not quite ripe figs splitting

We didn't think that our figs would ripen at all because the two large trees froze back to the ground last winter and then spent the season regrowing............they set fruit though and finally some of the fruit on the tree against the house is getting big. We are having a lot of rainy weather at the moment and one day the figs looked promising and the next they were bursting open but still unripe.
In the past we have found that this variety 'texas pink dawn' tastes even better lightly cooked or slightly dehydrated. I am wondering if these have a chance of ripening a bit more just out on the counter or if we are going to be dealing with a whole bunch of unripe figs:( I know from the past if I leave them on the tree they will keep opening and almost look like a flower.

Same thing happened to our figs this year. That late hard freeze killed the plants back by 50% or more.
Which in turn killed the first crop of the year and has delayed the second crop by so much that I believe the figs are not going to ripen before the frost kills them.
Chalking this years fig yield as a loss.

Better luck for next year and will pile up a good many leaves around my smaller plants this winter just in case.

Jay Grace wrote:Same thing happened to our figs this year. That late hard freeze killed the plants back by 50% or more.
Which in turn killed the first crop of the year and has delayed the second crop by so much that I believe the figs are not going to ripen before the frost kills them.
Chalking this years fig yield as a loss.

Better luck for next year and will pile up a good many leaves around my smaller plants this winter just in case.

Did you try to salvage them at all? I may try steaming and adding a bit of honey...they have turned brownish on the inside, just still a little hard.
We had a bumper crop last year but we were still able to cover the largest of the trees.....once they get too big to cover they are on their own and last winter here was a really cold one. I keep taking cuttings so that we always have new trees coming on and if protected over the winter we get reliable figs for a few years. It really is too cold here....even up against the house on the south side. We pile on the leaves too....so at least the roots survive.

Judith Browning wrote:I am wondering if these have a chance or ripening a bit more just out on the counter or if we are going to be dealing with a whole bunch of unripe figs

In my experience, figs deteriorate rather than ripen once off the tree.
If they're softening up, with some fig flavour, I'd consider a chutney.
If not, I'd leave them on and hope for a warm spell
I've made great fig chutney with a bit of apple for 'body'.
Adding some commercial dried figs makes it good and figgy.

Leila Rich wrote:

Judith Browning wrote:I am wondering if these have a chance or ripening a bit more just out on the counter or if we are going to be dealing with a whole bunch of unripe figs

In my experience, figs deteriorate rather than ripen once off the tree.
If they're softening up, with some fig flavour, I'd consider a chutney.
If not, I'd leave them on and hope for a warm spell
I've made great fig chutney with a bit of apple for 'body'.
Adding some commercial dried figs makes it good and figgy.

I expect that today the rest of the big ones will also have blow outs........I think I'll steam with some of our neighbor's flavorful honey and hope a bit of fig flavor comes out then. Our dehydrator is full of shiitakes that came on from all the rain also, otherwise I would try drying some of the figs. We probably will get a warm up.......but I think the moisture has already done it's thing with these.
I love chutneys, that is a good idea if I end up with a bunch. raw apple cider vinegar, honey, cayenne, onion, might get my hands on some pears, so I've got most of the ingredients.

It might be due to your rainy weather. To much water going into the fruit, making it pop open.
Having said that, I have seen figs do this in dry conditions as well.

Marcus Hoff wrote:It might be due to your rainy weather. To much water going into the fruit, making it pop open.
Having said that, I have seen figs do this in dry conditions as well.

It is definitely because of the rains lately. Usually they open a bit at the end and we pick them when they have started to brown and sometimes the ants attracted to them tell us it is time to pick. I think we have had it happen in dry weather if we miss picking one and it gets way over ripe.

I've seen this happen with many different fruits and vegetables.....usually when they have been growing slowly under relatively dry conditions and are then suddenly exposed to a lot of rain and wet. The fruit absorbs more water and expands more quickly than the peel. I've seen blueberries split open four ways and open right up like flowers! Immediate harvest and utilization is the only remedy I guess. Sometimes on some things if this happens when the thing is unripe it can heal over and go on growing....this happens commonly with root crops.

Yup, ants going up your fig tree is a tell tale sign.