pulp	Late ripening, extends the season in mild areas

Fig Tree Cold Tolerance in Numbers

Figs thrive where winter temperatures stay above 15°F. Below that line, damage depends on how dormant the tree is and how old it is. Penn State Extension puts it this way: even the most cold-resistant edible figs tolerate temperatures down to 20°F and suffer true winter damage below 15°F, with Chicago Hardy as the exception. Alabama Extension gives the same window from the other side, noting that figs that are completely dormant before severe cold arrives tolerate 15 to 20°F with little or no damage.

Timing matters as much as the low itself. Rutgers warns that young trees can be damaged by early fall frosts at 25 to 27°F, because the wood has not hardened yet. It also notes that the wood of even the most cold-resistant varieties may be killed back to the ground by early winter temperatures of 15°F. A tree that eases into dormancy through a slow, cool autumn handles January far better than one hit by a sudden freeze in November.

Roots in the ground are insulated by soil, and that is why a fig can lose every branch and still return. Roots in a pot have no such buffer. Iowa State points out that the 15 to 20°F a planted fig withstands is typically too cold for a potted fig.

Which Cold Hardy Fig to Plant

Choose by where the tree will spend the winter, then by fruit. In zone 5, Chicago Hardy is the realistic in-ground choice, and even there Iowa State cautions that it may not always overwinter, since Iowa sits at the upper limit of its hardiness range. Plan on dieback most years and treat the plant as a shrub that regrows each spring.

In zones 6 and 7, Celeste and Brown Turkey join the list. University of Georgia Extension recommends Celeste or Hardy Chicago for its mountain counties and adds that Brown Turkey will produce some figs on the current season’s growth after a freeze kills it to the ground. Celeste has a tightly closed eye, the small opening at the base of the fruit, and ripens early, which helps where the first fall frost arrives quickly.

Where winters stay above 15°F, most figs need no wrapping, and the choice opens up to flavor and season. Alma ripens late and stretches the harvest. In California and the dry Southwest, cold is rarely the limit, and variety behavior shifts: Alabama Extension describes Celeste as usually disappointing in California and the Southwest, and Brunswick as well adapted to the Southwest and drier areas.

Whatever the variety, expect a wait. Fig trees on their own roots begin bearing at 3 to 4 years of age. Check how much space fruit trees need before you settle on a spot, and see bare root vs. potted fruit trees for what to order.

Where and How to Plant a Fig in a Cold Climate

Site does half the work of winter protection. Penn State and the University of Georgia both call for at least 8 hours of sun in a protected spot, and both name the south side of a building as the ideal site. Rutgers adds that planting close to a house or backyard wall insulates the tree from drying winds. Soil should drain well and sit at a slightly acidic pH of 6.0 to 6.5.

Grow the plant as a multi-stem bush. Alabama Extension calls the single-trunk tree form impractical for the South, where figs are frequently frozen back to the ground, and the same logic holds farther north because one dead trunk means starting over. Georgia’s guidance is to select three to eight vigorous, widely spaced shoots as leaders, and it allows bush-form figs to be set as close as 10 feet apart in the row. A bush is also far easier to wrap or cage than a tree.

What a Fig Tree Looks Like in Winter

A healthy dormant fig can look dead to a first-time grower. Figs are deciduous, so the large lobed leaves drop in fall. What remains is a frame of stout, bare shoots with smooth, silver-gray bark that becomes bumpier with age.

Look closely at the shoot tips and you may see pea-size embryo figs. The RHS explains that these form in late summer, stay pea-size until spring, then swell and ripen the following summer as the early crop, known as the breba crop. They are prone to frost damage, which is one reason to protect the top growth. Larger green figs left on the tree are a different matter. Penn State advises removing unripe figs along with any remaining leaves after a hard frost.

Do not judge winter damage in February. Wait until new growth shows where the live wood ends, then cut back to it. Late winter pruning covers timing for other fruit.

How to Protect an In-Ground Fig Over Winter

Start after a hard frost has dropped the leaves. The method below follows Penn State and Rutgers guidance.

1. Remove any remaining leaves and unripe figs.
2. Mulch the base 6 to 12 inches deep with leaves, straw or other organic material.
3. Cover the branches with burlap, canvas, row cover or another breathable wrap. Do not use plastic against the wood.
4. Or build a cage of chicken wire around the plant and fill the space inside with hay or composted mulch.
5. Top the wrap or cage with a tarp to keep moisture out, leaving room at the bottom for air to circulate.

In the coldest gardens, growers bend the tree into a trench, backfill it, and mulch over the top with soil and straw to a depth of one foot. All of this insulation targets the same thing: keeping the base and lower wood alive so the plant can resprout. A late freeze after unwrapping can still burn new shoots, so keep a cover handy and read up on protecting fruit trees from late spring frost.

Growing a Winter Fig in a Pot

Container growing removes most of the gamble north of zone 6. Penn State recommends large pots at least 18 inches in diameter. Violette de Bordeaux is noted as a good container variety, and Chicago Hardy, Celeste and Brown Turkey all grow in pots too.

Once the tree is dormant, move it to an insulated but unheated space, preferably dark: a garage, shed or cool basement. The space should stay above freezing. Dormancy still needs some cold. Penn State Extension puts the requirement at about 100 hours of chilling for a fig to fruit, so a heated living room is the wrong place. Water about once a month, just enough to keep the roots from drying out completely, and bring the pot back outdoors once the danger of hard frost has passed. Penn State’s date for Pennsylvania is April. For the wider routine, see how to overwinter potted plants and the roundup of dwarf fruit trees for containers.