Fig Tree Panachée - Ficus carica

The Panaché Fig Tree (Ficus carica) or Bourjassotte rayée is a variety that produces beautiful fruits with yellow skin variegated with green and red fragrant and sweet flesh. This self-fertile variety bears fruit once a year, towards the end of August. The Fig Tree is a deciduous, hardy tree that thrives in sunny locations. Plant in autumn or winter, frost-free (or in spring for colder regions).

The Panaché Fig Tree produces beautiful fruits with yellow skin variegated with green and red fragrant and sweet flesh. Figs are used in sweet dishes (pies, clafoutis, compotes) or savoury dishes when paired with goat cheese, dry-cured ham or foie gras. After harvesting, refrigeration is not recommended as it alters the fig's aroma and can cause the skin to suffer from humidity and condensation. The best way to enjoy them is fresh, and to taste them under the tree, which preserves their honey-like fragrance.

Among the Fig Tree varieties, there are:

- unifère varieties, which produce a single harvest per year, usually abundant, at the beginning of autumn.

- bifère varieties, which bear fruit twice a year, producing figs called 'figues fleurs' in early summer, appearing on the wood of the previous year, and autumn figs, developing on the branches of the current year.

The Panaché variety is a unifère variety, ripening towards the end of August. The harvest will be done in several stages, as the figs reach ripeness. This variety is self-fertile and parthenocarpic, allowing fruit to be produced without fertilization. It does not require other fig trees and does not need the intervention of the blastophage, the only pollinating insect of the fig tree, which is too delicate to survive in cold climates.

Originating from Turkey and Asia Minor, the Fig Tree (Ficus carica) belongs to the Moraceae family. It is a small, vigorous deciduous tree with a rounded and erect habit, often with a twisted trunk, reaching 3 to 5 meters (10 to 16 feet) in all directions. The leaves are rough, bright green turning yellow in autumn, finely velvety, relatively large (sometimes 20 cm (8in) long) and have a long petiole. The lamina is deeply divided into three to seven lobes with serrated edges (usually five), of variable shape, with a velvety underside and prominent veins. The wood is soft and spongy, the bark grey and smooth. The root system of this small tree is strong, spreading in all directions. The Fig Tree is often considered one of the most beautiful fruit trees. Its unique foliage gives it an ornamental aspect and provides a shaded area, which is very pleasant during the summer heat. Plant the Fig Tree against a wall that will protect it from the cold during harsh winters, with a south or southwest exposure, alongside Fruit Pomegranate, White Mulberry, and Japanese Medlar in the southern half of our country. In the north, it can be paired with Quince, Akebia quinata, and Feijoa, which are also hardy and exotic. Take into account its adult size when determining the distance at which you will plant it. Although the roots do not cause damage to modern constructions, they can damage walls built with dry stone or weak mortars, in the old-fashioned way.