At a previous oc crfg meeting on figs earlier this year, the speaker mentIroned that certain fig varieties are best suited for specific locations. He mentioned black Madeira as being outstanding for inland areas. He felt that they didn't develop appropriate taste close to the coast. He recommended prieto (sp?) fig for coastal climates.
There are a lot of online resources on figs . It sounds like you can get outstanding tasting figs if grown in the right environment.
my thoughts exactly.
as far as them being climate specific.
different varieties will do better in different soils, moisture, sun etc...
I have a celeste, black mission, and another (un-named white)producing...
the mission is pretty good, but it doesnt produce the massive amounts the clestse does
the white grows like no fig ive seen before and produces large sweet fruit
and it kept producing till November.
the celeste has been a bit of a letdown. the fruit is rather small
and this year it started very late. (i have an old strain i think. there are several)
We did have a ton of rain all spring and early summer, i think delayed the fruit.
i have 5 more that i started less than a year ago
i would have to lookup the names, but most are growing painfully slow compared to that white.
i will probably graft a couple onto that white, if for no other reason, i dont have the space for 5 more trees.
especially figs.
one is a VDB (Violete de Bordeaux) supposedly one of the best.
mine hasnt fruited yet though.
look at nullzero's post here
i would agree with him on at least these ive tasted...
JH Adriatic , LSU series, VDB...
http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=782.25i had asked several people about growing a black fig in the south
these were the most mentioned.
Petite Negri, VDB, Scott's Black, Negronne, black madeira
BM should do OK from what ive read.
you can ask over at Figs4Fun forum. those guys are the experts.
http://figs4fun.com/BLACK MADEIRA
http://figs4fun.com/Var_B_info.html#BLACKMADEIRA