Author Topic: Growing Mango trees in Southern California  (Read 179959 times)

simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #100 on: July 17, 2017, 01:20:46 PM »
I believe Walter Anderson Nursery in Poway has that but call them to make sure. I wouldn't use that on young trees however because they need Nitrogen to grow. Nitrogen is also utilized by plants when flowering and fruiting but it is rarely mentioned.

Simon

Clay

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #101 on: July 17, 2017, 01:32:09 PM »
Thanks Simon! The trees have been in the ground two years now. I'm targeting to let them fruit next year. They are growing like crazy right now; new shoots coming out everywhere.  I'll probably give them one more application of Citrus and Avocado fertilizer, but around October I was thinking of giving them some SOP before they start to bloom in the Winter. Are they still too young for that?

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simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #102 on: July 17, 2017, 04:24:14 PM »
I would personally not let a two year old tree fruit, even if it was planted as a 7 gallon but the decision is ultimately the growers choice because only you have an idea how you want your tree to grow and produce.

My best friend allows his young trees to fruit against my advice because he wants to purposefully stunt his trees as he does not want them to grow too large. Unfortunately, allowing young unestablished trees to fruit also weakens them and opens them up to disease.

I would much rather wait and have a large established tree producing lots of fruit year after year than allowing a young tree produce 1-5 ok fruit the second year and get stunted growth or possibly a weakened or dead tree in the following years.

Simon

shinzo

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #103 on: July 17, 2017, 04:41:38 PM »
I would personally not let a two year old tree fruit, even if it was planted as a 7 gallon but the decision is ultimately the growers choice because only you have an idea how you want your tree to grow and produce.

My best friend allows his young trees to fruit against my advice because he wants to purposefully stunt his trees as he does not want them to grow too large. Unfortunately, allowing young unestablished trees to fruit also weakens them and opens them up to disease.

I would much rather wait and have a large established tree producing lots of fruit year after year than allowing a young tree produce 1-5 ok fruit the second year and get stunted growth or possibly a weakened or dead tree in the following years.

Simon
Dr. Campbell speaks about this point in the last video you shared in the other thread, he was talking about a fine line that separate dwarfing and stunting.

spaugh

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #104 on: July 17, 2017, 04:51:22 PM »
I believe Walter Anderson Nursery in Poway has that but call them to make sure. I wouldn't use that on young trees however because they need Nitrogen to grow. Nitrogen is also utilized by plants when flowering and fruiting but it is rarely mentioned.

Simon

Yes they do have it.  I use it on my hibiscus plants along with other more well balanced fertilizers.  I would probably try grow power flower and bloom 3-12-12 on the mango trees instead of hitting it with 0 0 50 if you are looking for less nitrogen and want to promote bloom/fruit. 

I use the grow power 8 6 8 on my fruit trees and use the flower bloom  3 12 12 on my flowering plants and vegetables/berries/watermelons. 
Brad Spaugh

spaugh

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #105 on: August 07, 2017, 03:46:49 PM »
Using some fertilizer on the trees seems to have gotten them going.  Here are my florida trees.  They seem to be doing ok.  Slow growing but healthy.






« Last Edit: August 07, 2017, 03:48:56 PM by spaugh »
Brad Spaugh

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #106 on: August 08, 2017, 12:16:28 PM »
I heard from a guy who grew florida mangoes in California to pluck off the fruits after they get to the size of a large lima bean, then it thinks it's done fruiting for the year. I tried it myself and even in cold weather, the mangoes don't seem to be putting out new flowers, rather, a heck more leaf growth has pushed out!
My 3-yr-old Keitt tree (from Plant-o-gram) sprouted some panicles this summer, and I snipped them all off when the fruits got to about that size. It just pushed out the nicest vegetative flush it's ever grown.


So maybe there's hope, yet!
Sunset 23/USDA 11a, Elev. 783', Frost free since 8,000 BC. Plagued by squirrels, gophers, and peafowl, but coming to terms with it!

AnnonaMangoLord45

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #107 on: August 08, 2017, 12:37:53 PM »
My mango seedling has these weird black spots on the sides of the leaves, and one of the leaves has an odd black dot that is spreading.. Is it anthracnose? Will it kill the young seedling?


Thanks, Matt

simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #108 on: August 08, 2017, 05:01:50 PM »
Nice updates Spaugh! Any pics of the seedlings we planted? Now is also a good time to give our trees micronutrients either through foliar feeding or through soil drenches. Iron is especially important but so is Magnesium and Manganese, especially here in SoCal.

Matt, I get spotting on many of my seedlings and they seem to grow through it. My seedlings are responding really well to the micronutrients.

Simon

spaugh

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #109 on: August 08, 2017, 08:26:37 PM »
Will wait a week or 2 to photo the in ground seeds and transplants.  The transplanted ones are about to flush.  Seeds are still real tiny.  They may get cooked in the sun, not really sure yet.

I have another dozen seeds in pots that I may experiment with indoors under a 200W cree cob grow light.
Brad Spaugh

OCchris1

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #110 on: August 09, 2017, 01:38:10 AM »
I believe I ordered my 0-0-50 from Southern Ag? I also ordered chelated iron and micros as well. Its nice when you can have things delivered. Chris
-Chris

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #111 on: August 09, 2017, 05:41:28 AM »
Nice updates Spaugh! Any pics of the seedlings we planted? Now is also a good time to give our trees micronutrients either through foliar feeding or through soil drenches. Iron is especially important but so is Magnesium and Manganese, especially here in SoCal.

Matt, I get spotting on many of my seedlings and they seem to grow through it. My seedlings are responding really well to the micronutrients.

Simon
Hi simon, are Iron, Magnesium and Manganese safe to drench during summer heat? I have no idea about this and my question may sound stupid, but i wanted to be sure before drenching my seedling with these nutrients.

simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #112 on: August 09, 2017, 08:28:03 AM »
Yes, it's safe do drench with these in summer heat, at least where I live. For container plants, it's good to feed frequently but in diluted concentrations because frequent watering washes away much of the soils nutrients. Southern Ag Citrus nutritional spray is a great drench and foliar. You can also use a complete fertilizer with a good micro package.

Simon

AnnonaMangoLord45

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #113 on: August 09, 2017, 11:27:47 AM »
Hey simon, you said those black spots are normal, what are they?

Also, I would like to ask the forum when I should divide these mango seedlings? Thanks, Matt




simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #114 on: August 09, 2017, 05:57:19 PM »
Matt, I can't even see any black spots on the leaves. My eyes are not so good, can you take a zoomed in picture? You can separate seedlings once the current flush has fully hardened. Actually, wait a week or two after fully hardening just to be safe. Once you seperate them, you may want to give them some shade until they recuperate at which time you can slowly transition them back to full sun.

Simon

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #115 on: August 16, 2017, 12:22:06 PM »
I am looking a purchasing a Mango Tree I did find the Manila at HomeDepot which I am considering buying although I am also looking at possibly a dwarf variety.  I know you can keep the mango trees trimmed and kept at a more desirable size like 8 to 10 feet high and wide.  My question is this.  I am working on redoing my yard this fall and would like to purchase the mango sooner rather than later.  Also the area where I plan to keep the tree is in an area I may not touch for a few years. I have a few questions I would like to have answered if possible.
Can I keep it in a pot.  I plan on make the pot myself out of wood if it needs to be large so size is not an issue.
If kept in pot what soil would be best to use? I do plan to use Mulch
It will be hooked up to drip irrigation so drying out should not be an issue.
I grow Bananas in my area without issue so I figure I should have the climate for a Mango
Thanks
 

simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #116 on: August 16, 2017, 02:39:49 PM »
Mango's grow much slower here in SoCal the un pruned Lavern Mnillas seem to slow down a lot when they get to about 15 feet tall and that's without pruning. It's best to plant into the ground immediately but in your situation where you may or may not work on that part of your yard, you may be better off finishing your yard before even purchasing the trees.

When I planted out my yard, I thought I was being smart by getting my trees into the ground immediately so that I can get fruit sooner but that turned out really bad because now there's weeds growing everywhere. I should have completed my land/hardscapping first taking into account sloping the soil away from the foundation and all the other little caveats that one should consider when landscaping.

It's ok to keep them in pots for a while but make sure you up pot when necessary. You don't want J root or your tree getting pot bound.

Simon

Zarafet

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #117 on: August 16, 2017, 03:08:45 PM »
So let me ask a question. I know this May have been covered many times but I wanna make sure that I got it. Is it more advisable to plant a Manila seedling from LaVerne and allow it to branch out before top working which will result in greater success or can we just graft onto a new seedling from LaVerne And expect the same results. I guess my question is which one is more vigorous due to our weather constraints and the length of our seasons. Which one is stronger or is it equal since we are using manila rootstock  either way?

fyliu

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #118 on: August 16, 2017, 04:31:33 PM »
So here is the rough list of things that happen.

1. Get LaVerne seedling in pot
2. Plant it in the ground
3. Let it grow new roots
4. Let it grow new leaves
5. Top the trunk at some height: knee, waist, or chest.
6. Let it grow new branches
7. Graft onto the end of new branches

Zarafet, if I understand you correctly, you're asking about grafting it after step 1 versus grafting it in step 7.

I don't think it's a good idea to graft in the pot. The plant is not as strong as it would be in the ground.
The stronger the rootstock, the more vigorous the graft. I think doing it after step 5 is stronger than step 7 since the full strength of the tree is on one graft rather than divided among several branches. How do you know the tree is strong before it grows new branches is the problem with trying to do it earlier. It'll grow more roots the longer you wait.

If you get a tree now, there's not much time left to graft this year. So you need to decide to graft it in before October or next April-May.

Anyway, definitely put it in the ground first if that's the ultimate goal for it.

Zarafet

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #119 on: August 16, 2017, 05:05:34 PM »
Thx, that's exactly what I wanted to know.

simon_grow

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #120 on: August 16, 2017, 06:27:00 PM »
As fyliu mentioned, there are many factors at play and very early in this thread, around page 1, I mentioned that it's best to plant the Lavern Manilla or random seedling into the ground and just let it grow and establish.

I would not immediately graft because once the tree is grafted, it will likely flowering its first or second Winter which uses a lot of energy. It's better to just let the tree grow and establish its roots. It is ok to shape the tree if it does not have good branching but if it's a whip, just plant it and let it grow for about a year before you top it to create your branching.

Simon

Zarafet

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #121 on: August 16, 2017, 06:40:36 PM »
 That was my next question, I bought 2 just now,  thank you all for your experience and wisdom. I have a 3 year old in ground Keitt seedling and it's VERY dwarfed, I have 4 growth flushes at 1 foot,  I will let it do it's thing and once old enough to flower, I'll graft it to a seedling to see if it's a true dwarf or if it's responding to it's environment vs biology.

Seanny

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #122 on: August 17, 2017, 10:43:56 PM »
Air pruning mango seedling



barath

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #123 on: August 18, 2017, 01:19:38 AM »
Has anyone here bought any of La Verne's pre-grafted mangos and then grafted more varieties on those?  (Do they use their "Manila" trees as rootstock for their grafted ones?)

Zarafet

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Re: Growing Mango trees in Southern California
« Reply #124 on: August 18, 2017, 02:11:10 AM »
No and yes.

Has anyone here bought any of La Verne's pre-grafted mangos and then grafted more varieties on those?  (Do they use their "Manila" trees as rootstock for their grafted ones?)