Chicago Hardy Fig

The black fig fly is a small, glossy black fly from the Mediterranean region and the Middle East that attacks only figs. Females lay eggs in the eye (ostiole) of green, unripe figs. The larvae feed inside, and the fig drops from the tree before it ripens, which is easy to mistake for normal fruit shedding. Grown larvae leave through a tiny exit hole and pupate in the soil, and the fly can have 4 to 6 generations a year. It was first found in Pasadena and Goleta in June 2021 and has since been confirmed in 15 California counties, from San Diego to the Bay Area and Merced County. No spray is proven for this pest. Picking up and destroying fallen figs, and bagging healthy fruit, are the main tools.

Where it lives: California only: Southern California, the Central Coast, the Bay Area and Merced County in the Central Valley

Triggers: Overwinters as pupae in the soil. In spring the flies emerge, mate and start laying eggs in figs. Females lay groups of eggs under the scales of the fig's eye and prefer green, unripe figs. Figs can be attacked once they are about 0.4 inch across. Adults are most active early in the morning and late in the afternoon, when it is cooler. The life cycle takes about 18 to 20 days in summer and about 48 days in spring, with 4 to 6 generations a year: more in warmer areas, fewer in cooler ones. UC says the temperature thresholds and number of generations in California are still unknown, so no temperature range is given.

Risk fades when: Black fig flies spend the winter as pupae in the soil and come out in spring to mate and lay eggs in figs (UC ANR Pest Alert, October 2025). In California, adults have been found from June through October (CDFA Pest Rating Proposal, 2024). The early (breba) crop is hit too: one San Luis Obispo County grower was picking up 1 to 22 dropped breba figs a day in April 2022 (CRFG Fruit Gardener, Nov-Dec 2022). The life cycle is about 48 days in spring and 18 to 20 days in summer (Wilson Lab, UC Riverside).

A seedling killer caused by several different fungi working together. It hits vegetables, flowers, herbs, microgreens, and cover-crop seedlings the same way — seeds rot before they emerge, or young seedlings collapse right at the soil line. Wet seed-starting mix and poor airflow in seedling trays are the classic conditions.

Triggers: Wet soil or starting mix, poor drainage, seedlings packed too tightly, contaminated trays or media, and stagnant air all favor damping-off.

Risk fades when: Drying the soil surface and improving airflow slows new spread. Collapsed seedlings don't recover, but the rest of the tray can be saved.

A water mold (not a true fungus) that attacks roots and crowns in waterlogged soil. It's most dangerous in heavy, poorly drained soil after extended rain — basically any time water sits around plant roots for days.

Triggers: Pythium infects from 50-95°F as long as the soil stays saturated. Phytophthora capsici is most active at 75-85°F. What matters most is how long the soil stays waterlogged, not just whether it rained.

Risk fades when soil returns to field capacity (normal drained moisture). How long that takes depends on your soil — sand drains in hours, clay can take days.

A fig-specific Colletotrichum/Glomerella disease that hits fruit and foliage. Distinct from cucurbit and pepper anthracnose. Causes small sunken fruit lesions that enlarge and may produce pink spore masses, plus leaf margin spotting and defoliation.

Triggers: Warm humid weather, rain splash, infected fruit and leaves, and prolonged wetness all favor fig anthracnose.

What it looks like: Anthracnose attacks both fruit and leaves. Fruit get small, sunken, discolored spots that enlarge and become covered with a pink mass of spores; infected fruit soft-rot and drop early, and immature fruit can dry up and stay on the tree. Affected leaves get a dark brown margin, and leaf drop increases as infection spreads.

Disease or overwatering? Sunken fruit spots that turn pink with spores point to anthracnose. Fig rust instead makes small reddish-brown spots with yellow dust under the leaves. Leaves dropping from too much water have no spots.

Will it recover? Infected fruit are lost. Sanitation is very important: remove diseased fruit and infected leaves.

Risk fades when: Dry weather reduces new spore infection and splash dispersal, though diseased fruit and leaves remain sources.

Source for the signs above: Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, Texas Plant Disease Handbook: Fig

Aphids are soft-bodied sap-sucking insects that cluster on tender new growth. Most established plants tolerate moderate populations and will outgrow damage on their own, but aphids are the most important plant virus vectors in the garden, transmitting more than 100 plant viruses including potato leafroll, cucumber mosaic, and turnip mosaic. Honeydew excreted while feeding supports sooty mold growth and attracts ants that protect aphids from natural enemies.

Where it lives: Throughout the United States

Triggers: Optimal development at ~75°F (green peach aphid) per UC IPM Floriculture; melon aphid develops fastest above 75°F. Many species heat-intolerant above 90°F and crash in mid-summer. Soft new growth and over-fertilization with high N favor population buildup. Females give live birth parthenogenetically most of growing season — one generation in ~1 week under optimal conditions.

Risk fades when: Per UC IPM and Clemson HGIC, populations crash in mid-summer heat (>90°F) for many species, return in cooler conditions

Birds cause significant damage to ripening fruit (berries, grapes, figs, cherries), to newly-planted seeds, and to seedlings. Damage peaks during fruit ripening on berries and during seed-head ripening on sunflowers. Robins feed low on bushes; starlings feed in upper canopy; species and feeding patterns vary widely. Even partial damage opens entry points for diseases and insects.

Where it lives: Across the US

Triggers: Damage seasonal — peak during fruit ripening (June-August in north). Dry years intensify damage as birds use fruit for water. Proximity to forest edges or harvested grain fields amplifies pressure.

Risk fades when: Risk is tied to each crop's ripening window - berries in June through August, corn at silking, sunflower at seed-head fill - so pressure fades once the vulnerable fruit or grain is harvested; netting or row cover during that specific window is the main protection (Oregon State Extension, EM 9286).

A fig-only foliar rust producing yellow-brown leaf spots, rust pustules on the leaf undersides, and premature defoliation. Most common in warm, humid late-summer weather.

Triggers: Warm humid weather, rainfall and splash, dew, and extended leaf wetness all favor Cerotelium fici. Spores can spread by both wind and water splash.

What it looks like: In late summer, small, slightly raised reddish-brown spots form on the undersides of the leaves, often covered in a dusty golden-yellow mass of spores. Badly infected leaves turn yellow-brown and drop, and heavy leaf loss can ripen fruit early.

Disease or overwatering? Raised reddish-brown spots with yellow dust under the leaves point to rust. Leaves dropping from too much water have no spots underneath.

Will it recover? It rarely kills the tree, but repeated outbreaks weaken it, cut fruit size and quality, and lower its cold hardiness. No fungicides are labeled for home figs, so collect and remove all fallen infected leaves in fall.

On Chicago Hardy Fig: Humid weather can spot and yellow leaves, especially late in the season.

Prevention: Give plants airflow, water at the base, and remove badly affected leaves.

Risk fades when: Hot dry conditions reduce fig rust. Dry foliage interrupts new spore germination.

Source for the signs above: UGA Extension, Why are my leaves falling off my fig tree?; UF/IFAS EDIS, The Fig

The mechanism is mechanical, and UC Cooperative Extension states it in a sentence: the flesh of the fruit takes up water faster than the skin can grow to accommodate, and the skin tears. Everything else follows. A tree that has been dry, then receives a thorough irrigation or a heavy rain, pushes a surge of water into fruit whose skin has already set. Extension staff describe watching green oranges split on the tree after a good soaking that followed a dry spell. Repeated wetting of the fruit surface does it too - drops hanging at the fruit tip are absorbed unevenly, and the crack forms at the blossom end. Figs are especially exposed because they ripen fast and thin-skinned, and because the fruit swells substantially in its final days. The lesson is not to water less but to water evenly. A tree kept at steady moisture through ripening does not split; the same tree, neglected and then rescued with a hose, does. Mulch buffers the swing. UF/IFAS adds that nutrient imbalance, particularly calcium and boron, worsens susceptibility, and that heavy fruit clusters competing for resources develop unevenly.

Triggers: UC Cooperative Extension (Ventura County): the most common cause of cracking and splitting is water. If fruit is repeatedly wetted by rain or sprinkler water, drops hanging at the tip of the fruit are absorbed unevenly, producing a crack at the blossom end. Another water-related cause is irregular or excessive irrigation as the fruit ripens or during development; irregular watering causes growth spurts, and the flesh of the fruit takes up water faster than the skin can grow to accommodate, causing cracking usually at the tip. Green oranges have been observed splitting on the tree as the result of a thorough irrigation after a dry spell. The same phenomenon occurs where the plant is repeatedly excessively watered. Insect injury and insect residues are other contributing factors. UF/IFAS Extension: inconsistent watering regimes, particularly irregular watering followed by heavy irrigation, cause sudden changes in fruit size and internal pressure; deficiencies in calcium and boron and imbalanced soil pH exacerbate the problem; mulch helps regulate soil moisture; thinning overcrowded clusters promotes uniform development.

On Chicago Hardy Fig: Irregular watering during ripening can split nearly ripe figs.

Prevention: Keep moisture more even once fruit starts softening.

Risk fades when: A split fruit cannot mend, and it will spoil quickly because the wound admits rot organisms and insects - pick and use split figs the same day, or remove them. The fix is upstream and it is about consistency rather than quantity. Water deeply and regularly through ripening so the tree never dries out and never receives a sudden flood; the split happens in the transition, not at either extreme. Mulch generously to buffer swings in soil moisture and temperature. Water at the root zone with drip or a soaker hose rather than sprinkling the fruit, since drops sitting on the fruit tip are themselves a cause. Where fruit set is heavy, thin early so remaining fruit develop evenly. And harvest promptly: a ripe fig left on the tree through a rainstorm is the one that splits.

Fuzzy gray mold on flowers, fruit, and wounded tissue. It thrives in cool, humid, enclosed spaces — University of Minnesota notes this is unlikely to be a problem in open home gardens and rare even in field tomatoes. It's mostly a greenhouse and high-tunnel concern, included here because SoilStack supports those growing environments.

Triggers: Develops at 60-75°F with humidity above 80%. Infection requires 5-8 hours of standing water on the plant tissue. UMN's data shows it's unlikely in open home gardens.

Risk fades when: Temperatures above 82°F suppress growth and spore production. That's the published threshold.

Japanese beetle adults feed gregariously on the foliage and flowers of more than 300 host species, skeletonizing leaves by chewing tissue between the veins. Larvae (white C-shaped grubs) damage turf and root systems. Adults are active during the warmest part of sunny summer days, when populations can rapidly defoliate roses, grapes, and ornamentals. Do not use Japanese beetle traps near plants — the lures attract more beetles than they catch.

Where it lives: Eastern and central US, plus spots in the Rockies and the Pacific Northwest; not the Gulf Coast or the Southwest

Triggers: One generation per year. Overwinters as larva in soil. Adults emerge late June-early July (peak July). Adults active during warmest part of sunny days. Females lay 40-60 eggs in turf 3 inches deep.

Risk fades when: One generation per year: adult emergence peaks around early August and tapers to the last beetle by about September 1, so above-ground feeding pressure ends in early fall as the adults die off and grubs move underground (UMass Extension, UMN Extension).