Any help with fig trees?

Hi all.....new here and am enjoying it so far.

I need some help with my fig trees. Grandpa is long gone and I need to get these babies wrapped up for the winter. I'm tired of hoping that they're not dead every spring. It would be nice to get some figs for a change, as the winter has been killing off the producing branches.

I have 2 plants......one is old and one is 2 years new. I just want to know the "proper" procedure for wrapping them. All I can remember from my childhood days is tar paper and a paint bucket on top. I never stopped to ask or watch what else occurred while I was not looking.

I'm on Long Island, NY....... I guess zone 6 on some maps. I'm near dead center of the island, not near either shore.

John P.

I'm in zone 5 (Southern Ontario), and my family buries the fig trees for the winter. The oldest are probably about 20 to 25 years old (maybe more). The process is as follows:

- use twine/rope to gather branches together (as tight as possible without damaging the tree)

- dig a trench from the root ball long enough to accomodate the height of the tree

- dig around the root ball (using some water from the hose, if necessary) to loosen the ball from surrounding soil

- tip tree into the trench

- cover with burlap/tarp/plastic then backfill soil from trench, adding leaves and other yard waste for insulation.

I was always warned that you needed a good seal to prevent rodents from seeking refuge and nibbling away at your tree, but in a half dozen years, I've seen no evidence of any such damage.

Andrew