Two Last Figs of the Season

I thought that we ate the very last fig - and it was everything I wanted from a fig: sweet, colorful, unexpectedly complex inside, shiny in some places and matte in others - in one word - perfect end to the season. And then - a few days ago, while I was checking leaves for signs of fall, I saw another perfectly ripe (and quite small) fig!

First Figs!

The very first fig was, possibly, a little underripe. With the second one, we waited too long - it started to get all wrinkly and mushy. But the third one was just right!

Watercolor and gouache and some pencils and pen and ink. 

Fig Tree Update!

My fig tree adventure touched quite a few people who read my blog (here is a link to Part 1 and Part 2), and I am happy to give you a quick update:

1. I believe I know who the culprit behind the stolen fruit is. I do not have proof, but something about the smug look on this neighbor's furry face tells me that it might be it. 

2. There was a fig that turned out to be fermented inside when we opened it up (I am still looking for the sketch I made - it did not get into my daily rotation and was not taped in on time,  and now might be lost!) But if I find it you will see the whole thing in the sketchbook walk-through video!

3. And then there were two figs that had a more ordinary fate of being eaten by the family. And both were very nice! 

One more fruit remains on the tree so there might be another update in this fig reason :) 

Fig Tree: and update (and a mystery)

An adventure with the Fig tree part one is here. This week we lost two more figs - one just fell off. Now that I am learning more about this whole tree-care thing it seems like figs go through a settling period when the fruits do not ripen - and that is quite normal. Yet I tasted this one - it was better than the previous but still not ripe and still of a "fig for drawing, not for eating".

However, there was another fig. THE F I G. Our tree is not a fair parent and decided that one fig would get all the resources. This particular beauty started to gain color and weight at a much more rapid rate than others, the progress was visible every day! 

One evening I drew it and thought that I would add color an ornamental header to that drawing in the morning. BUT IN THE MORNING THE FIG WAS GONE! It took me quite some time to find its remains.  I am yet to decide if this page will have color. And a new header for the drawing now reads "drama of a stolen fig". 

It was found quite far from the tree and by using all my detective abilities (after all there should be a use for reading all the mysteries) I deciphered that some animal (squirrel is on the top of my list of suspects) stole the fig from the tree, and tried to eat it but probably got distracted and went to eat something else. Or the fig was not that tasty... (though this one looked ripe and tasty to me). And now ants were having a party to finish off the poor thing.

Other than  the events above, this week the tree did not lose any leaves and there are still fruits (I know they are actually flowers and all - but will call them fruits for digestion purposes) - waiting for their turn to be added to this saga. I will keep you posted.

A Complicated Fig Tree Situation

We planted a fig tree! In the short three weeks since that day, we went from having a bushy little tree with ten little figs on it to a beautiful stick with a few leaves (most of which are still green) and five fruits. Some of them are growing by the hour and getting darker and darker - so not all is lost (I think :)

Here is how it went:

Figuring Out the Figs

A conversation about different pollinators turned into a conversation about figs, I found some holes in my understanding of the whole flower vs fruit situation and tried to draw through my learning process. The result is a page with notes that has a semi-transparent (tracing paper) overleaf with some figs on it. I have no idea what is that cat doing on the page - probably I met it on the same day when I was reading up on Figs. Or it is a pollinator too. Or it is also interested in figs. 

Sketchbook #100: Report from my Patio