Content uploaded by Pradeep Kumar Vishwakarma
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Pradeep Kumar Vishwakarma on Sep 28, 2021
Content may be subject to copyright.
January–February 2021
3
Pradeep Kumar Vishwakarma*,
Nandkishor M Kanade, Dharmpal Singh
and Ashish Kaushal
Fig: A fruit for health
Fig is grown in many parts of the world with moderate climate. Figs are eaten dry
and fresh both, as fresh gs are highly perishable, so fresh gs are consumed
only in nearer market but dry gs are exported for long distance markets. Fresh
and dry both fruits are rich in bre; potassium, calcium, and iron. Fresh gs are
highly sensitive to physical damage, and susceptible to disease and infections.
Preharvest and postharvest conditions are very important to improve fruit quality
and postharvest life. Due to its nutritional quality, fresh fruit breeders are taking
it as a challenge for development of new improved varieties for long shelf life
of fresh fruits.
FIG is botanically called Ficus carica (synonyms –
forbidden fruit), it comes under family Moraceae,
originated in the southern parts of Arabian Peninsula,
Italy and USSR and its cultivation spread through Asia
minor and into all countries of the Mediterranean region.
It has 26 chromosomes and inflorescence hypanthodium
with terminal bearing habit on current season growth.
Fruit is tasty and sweet with total soluble solids 17 °Brix
with good processing quality for export use as a dry fruit.
Fig is one of the oldest fruit crops, morphologically it is
called as “syconium” which is a vegetative fleshy tissue,
with tiny true fruits enclosed inside. Fig is a gynodioecious
species and some female types need pollination, while
others set fruits parthenocarpically. Pollination is mostly
performed by a wasp (Blastophaga psence). Fig is grown as
a subtropical and temperate crop. It is one of the most
salt and drought tolerant fruit tree. Oldest crop well
grown in Spain followed by Italy, Iraq, Syria, turkey
and other Mediterranean countries. Spain and Italy once
produced 2/3rd of world’s harvest. In India, its cultivation
us confined to western parts of Maharashtra and Gujarat
and small areas in Bengaluru (Bellary, Sreerangapatnam,
Prospects
Chitrdurga) and Tamil Nadu. In North India, most of
the cultivation is concentrated in U.P. At present Turkey
and Greece are the leading producers of fig, grown in an
area of 600 ha in Maharashtra and 120 ha in south India
(NHB, 2019).
Nutritional value
Fig is a highly nutritious fruit with high sugar and
low acid content, rich in calories (269), protein and
calcium (higher than milk), iron and highest fibre content
among fruits. Fig fruits are often consumed as fresh,
dried or canned. The nutritional index of dry fig is 11
as compared to 9 of apple, 8 of raisin and 6 of date and
pear. The chemical composition and flavor of fig vary
with the cultivar. Fresh and dehydrated figs both are rich
in nutritional and biochemical content.
Uses
Fig fruits are consumed as fresh, preserved and dried
or canned form. This is very much reputed as a dried
fruit; and is processed into jelly and paste. Latex is used
to coagulate milk. The latex of the unripe fruits and of any
part of the tree may be severely
irritating to the skin if not
removed promptly. Fig leaves
are used for fodder in India. In
southern France, there is some
use of fig leaves as a source of
perfume material called “fig-leaf
absolute. Dried latex powder
use in coagulating milk to make
cheese and junket. From it can
be isolated the protein-digesting
enzyme ficin which is used for
tenderizing meat, rendering fat,
and clarifying beverages. In
tropical America, the latex is
often used for washing dishes,
Bearing of fruits in plants
Indian Horticulture
4
pots and pans.
The latex is widely applied on warts, skin ulcers
and sores, and taken as a purgative and vermifuge, but
with considerable risk. In Latin America, figs are much
employed as folk remedies. A decoction of the fruits is
gargled to relieve sore throat; figs boiled in milk are
repeatedly packed against swollen gums; the fruits are
much used as poultices on tumors and other abnormal
growths. The leaf decoction is taken as a remedy for
diabetes and calcifications in the kidneys and liver also.
Fresh and dried figs have long been appreciated for their
laxative action.
Plant description
Fig is moderate sized deciduous tree in subtropics but
performs as evergreen in tropics. Branches are irregular,
shoots develop at base of trunk, leaves are very broad,
ovate and long stalked. Fruits mostly long stalked, pear
shaped with a velvety or glabrous skin, purplish or black
in color. Fig is a multiple fruit, botanically a ‘Syconium’
which consists of a hollow receptacle with a narrow
aperture at the tip and numerous small tiny fruits lining
in inner surface.
Table 1. Biochemical parameters in fresh and dehydrated g
Biochemical Parameter Fresh Fig
(Irfan et al. 2013)
Dehydrated Fig
(Naikwadi et al. 2010)
Total soluble solids 17.43 % 35.0 %
Total sugar content 17.55 % 26.3 %
Reducing sugar 13.35 % 24.1 %
Non – reducing sugar 5.70 % 2.2 %
Titratable acidity 0.35 % 0.09 %
Ascorbic acid 0.85 mg/100 g 1 mg/100 g
Table 2. Some popular varieties of g and their characteristics
Type Popular
varieties
Flower type Mode of pollination No. of
crops
Listed var. Other features
Edible or
common g
Poona
Conardia
Mission
Kadota
Brown
Turkey
Long styled pistillate
owers
Fruits develops
parthenocarpically
1470
Seeds are hollow without kernals
and the embryo. some varieties
produce a small Breba or rst
crop in addition to main or
second crop
Smyrna Calimyrna
Zidi
Taranimt
Long styled pistillate
owers
Female wasps
emerging from
the spring Caprig
enter Smyrna g for
oviposition and in
the process effect
pollination
1116 Originated from the caprig. The
fertile seeds contribute to the
excellent quality
San Pedro King
Gentile
Sanpedro
Dauphine
lampeiria
Long styled pistillate
owers
First crop (Breba)
fruit develops without
pollination but not
second crop(main)
221 Commercially not well important,
some while, large fruited types
are grown in Mediterranean
countries for drying
Wild or
caprig or
goat g
Roeding3
Samson
Stanford
Brawley
Short styled pistillate
owers and functional
staminate owers
near the Ostiole
Self-fertile (persistent)
syconia
320 A primitive type. Fruits have
almost no edible value,but serves
as an abode for g wasp and
Smyrna and Sanpedro gs
Leaf shape of g
January–February 2021
5
Varietal diversity of Fig
Nearly 700 varieties of fig have been listed in the
world. Based on pollination pattern and sex of flower,
there are four types of fig.
Based on the colour, figs are classified into three types:
1. Fruit green or yellow - Adriatic, Kadota
2. Fruit shaded with bronze or copper colour - Brunswick
3. Fruit dark violet or purplish black - Pattridge eye
Poona fig is most popular cultivar grown in India. It
is bell-shaped, medium size, weighing about 1.5 oz (42 g);
thin-skinned; light-purple with red flesh, of sweet, good
flavour. Some well-known fig hybrids from California
have performed well in comparison to Poona fig under
Bangalore conditions, they produce parthenocarpic
fruits. In India Adriatic fig is commonly grown. Most
common varieties grown are Black Ischia, Brown Turkey,
Turkish white, Kabul, Marseilles, Lucknow and Poona
figs. A type of Adriatic fig of high quality introduced at
Coimbatore and locally known as Coimbatore fig is
reported to be highly superior than Poona fig. There are
many cultivated varieties in each class of figs. In fact, over
700 varietal names are in use but many are synonyms. Here
we need only present
those that are suited
to warm areas and do
not require pollination.
Most popular
among these are
‘Celeste’ and ‘brown
Turkey’, followed
by ‘Brunswick’ and
‘Marseilles’, but some
hybrids from California
have reportedly
performed better over
Poona Fig.
Harvesting indices
Fresh figs should be harvested when they are soft,
slightly wilted at the neck and drop; no milky latex flow
at the cut end of the stalk; sudden increase in fruit size
and opening of ostiole. Figs are handpicked from the
trees by twisting the neck at the stem end. Harvested
fruits are spread out in the shade for a day so that the
latex will dry a little. In India, a fig tree bears 180 to 360
fruits per year.
Grading
yAfter picking, figs are carefully stored. Diseased and
damaged ones are culled.
yFruits are graded for size as 50 g, 40-50 g and 30-40 g.
Packing
Fig fruits packing should be done in a corrugated box
(CFB) carton of 3 ply having 12 holes for ventilation and
arrange in the carton in 2 layers, each of 28(4 rows of 7
figs in a line). Fig leaves are used for cushioning material.
Storage
Fresh figs are very perishable so, for storage needs
very much care and fresh fruits can be stored at 40° to
43°F (4.44°-6.11°C) and 75% relative humidity. Figs remain
in good condition for 8 days but have a shelf life of only
1 to 2 days when removed from storage. At 50°F (10°C)
and relative humidity of 85%, figs can be kept no longer
than 21 days and fruits remain in good condition for 30
days when stored at 32° to 35° F (0°-1.67° C). If frozen
whole, they can be maintained for several months.
Conclusion
As discussed above, fig is very nutritious and delicious
in taste as fresh and processed both but needs cultivation
of some improved varieties for longer shelf life like Poona
and Black Ischia figs. Some improved technology like
modified atmospheric storage, cold storage and controlled
atmospheric storage conditions are required for increasing
shelf life of fresh fruits.
For further interaction, please write to:
Pradeep Kumar Vishwakarma (Horticulturist), ICAR–Indian
Institute of Horticultural Research, Bengaluru 560 089.
Corresponding author e-mail: pradeepkumar5953@gmail.com
Dry fruit packing and fresh fruit packing
Fully grown plant of g in eld at IIHR, Bengaluru