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grazie everycody - will let you know

yes blondie is right but put them on a sloping board in the sun. We are doing this at the moment and find that halved and drained the evening before then put out on a sloping board i direct sunlight covered with a teacloth will have them done by sun set. If the sun in the south is not so strong (lol) you will end up with sun blushed fruit. Dont use a syup or you will get the mozzies attacking!!!

Thanks very much, will try it this weekend and let you know.
Sometimes its so hot here that I would give anything to be back in miserable, cold, wet ....no I've changed my mind, much prefer it over here!

Yes let us know how you go Anna, if I had some sun, any sun at all, then I'd dry it outside too. Lucky you.

LOL Anna. I thought you lived in England. Dry in the sun. Firstly it has to be very hot. 90 at least. Place the fruit on a tray and cover with a cheese cloth or any fine material. Again a fan is useful to help with the circulation. You must turn the fruit over every day.Dry untill the peaches or figs have lost most of their moisture.When finished your fruit should be chewy. Is that better?

thanks for the help, I was hoping to use the really hot sun that we are having at the moment over here in Italy - I had a little chuckle at Blondies suggestion on 58 hours in the oven, I live up the side of a mountain and have no main line gas, so oven is run with a gas-bomb that weighs a ton and would certainly run out long before the fruit is dry. Anyway I will try mammachef version but put them in the sun - and out of the way of ants/flys/UFOs etc. I'll let you know.

Also,here is another way without syrup but it takes a very long time. Peaches take min'38 hours max 58. Figs take less time anything between 11 hours plus. Put the oven on to the lowest setting but leave the door open a little bit. You will have to use a fan to blow the air across . Now put your fruit in single layers and turn the fruit over from time to time. This way at least 90 to 95 percent of the moisture is removed but a much easier way to obtain sun dried fruit is to go to a shop and buy it. LOL. Good luck. Hope you have a go.

I don't know how to sun dry them Anna, don't seem to get much sun, at least not this year. But you can dry them in the oven. Many fruits like apples, pears etc can be done in the same way.

you make a stock syrup which is caster sugar in water and boiled rapidly so it reduces into a syrup. Let that cool, then dip slices of fruit into it and place on a baking sheet, on non stick paper of some sort and bake very slowly on a low oven. When they come out they will be soft but will crisp up once cooled. They need a few hours to cook.