I know that other people say take them off because they will not ripen next year, but i was told to take them off if they are only pea sized. Last winter I left them on and some did ripen this year. However, if I'd removed them perhaps it would have borne more fruit. You have a lot of babies there and it will be interesting to see what the experts on GOY have to say.

It's a bit confusing Merlin. I was always told the opposite, to take the figs off LARGER than the size of a pea. I assumed that this is to allow the the smaller pea size figs to mature the next season and by removing the larger figs that would have been the last seasons growth that didn't make it. This is because they would retard the growth of the smaller ones if not done.

As you said, it would be interesting to see what the experts say to clarify this?

Take them all off even the littlest pea sized ones. Then in spring you get new growth that will not drop or have thick inedible skin. All your figs will get a full season to ripen without expending energy on non viable crop. No expert though...In fact my Fig died..Lol

Pimpernel, your answer does make sense. I'm sure that's not the reason your fig died. Anyway, I'm gonna take off all the fruit and give it to the compost where it will be loved.

I was always of the same opinion, to take all but the pea-size fruits off at the end of the season. Still, I would be inclined to take all the fruits off. I believe that in the warmer countries they can get two or three crops off of the trees in a year, but in our climate, one decent crop can be an achievement.

Oh no.. taking the fruit off did not kill my fig, lack of water over a 4 week period did that. I will never go away for that long again.

I really doubt the death of your tree was anything at all to do with whether you took off the blind fruit or not. We've got 5 fig trees, most of which are far too big to get at the blind figs to take them off, and some little seedlings, too, and we don't bother with those, either. If the little ones aren't going to grow, the tree will sort them out for herself and they'll drop off of their own accord. Any that are viable will cling on. Simples!
However, I do realise that we have warmer summers than you probably do, and colder winters, too, I expect, so maybe the rules differ a bit. We only get two harvests a year, and sometimes, if the frost or the rain or the drought come at the wrong time, we don't even get that!

Years ago, when I first started 'serious' gardening, I was told the same as Myron. The larger fruits do not grow over the winter and have a tendency to rot off but the smaller ones will go dormant and start to swell next year. And if you take the tiny ones off, you won't have any figs at all next year. I can't readily think of any other perennial plant with biennial fruit. Can anybody think of one?

Well! I have a large fig tree in a corner at the bottom of my garden and I just forget it, if it rains it gets watered, I just leave it to get on with it, the roots are not confined and I have never taken any small fruits off in the autumn or winter, we had a very dry spring & summer and the summer fruits were out of this world, Slurppppp lol, I was giving loads away also eating load's and NO! I wasn't running to the loo lol.
So there you go, that is what I do with my tree, the rest is up to you :o))
Just a thought, in Spain some grow wild and still get on with it, no one to water them or pull their fruits off, except me if I pass one LOL. :o)))))

Totally agree with Pimpernel on this one. The wild ones have the benefit of space and time, and as ladyessex says ... hers is a large tree, which will be able to sustain the extra fruit, but cultivated smaller trees need a bit more input. My dad (an italian!) produces huge crops off his small tree (well pruned each autumn, as he has a small garden) and he always removes every single fruit at this time, so the tree keeps its energy for the spring, and doesn't sap its strength over the winter. Just a thought to add to the pot!!

Yes, Ladyessex's is just like my friends fig tree. Planted and unrestricted at the roots they grow large and with a huge spread. Her tree rains figs all year, but it is still only the figs that start in spring that ripen properly. The rest will drop off or be tough skinned and pithy.