LSU Purple Fig Review: Taste, Nematode Resistance, Drought & the Other LSU Figs
LSU Purple is one of the most underrated figs you can grow. I think of it as an improved Black Mission: it eats a lot like Black Mission, but it’s much more rain and split resistant, and it’s one of the very few figs reported to resist root-knot nematodes.
Hey there, fig growers! I’m Ross, the “Fig Boss,” and I’ve dedicated my life to this amazing fruit since 2014. If you’ve searched for the LSU Purple fig, you’ve probably read that it’s bland, that it’s only good for rootstock, or that you have to wait three to five years before it tastes good. I’ve grown it for years, and I think it gets a really bad rap for the wrong reasons.
In this review, I’ll cover what LSU Purple tastes like, how it stacks up against Black Mission, why its root-knot nematode resistance makes it the rootstock I’d choose for Florida and the Deep South, the real reason young trees get a bad reputation, and where it came from. Near the bottom, I’ll also run through the other LSU figs: Tiger, Hollier, Champagne, Scott’s Black, Scott’s Yellow, Gold, and the three different figs sold as “Improved Celeste.”
If you’re new to flavor profiles or growing in a humid climate, my guides to honey figs and the best fig varieties for humid climates are good companions to this review.
LSU Purple at a Glance
Here’s the short version of what I’ve learned growing this fig, plus what LSU published about it.
What Does LSU Purple Taste Like?
LSU Purple is sweet and syrupy, a lot like Black Mission. I used to call it a fruity honey fig, but after more years growing it, I think of it more as a sugar fig.
When it’s properly ripened, eating LSU Purple is like eating fig jelly combined with melon, mild berries, honey, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Black Mission itself is very sweet and syrupy, and that’s very much what LSU Purple is. You can even get some citrusy notes in it. It has a good, fruity flavor, and I think it’s a very interesting fig in the world of honey figs.
Early on, I thought of it as a fruity honey fig. In later years of growing it, I’ve come to see it less as a honey fig and more as a sugar fig. Either way, it’s a crowd-pleaser.
The Spicy, Cinnamon-Like Skin
LSU Purple also gets an interesting flavor from its skin. A lot of fig varieties have a slightly bitter component in their skin, and sometimes that skin can taste spicy, like coconut, like coffee, or even like cinnamon. LSU Purple’s skin has a spicy, cinnamon-like flavor that contrasts nicely with the sweet pulp and adds complexity. If you want to learn more about how figs differ, start with what figs taste like.
LSU Purple vs. Black Mission: An Upgrade (Except for the Breba)
LSU Purple eats a lot like Black Mission, and it’s much more rain and split resistant. Its one big negative is that it doesn’t produce a true breba crop.
That’s how I think about LSU Purple: as an improvement to Black Mission. It tastes and eats very similarly, but it handles rain far better, so it’s much more reliable in a humid climate.
The caveat is the breba crop. Black Mission’s reliable, high-quality breba crop is one of its best traits, and it’s a big part of its commercial potential. Black Mission has much more commercial potential than LSU Purple does.
What about reports of a light “breba” on older LSU Purple trees in the Deep South? I don’t think those are true brebas. A breba, by definition, requires a dormancy period. In zone 9 and much of the Deep South, trees often never truly go dormant. What you’re usually seeing is overwintered main crop: main-crop buds that set late in the fall or winter, never really swelled because it got cold or the weather stalled them, and then finished the next spring on last year’s wood. They look like brebas because they’re on last year’s wood, but they’re not.
So if you live somewhere dry and want brebas or a commercial fig, grow Black Mission. If you live somewhere humid, I think LSU Purple is the better fig in almost every way.
Why LSU Purple Gets a Bad Rap: Drought Damage on Young Trees
LSU Purple is very sensitive to dry soil, and that trait comes from Hunt, its female parent. When it dries out, it drops its leaves but keeps its figs, and those figs can take hidden damage. That, not the age of the tree, is behind the “wait three to five years” advice, and it is also the main reason Hunt itself is underrated.
Every Variety Reacts to Dry Soil Differently
Fig trees, as a species, are drought tolerant. But what does that mean exactly? All it means is that when the soil dries out, your tree won’t die. It will still defoliate or drop its figs. Depending on the variety, fig trees do one of three things when the soil dries out:
They drop their leaves right away. You’ll see yellowing and leaf drop.
They drop their fruit. Celeste and Pastiliere drop their figs at the drop of a hat. They’re so sensitive that some people even thought they were Smyrna figs that needed pollination.
They drop their leaves, but the figs stay on the tree and keep ripening. LSU Purple and Hunt both do this, and so does Hardy Chicago. That shared dry-soil response is one of the clearest ways LSU Purple resembles Hunt, not Celeste.
The Hidden Damage You Might Not See
If you catch the drought quickly, you’ll see the tree looking droopy and sad. Water it in quickly enough and the tree can bounce back, and everything can be fine. But if you wait a little too long, the figs and leaves on the tree can take damage.
That’s why, after periods of underwatering, you might see yellowing or paler leaves, brown spots, or areas on the leaves that look very sad. Once a leaf is damaged, it can’t be repaired. You have to grow new ones to get pristine leaves again.
It’s the same with the fruit. While the tree is stressed, the figs feel soft and flimsy instead of green, hard, and plump, and they look dull. Once you water and they firm back up, the damage may not be visible until the figs ripen.
You see this a lot on Hardy Chicago because so many people grow it: a third of the fruit, or one side of it, has an unusual color and a shriveled patch. Open it up and the female flower parts under that spot never ripened properly, because they took damage. Some varieties are really good at disguising this. Everything inside may look fine, and only a little damage shows on the outside. To someone who doesn’t know what to look for, you would never know.
The “Wait 3 to 5 Years” Cop-Out
This has been happening with LSU Purple forever. It doesn’t have a great reputation for flavor, and I kid you not, all the collectors I talk to, in all the different communities and forums, say the same thing: you’ve got to wait three to five years for LSU Purple to mature before the figs taste good.
Even LSU’s own guide says fruit quality will improve on four- and five-year-old trees. I always thought that was a cop-out answer, and I wanted to know the truth. Here’s what I figured out: LSU Purple is a good variety even when it’s young. Younger trees are more sensitive to drought, and the older the tree gets, the less sensitive it becomes. By the time the tree is older, the drought damage stops happening, and then the figs taste good. The truth is, the figs always taste good. It’s a problem of mismanagement.
This is also why you can’t judge a variety from figs that took drought damage, a point I make in my master list of the best figs for pots vs. the ground and in my video on evaluating fig varieties.
How to Keep LSU Purple From Taking Drought Damage
Never let the soil dry out, especially on young trees. Consistent moisture is the whole game with this variety.
Mulch in-ground trees. LSU recommends a thick layer of mulch to conserve soil moisture, and notes that nematode damage appears less important where trees are mulched.
Catch the droop fast. If the leaves are drooping and the figs feel soft, water right away. The faster the tree recovers, the less damage the figs take.
Don’t judge it in year one. If a young tree gives you bland or oddly colored figs, think back to whether it dried out before you write it off.
Use drip irrigation on a timer for potted trees. It’s the easiest way to stay consistent. I keep the drip irrigation supplies I use on my Amazon list.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Links to Amazon in this article are affiliate links.
LSU Purple as a Rootstock: Root-Knot Nematode Resistance
Besides being an upgrade to Black Mission, the most important thing to know about LSU Purple is that it’s root-knot nematode resistant and very vigorous. That makes it an extremely good rootstock for sandy soils and the South.
Root-knot nematodes are microscopic worms that feed on roots and cause them to swell into galls. LSU’s guide calls them probably the most important problem for figs in Louisiana, and notes they can go unnoticed for years while the tree slowly loses vigor.
Ficus carica, the common fig, is so susceptible to root-knot nematodes that in parts of Florida, fig trees really struggle to grow at all. LSU Purple is the exception. LSU published that it’s nematode resistant in its 1992 release article (E.N. O’Rourke, “LSU Purple: a new fig for the Gulf South”, Louisiana Agriculture), and that claim has held up with a lot of real-world testing. That is one of the rare pieces of university fig information I trust.
Interestingly, some other species of Ficus aren’t susceptible either, including Ficus palmata, which is graft compatible with Ficus carica. I talk about Ficus palmata hybrids in Florida in this video.
Two Ways to Use It: Single Grafts or a Frankenfig
LSU Purple propagates easily, and it’s very vigorous. You can use it simply as a rootstock and graft a single variety onto each tree. Or, especially in the South where winters are warmer and grafting in zone 8 or higher is a real possibility, you can graft many fig varieties onto the same rootstock. Those are called Frankenfigs, or Frankenstein figs. I go over why rootstock matters in this rootstock video.
Why It’s the Best Variety for Florida
In my opinion, there really is no better variety for this purpose than LSU Purple, especially in Florida. Getting your fig onto a vigorous rootstock that grows well also means it doesn’t have to be pruned an excessive amount, which matters if you want to change your pruning style to get higher-quality figs. I just updated my guide to growing quality figs in Florida with the four varieties I recommend there and how to deal with rust, hang time, and pruning.
Is LSU Purple Cold Hardy?
Yes. Hunt, its parent, is incredibly hardy, and LSU Purple inherited that. Growers in Alabama and Louisiana rarely see fully lignified figs consistently exposed to 0-5F, so regional hardiness ratings from those areas don’t tell you how hardy a variety really is. If you’re north of zone 8, protect it or keep it in a pot the same way you would most other figs. See my list of hardy fig varieties.
Where LSU Purple Came From: LSU’s Fig Breeding Program
LSU Purple came out of LSU’s 1950s breeding program. Its female parent is Hunt, not Celeste.
LSU’s fig breeding program was started in the 1950s by horticulture professor Ed O’Rourke to develop figs suited to the Gulf South. LSU used Celeste and Hunt as female parents and a California caprifig as the male. LSU Purple is the Hunt cross with that California caprifig. That is why it behaves like Hunt under drought, and why it is so hardy. Tiger, Champagne and O’Rourke are the Celeste crosses (Celeste x; caprifig C1). The program was discontinued in the 1960s, the best selections were kept alive, and the work was revived in the 1990s. LSU Purple was the first release, in 1991. LSU Gold followed, and in 2007 LSU released Tiger, Champagne, and O’Rourke.
LSU leaned on Celeste because Celeste is an incredibly rain-resistant variety, almost an anomaly: its skin is like a waterproof jacket. LSU Purple picked up solid rain resistance of its own, but it eats much more like Black Mission than Celeste, by a pretty huge margin. They’re entirely different figs to eat. When people lump LSU Purple in with the Celeste children, that is a mistake.
The Other LSU Figs: Tiger, Hollier, Champagne, Scott’s Black & More
Most of the LSU figs are very different from each other to eat. They’re generally hardy, and they’re all relatively rain resistant, except LSU Gold.
Here’s my quick take on each one. Many of them do better in pots than in the ground, which I cover in my best figs for pots vs. the ground list. LSU’s AgCenter also notes that many figs circulate under LSU names that have no connection to the original breeding program, so buy from a source you trust.
LSU Tiger
LSU Tiger is, I’d say, the strongest case for an “improved Celeste” because when you eat it, you do get Celeste vibes. But even this isn’t an improvement. It’s just different. It’s about twice the size of Celeste (LSU’s trial data has Tiger at 27.5 grams vs. 14 grams for Celeste), and when I planted it in the ground, it got even bigger. So I’m not a huge fan of the size.
In a pot, it’s excellent. The pot keeps the fruit a little smaller, and when it’s smaller, it doesn’t split or explode and produces really nice, high-quality figs. The skin is really pleasant to eat: thick, leathery, and chewy when properly ripe, and it doesn’t rub off, so I think it has good commercial potential. It can even somewhat dry on the tree, and those figs taste fantastic. In the ground, I can’t get that consistently. The flavor is similar to Celeste with a little more berry, and more resinous when under-ripe. It’s also sold as Calderwood and Easton Purple.
Shop: LSU Tiger fig tree and LSU Tiger cuttings.
LSU Hollier
Hollier (H-O-L-L-I-E-R) is, I was told, a pretty common last name in Louisiana. I think it’s an excellent variety, but again, it should be grown in a pot. It can produce a light breba crop, and it’s a very hardy tree.
For many years I thought LSU Hollier was a honey fig, but it turns out to be a very fruity sugar fig. The more the figs concentrate and the older the tree gets, the redder the pulp becomes, the better they taste, and the more they eat like sugar figs. They can dry really well on the tree, and you can get a fantastic eating experience. I’m a big fan.
Shop: LSU Hollier fig tree and LSU Hollier cuttings.
LSU Champagne (Golden Celeste)
Some people call this the Champagne fig, and some call it Golden Celeste or LSU Golden Celeste. LSU says it was tested as Golden Celeste. It seems there are different strains of Golden Celeste out there, just like Improved Celeste, and I’m growing different ones to see what the deal is.
It’s a great fig. It ripens early with a short hang time, it’s very consistent, and its hardiness is promising. It’s a classic honey fig with a really nice vanilla flavor. Like Hollier and Tiger, I think it does better in a pot than in the ground, where it gets too big and sometimes splits. I haven’t fully tested that yet, because I need an older structure with good scaffold development, but it has made it through a number of winters.
Shop: LSU Champagne fig tree and LSU Champagne cuttings.
LSU Scott’s Black
LSU Scott’s Black also goes by Fantasia, LSU Fantasia, Coll de Dama Grise (VS), Israeli Black and JFE’s BM Not. Only the VS strain of Coll de Dama Grise is this fig. LSU Purple, Tiger and Hollier all ripen pretty early. Scott’s Black is a little more mid-season, but not too late.
It has a nice, stronger berry flavor. It’s very productive, very consistent, and I think it’s an underrated variety. I actually haven’t liked it much in pots, though I should try it again. Right now I’m getting it established in the ground, because I think it could become a better in-ground tree with a longer neck and stem. The opposite happened with LSU Hollier and LSU Tiger: in the ground, the figs got too big and split more.
LSU O’Rourke & the Three “Improved Celeste” Figs
There are three different types of Improved Celeste commonly found, and I sell all three. My view of them has changed since 2024. LSU O’Rourke is the official LSU release, named after Dr. Ed O’Rourke, who headed the breeding program. LSU itself says O’Rourke is “also known as improved Celeste.” Then there’s the standard fig most people call Improved Celeste, and a third one called Improved Celeste O’Rourke Not (ICON), because people thought it was O’Rourke and it turned out not to be.
Improved Celeste (the standard one): definitely the best of the three. It tastes quite different from Celeste, with a different shape, different skin, and slightly bigger fruit. A lot of people say it’s very early, even earlier than Celeste, but if it is, it’s not by much. Celeste is one of the earliest figs in my yard every year. As far as I know, it was never an official LSU release, so it never got an official name.
LSU O’Rourke: seems to be just Celeste to me, with a slightly browner pulp and lighter flavor.
Improved Celeste O’Rourke Not (ICON): an entirely different fig from Celeste. It seems like a mutation of Celeste. It is rain resistant, but not as rain resistant as Celeste. It can dry on the tree and it tastes good. It’s a different take on Celeste, kind of like Cipolla is to Black Madeira: similar, but bigger and flatter.
All three get sold as an “improvement” to Celeste. The standard Improved Celeste is clearly better than the other two. None of them replaces Celeste, and Black Celeste is still the real story. I go deeper on all of the Celeste strains in my Celeste fig guide.
LSU Scott’s Yellow
I have a number of Scott’s Yellow trees in pots and in the ground, but I’ve yet to fruit it, and you don’t hear much about it. All I can tell you is that it seems to be more rounded and flat in shape, and it should be more along the lines of a honey fig.
LSU Gold
LSU Gold produces really big honey figs with a big eye, and it has lots of problems in times of moisture. LSU’s guide also lists the open eye as one of its limiting characteristics. Truthfully, I don’t know why it was released, and I don’t recommend it. If you want a big honey fig, you’re better off with Yellow Long Neck or Golden Rainbow, in Louisiana and really anywhere in the Deep South. It’s in the same category for me as Brown Turkey, English Brown Turkey and Columbaro Nero: there are just better options.
Smith and Black Celeste Aren’t LSU Figs
Two figs people often lump in with the LSU varieties have nothing to do with LSU’s breeding program.
Smith is not an LSU fig. The most credible information I’ve heard is that it came from Croatia, made its way to France, and was brought to the United States by the Becnel family of Becnel Nursery, which propagated a lot of trees and sold them across the South. That’s probably why some people think it’s an LSU fig. (There is a fig called LSU Strawberry that’s said to have Smith parentage.) Read my full Smith fig review or shop the Smith fig tree.
