Tiverton’s Fig Festival Returns with Rare Trees, Tastings, and a Very Big Leaf Contest

A fruit that spends most of the year minding its own business has developed quite the following in Southern New England. On September 12, fig growers from around the region will gather in Tiverton for the fourth annual FigMamma Farms Fig Festival, where rare trees, fruit tastings, growing advice, and one unusually competitive leaf all share the afternoon.

Hosted by Firefly Figs at 630 Neck Road from 2-5pm, the festival welcomes backyard gardeners alongside collectors who can tell one cultivar from another at a glance. For anyone trying to coax figs through a New England growing season, there should be plenty to compare notes on.

“This festival isn’t just about buying trees, it’s about building a community where growers of every experience level can learn from one another and celebrate a fruit that has connected cultures for thousands of years,” says FigMamma Farms founder Sandy Pavao-Pinarreta.

Pavao-Pinarreta planted her first fig tree more than 30 years ago. Her collection now tops 300 varieties, and festivalgoers can browse more than 150 rare and unusual fig trees offered by three regional growers.

The afternoon gets increasingly specific from there. Visitors can sample figs, enter a baking contest, bid in a white elephant fig tree auction, and bring their largest leaf for the aptly named “Biggest Leaf in Town” competition. A raffle and vendor area add baked goods, honey, cheese, chocolates, eco-art, body care, and other locally made finds.

The growing advice comes from people who have put in the years. URI Master Gardener Joel Swan will answer questions throughout the day, while Figaholics founder Harvey Correia brings experience from an orchard containing roughly 400 fig varieties. Little Compton growers Joe and Meggan Freire and Neptune’s Harvest’s Ann Molloy are also scheduled to share practical tips.

For Pavao-Pinarreta, what started with one tree eventually became hundreds, then workshops, open houses, and a festival large enough to gather fig lovers from across the region. At this point, bringing home another tree hardly seems out of character. Pre-registration closes September 11. A $5 parking donation is suggested, with cash preferred. Visit FigMamma.com for registration and more information about the 2026 Fig Festival.