how to grow a mango plant from seed

SGCanada:

Wow - your avocado is really beautifuL. Nice job!

Also, thanks for posting your little mango sprout - how inspiring. Thanks also for mentioning that it took nearly 4 weeks to sprout above soil. I will be patient, for sure.

Your little mango tree is so pretty, and healthy looking. I love how red they are when they're first starting out! What an attractive and appealing tree.

I hope you enjoy UBC Gardening Forum, SGCanada.

: )

 

HBL Im not sure if you can lop the tops of the trees off, I've never seen them in captivity only in the wild and they grow huge.

Lorax will probably know, she probably has a few in her garden or around about.

Nath

 

Sherry, you can absolutely pollard a mango - it's a fairly common practice in the newer orchards.

 

I thought as much, Beth, so thanks for the confirmation. I will top it when it's about 4-5 feet.

This is so exciting.

: )

 

There you go HBL I said Lorax would know. Actually Lorax thats useful to know as when mine hit the ceiling of the conservatory I will have to lop them as well.

I planted my first avocado stone today just to see what happens, you never know your luck.

Nath

 

I planted an avocado pit once too, Nath, and it grew into a very cool plant, that I had for a couple years, then it died. It was interesting to watch grow.

 

A seedling Mango grown as a container tree, either rarely produces fruit, or produces very little fruit. However grafted Mangoes normally produce very good crops.

Mango is picky to graft -- if you do it right, you can get 95% or better, but if you don't do it right, expect next to zero %.

Different people use different methods throughout the world. But there are methods which gives excellent success:

1. June is the best month to graft. May and July will give substantially less success, and any other month may be disastrous.

2. Prepared budwood. About a week to 10 days before you want to graft, choose mature, dormant twigs on your scion-source tree, and clip off the leaves from the terminal 5-8 inches. Leave the petioles attached. Do NOT harvest the scions at this point. They should remain on the mother plant, looking like little porcupines with their petioles sticking out in all directions.

3. After a week, start gently nudging the petioles, daily. At first they'll just bend but stay attached. But there will come a day when they fall off at the slightest touch of your finger. On that day, collect the scions and graft them.

4. I like a veneer (side veneer) graft about 3-4 inches long, with the terminal bud attached. If there is no terminal bud, that's OK; the tree just won't be quite as straight/vertical at first.

5. Whereas with most grafts, I make the scion cuts first, then hold the scion in my mouth while making the rootstock cuts, mango wood tastes bad and can be quite corrosive, and if you're allergic, can be life-threatening; so with mango, I always cut the rootstock first, then just work really quickly to get the scion cut and into place.

6. Wrap with polyethylene grafting tape, rather tightly. Cover all of the buds at first, except the terminal bud. Try to seal all the cut surfaces.

7. After 4 weeks, carefully unwrap and then re-wrap the scion, this time leaving the axillary (as well as terminal) buds open to the air, but putting the tape back on the internodes, to continue to provide support and protection. At that time, also make a notch 1/4 of the way through the rootstock trunk just above the scion, on the same side as the scion. Also clip out the terminal bud of the rootstock.

8. About every 2 weeks after that, cut a few inches of the rootstock top off, removing a few leaves each time. Of course, height and number of leaves on a rootstock will vary widely, but you are trying to encourage scion growth, but you don't want the rootstock to become leafless for a month to 6 weeks after the graft was first unwrapped.

9. About 10 weeks after grafting, 6 weeks after re-wrapping, you should have a nice sturdy stem on your scion, with mature leaves. At that point it is safe to completely remove the rootstock top down to the graft, and to remove the grafting tape.

This method is obviously rather labor-intensive and "picky." However, nurseries (and individuals) who use it routinely get well over 95% success; those who don't generally settle for 65% with EXPERT grafters, and far less if their grafters are less than expert.
- Millet/Malcolm Manners (1,268-)

 

It seems other people believe they will fruit from seed. I find information can be very contradicting, so sometimes you just gotta see for yourself, I guess.

Thanks for the detailed information on how to graft - I have a book on grafting, and believe me, it is no procedure for an amateur - and no matter what people or books say, it can take many years of skill and practice before getting a graft to take.

I am still going to grow my little mango tree and see what happens, in oh, shall we say....10 years!

: O

It may get fruits or it may not, but it will still be cool to grow one. I would be very interested to hear Lorax's take on all this...

 

HBL, I fully agree with you on growing a plant just for the fun of growing it, whether the plant ever achieves ones expectations or not. I am currently growing a container Italian Chestnut tree. I really do not care much if it produces nuts or not. I had a seed so I planted it. Who knows, in a couple years I might get tired of it and give the tree away, or just toss it out, or I might keep it for years. It is a beautiful tree. I only wrote the post to help anyone interested in growing, or grafting Mangoes. I wish you all the fun, and excitement growing your Mango. It is a lucky tree. Take care. - Millet (1,268-)

 

Oh yes, of course Millet, and your commens and expertise are always welcome.

The way you described your chestnut tree, sounds just like the way I approach things too. It's all just for fun, and so neat to see what happens. Whatever strikes your fancy at the time, is what I like to grow too, and if I don't want it later, than I can do whatever.

I hope you do get some chestnuts on your tree. It sounds kind of cool. You guys have got me so excited about this mango growing, that I am bursting to see a sprout. I might get it going outside in full sun, to get it off to a good start, and then bring it in before frost, to thrive over the winter under a 400 W, warm deluxe, full-spectrum, SunMaster bulb!

: O

Then I will put it out again next summer too. I wonder how it will look. I like a nice full tree - not some flimsy, spindly thing, so it will be fed well, and grown in some excellent compost. I am wondering if cutting the top off when the tree reaches the desired height, will encourage more branching?

: )

 

Millet, I've had great luck with getting fruiting trees from seed particularly with Mangoes. They're not necessarily the same as the parent fruit, but they are fruit, and in a couple of cases what the new tree produced was superior to the original fruit (I'm thinking the pits of large, all-red skinned mangoes I've purchased here.) Additionally, the smaller varieites, like Ambassador (Chupitos) do seem to come true - it's the larger, commercial varieties (Tommy, Keitt, Kent) that seem to breed off.

This said, if you're wanting orchard-quality fruit, grafting is a better option.

Sherry, don't let any of this discourage you, because even if it never ever fruits, mango trees are beautiful and fragrant. Topping it will absolutely encourage more branching; they don't seem to be apical-node dominant like Avocadoes, and as I said before, the newer orchards are mainly pollarded trees. You can also espalier it against a wall if you want to encourage lateral rather than vertical growth.

 

You are just too smart, Lorax. You truly amaze me. If only people knew how old you are! I can only imagine you in 10 years! OMG!

: O

I am so encouraged by your previous post, that I rushed to my germination station, to mist my mango seed! Oh I am going to treat this tree so good. Great to know that topping the tree will encourage a more bushy, fuller tree.

The seedlings I see in most people's pictures are tall and kind of spindly looking, but I want short and full instead. It's the same with vines that aren't pruned, they have few branches, and can look thin and bare. I am a huge fan of pruning.

Ohhh Beth, you have made my night. I will show pictures just as soon as my sprout appears. I took the seed from a nearly all red fruit! It was a mexican mango, I think, but it hardly had any green on it. It was sooooo delicious.

Thanks again, Lorax.

: )

 

HBL I also just plant the seeds for the fun of it, though in my case its because i miss the tropical trees and plants from Mexico so I experiment to see what will grow in this country, I have so many people tell me oh that will not grow or survive here that its always a challenge to try and prove them wrong. I don't really care if my mango trees give fruit or not i just want to prove that they will grow here, same with my Poinciana's that are doing so well. it must be my stubborn spirit, I hate the words can't and impossible, I prefer lets try it and see and if at first you don't succeed keep on trying untill you do. Thats my approach to gardening and it makes it much more interesting and fun.

 

I totally hear you, Nath.

So many things in gardening, people have told me supposedly could not be done, but yet I did them with total success! It really depends on the person's skill, and how they do things.

Two different people in the same climate and environment can get a totally different response from the same plant. I am like you, in that I will not give up, and I keep trying.

Your mango trees sound great.

: )

 

I'll try and post some fotos tonight if I have any energy left after the football. I am very pleased with them just having sprouted never mind about fruiting.

 

HLB, Your correct to be concerned about the growth of flimsy, spindly trees. Many containerized trees grow to become, as you say " some flimsy, spindly thing" and therefore require sticks, or some other type of support to hold them up. It is not a matter of feeding them well, nor using compost, in an effort to product strong straight trunks, and firm branches. Often, providing high levels of nutrition, is a major cause of soft succulent growth. How nature makes all of her trees to grow into trees with strong, firm trunks and solid branches is by the wind. It is the tree's flicking back and forth against the pressure of the wind that provides vigorous sturdy trees of great strength. It's recommended to place a tree in such a position starting around 2" in height. Many indoor growers accomplish this by the use of a fan. - Millet (1,267-)

 

Yes yes Millet, I have done this before with other plants. The fan blowing on them actually makes the trunks thicker, as I have seen on other types of plants.

Thanks for reminding me about that.

: )

 

The method used by ZekeStone is the best. I have tried with mangos and avocados. In Fall: as soon as the temperature goes under 60 degrees F place the plant in a sunny window. Later in late Spring or early Summer bring the plant outside. Do not over water. My avocado plant is about 4 feet. It needs another tree to have avocados. My mangos died and the rest of the avocado trees we tried...

 

By the way...

Another way to make the main stem or trunk thicker on plants is to shake them everyday. I've done it and it works. You just take the main stem and give it a firm shake. It will soon begin to thicken.

: )

 

My Mangoes

[/ATTACH]

 

Cute, Nath. Be sure to shake them for a couple of seconds, once or twice a day, and the trunks will thicken.

Lorax:

What would happen if you cut the top off of a mango tree about twice the size of Nath's? Would this make it get fuller and bushier right from the start, or should I wait until it's 5 feet tall before I do it?

: )

 

HBL, shaking a tree actually provides the same type of flicking back and forth as does the wind. Lastly, leaving the lower branches on a young tree also provides a lot of nutrition and additional strength to the tree's lower trunk. That is why "wild" trees seen growing in the fields naturally keep their lower branches. Later on, as the tree grows, you notice that on older trees, Mother nature has eliminated them. After about two years you can prune them from the tree if you desire a standard tree form. - Millet (1,267-)

 

HBL that Mango tree was exactly a week old yesterday. The growth rate is incredible.

 

I started my mango plant by accident. I dumped my mango seed in my compost pile a couple of weeks ago. Went out today and I have a mango plant growing. I think I will take it out of the pile and plant it in a bucket. It has a long tap root. I might cut that off. I live in SC in zone 8. Don't know how it will take the winter as sometimes we get down to the teens in farenheit degrees.

 

Don't cut the tap root!!! You'll kill the little guy. Wrap it into the pot.