Ronde de Bordeaux

Ronde de Bordeaux is a French variety whose name translates directly to "round of Bordeaux," a straightforward reference to its notably round fruit shape and its origin in the Bordeaux region. It is widely regarded by cold-climate growers as likely the hardiest French fig variety, with some reports of it surviving through Zone 5. It is among the earliest main-crop varieties to ripen — often the very first main-crop fig of the season in a given location, typically ripening even before other early varieties like Improved Celeste and Malta Black — and it is able to ripen good fruit even in cool summers when other varieties may not. The tree is a very vigorous grower, capable of up to six feet of growth in a season, and while it can be affected by fig mosaic virus, it tends to outgrow the symptoms easily. Growers consistently praise its rich, bold berry-molasses flavor, though the fruit's long hang time and shape make it genuinely prone to splitting from mid-September onward, and quality can decline somewhat later in the season compared to its excellent early-summer fruit.