I am new to this forum, so forgive me if this is redundant info....

I have spent quite some time trying to find which mango(s) are most adaptable to container growing under the most varied conditions, and what are the best practices for doing so....After a few years, here is what I have come up with:

Mangos love sun/heat and hate root disturbance. They are not really picky about soil. Keep them in the sunniest spot you can find. If they spend a large portion of the growing season indoors, put a seedling heat mat under the pots. Use larger pots than normal, and larger increments between pots to minimize root damage. This will mean that careful watering habits will have to be maintained, and the soil will have to have some cohesion to keep the rootball from falling apart when transplanting. Never ever rinse the roots clean or prune roots...you will very likely kill the tree or set it back years!

Mangos drop leaves under many conditions...and sometimes just for the hell of it. Root stress seems to be the number one trigger. Luckily, each leaf axil contains several buds, and the growth ring contains many. As a matter of fact, to get a balance tree, you are bettor off heading down to an inch above a leaf axil then cutting back to a growth ring. This is because the ring will send out several wide arched shoots from the ring, while the leaf axil will send out more upright growth and a fewer shoots...

Mangos are drought tolerant...let the pots dry to two or even three inches deep between watering. Overwatering and high nitrogen lead to bland fruit.

Mangos like a resting period just like many other fruiting trees (actually, they are remarkable like citrus in their culture it seems). Keep the water level relatively low, and withold feeding in the late fall/winter. When the days begin to lengthen in spring, water fully 3-4 times in a 2-3 week span, and give fish emulsion 3TBSP/gal during the last two waterings of this cycle.

Mangos l like in containers in order of my preference:

Mallika-In a word, bulletproof and yummy! Small tree too...
Cogshall-Nice and compact extended harvesting seeason
Nam Doc Mai- the queen of mangos. Small tree
Ice cream-compact tree, yummy fruit, slightly more of a fussy tree.

Hope this helps someone!

Albert

Thanks for the wonderful tips.

What is your opinion about Julie and Holiday Mangoes? They are specifically bred or selected for container growing and can fruit well even in 5-gallon containers. At least from what they claim and from the pictures that I've seen posted.

I have had 2 Julies go south on me...maybe it is just me, but they seem too fragile and not all that compact. Mallika tastes and holds better (in my opinion) anyway. I have talked to others with similar issues.

I am unaware of Holiday...unless you mean XX3 the avocado
got a link?

As for fruiting...manngo's fruit in containers! I've personally seen them do it in a one gallon pot! They were one of the earliest trees used for Bosai. Other than the central tap root, and maybe a couple of anchor roots, they have very fine and non destructive roots. easy to damage, but also very good for pot growth in my mind. I don't even consider a pot larger than 15GAL for a container that will go in and out of the house frequently. and any of the mangos I have mentioned will give plenty of fruit in that container.

The reason peaople seem to have with container mangos fruiting is either sun/heat related, or steady decline of the tree do to overwatering/feeding. Keep it warm and sunny, and don't fuss over it! Also, let it rest in the winter...good advice for many fruiting trees...
On a seperate note, Millet has really opened my eyes to root pruning containers...especially the ones you assemble for your own needs. I am testing this system in a larger decorative pot with styrofoam peanuts filling the bottom and sidewall gaps. I'll let you know how it goes.

A word of caution on CHC...if you are going to use it (i am trying it out now), up the coir content. Those chips seem great, just don't use them straight. The roots will not survive the potting up regardless how careful you are...the coir seems like it would bind the rootball ok.

Albert

Hi Al, great info. How old are your trees? How much fruit do you get?

How can you tell when to pick the Mallika since you have to pick it green?

How large is a 15 gallon container in inches across?

Did you get your trees from Pine Island?

sent you a pm

My posts are invisible?

Here's a decent source of Julie or Condo mangoes that are willing to ship:
http://www.mangotreeman.com/


I lost the link to the site that mentions Holiday Mango. Perhaps they took it down a long time ago after realizing there's no such thing. I can't find it again anywhere.

Al..

I bring my tropical fruit trees indoors for the winter and put them under grow lights. When you say that one should let mango trees rest during the winter, what is meant by that?

Cooler temps, not as much water, no fert. Allowing it to store the energy to produce fruit.

I have a dwarf Carrie mango tree in a 3 gallon pot. Its about 2 1/2 feet tall and recently sprouted flowers. What can I expect from this? Will they likely survive to maturity and if so, how long will it take?

Also, any tips for repotting into a larger pot?