- Excellent for fresh eating and preserves
- Outstanding fruit quality
- Ripens much earlier than most figs
is almost as widely grown as Brown Turkey. Of the old standards, it is considered to be the best tasting and very good to excellent for both fresh eating and preserving (either frozen or processed as fig preserves). Celeste has a tightly closed "eye," making it resistant to dried fruit beetle and rain entry, which can cause fruit to sour. Will drop unripe fruit in hot weather, but it is so outstanding in overall quality that it is worth some loss. Fortunately, Celeste ripens well before most other figs, allowing harvest before the worst heat. Can also be grown as a container plant and moved to a protected area to prevent winter die-back. Self-fruitful. Zones 7-9.