USA Tree, fruit trees and edible gardens
Celeste Fig (Ficus carica 'Celeste')

Photo: Dewar Nurseries (licence) · representative image, not the exact plant you receive

Celeste Fig

Ficus carica 'Celeste'

The Gulf coast standard, and the fig we recommend to anyone planting their first one. Small violet-brown fruit with amber-pink flesh and real sweetness, on a tough tree that handles our winters. Its closed eye is the point: summer rain cannot get into the fruit, so Celeste does not sour and split the way open-eyed European figs do in a Florida August.

  • Ripens
    Summer harvest
  • Pollination
    No pollination needed, one tree fruits on its own
  • USDA zones
    7a-10a
  • Mature size
    8 to 10 ft
  • Chill hours
    about 100
  • Category
    Figs

The cultivar name and the figures above are our best effort rather than a guarantee. We rely in part on what the nurseries we buy from tell us. What that means.

Understory layer Full sun Hardy below 20F Grows well in a pot

Choose a size

  • Pick up in person. Collect free from Booth J57 at Renninger's Flea Market, 20651 US-441, Mount Dora, at the weekend, or from the nursery on a weekday by arrangement. We will confirm the details with your order.
  • Local delivery. We deliver to the Eustis, Mount Dora, Tavares and Umatilla area.
  • Ship to me. Carefully packed and shipped from our Lake County nursery.

Growing Celeste Fig in Central Florida

Full sun. Grow it in a large container or mulch it heavily in the ground, because root knot nematodes in open sand are what kills figs here. Prune in late winter, feed lightly, and water evenly through May and June so it does not drop the crop. Ripe in late June into July, when the neck bends and the fruit softens.

Planting, watering, feeding, pruning and troubleshooting: read Growing Figs in Central Florida. Nematodes, rust and August rain are what actually decide whether a fig works here. All three are manageable.