Fresh figs are expensive and don't keep well after being picked, which makes it well worth growing your own. Andrew Unsworth shares some gardening and cooking tips Figs are the ultimate sensual fruit. Suggestive to the point of being rude, it's no surprise to find them used symbolically in art. They have been cultivated across the Middle East since antiquity. They feature regularly in the Bible (Adam and Eve wore fig leaves - the first fashion statement?), are one of the two sacred trees of Islam, and Buddha found enlightenment while meditating under a sacred fig tree. If any fruit has a cultural history, it's the common fig.They also have a rich culinary history, especially in the Mediterranean. Think thinly sliced prosciutto with fresh figs as an antipasto or whole figs wrapped in bacon or prosciutto and grilled, or stuffed with blue cheese and grilled.story_article_left1In A Year of Good Eating, Nigel Slater has a recipe for tartlets filled with sliced red onions roasted in butter, diced figs and crème fraîche. And in Rick Stein's From Venice to Istanbul, there is a simple Dalmatian tart filled with honey, mascarpone and fresh figs. You can do wonderful things with figs.Fresh figs don't keep well and don't ripen after being picked, so they're always expensive. This makes it a fruit worth growing - and nothing beats one eaten on the day it's picked. You'll also need a lot to cook with.In culinary terms it is a fruit, but biologically a fig is a flower that is inverted into itself. The numerous flowers and seeds, the real fruit, are inside what is really a hollowed-out stem. The small hole at the end allows a wasp entry to pollinate the flowers.Figs are easy to grow, and even like their roots restricted. Some say they can damage walls so don't plant one in the wrong place. The roots are shallow and can spread far beyond its canopy. You can espalier it into a pattern against a wall, but that means keeping it in check forever. They like a sunny spot, don't like being waterlogged and can take most winter temperatures in SA. They also tolerate some drought, but the fruit will burst if it is too wet in late summer when they ripen.Figs do best in a climate with hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. Ask your nursery for advice on which variety to plant.Make the most of your homegrown fruit with this recipe for poached figs in red winemini_story_image_hright1Ingredients:15ml (1 tbsp) flour250ml (1 cup) dry red wine45ml (3 tbsp) honey2 cinnamon sticks or 2 cloves8 fresh figsMethod:1. Dissolve the flour in the wine, then heat in a saucepan. Add the honey, mix in, then add the spice. Boil until it has reduced to about half. 2. Lower the heat, add the figs, cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.3. Remove the spice and serve warm or cold with the sauce and crème fraîche, cream or ice cream...