The drying and curing of figs must necessarily differ in different
countries, under different conditions, and for different purposes. For
home consumption little skill and care are required to produce a
palatable and useful article of diet, while figs intended for shipment
must be more carefully dried, cured, and packed in order to command a
fair price in competition with the imported article.
The fig is mature and ready to dry only when it has attained its proper
size and is palatable for eating fresh. When the crop has reached this
stage it may be gathered and dried for home consumption, but in order to
produce a superior article the figs must be as sweet as possible and
very pulpy. Too often do we find figs in the market consisting of
nothing but skin and empty seeds, without sweetness, flavor, or pulp.
Figs do not ripen all at one time, and the trees must be gone over
daily, in order that only the ripest shall be gathered. Before being
picked the fig should be soft to the touch; it should be wrinkled, and
should hang downward. Some kinds when ripe show white seams or cracks in
the flesh. This is generally a sign of complete maturity. Figs will not
ripen after picking and never become sweeter than when cut from the
tree. Similarly, figs which have once attained their full maturity do
not improve and should be dried at once. If allowed to hang longer on
the tree they may quickly rot, sour, or mold, and soon become unfit for
use. In order to compete with the best imported figs, our figs intended
for drying should be very sweet; in fact, the sweeter the better. When
freshly cut they should contain 35 per cent of sugar and when dried
about 55 per cent. For home consumption they do not need to be so sweet
as this, for any palatable figs are useful when carefully dried.