Hi everyone. This is my first start new topic post.
I wanted to share my lineup of fairly new mango trees and give my observations.
Lineup of potted mango trees:
From left to right:
1. Mallika (PIN grown, purchased from Mimosa LA today in a 7 gallon pot and transferred to a 15 gallon pot). I heard so many good things about this variety in So Cal. This will be fun to figure out when to pick it...from what I have read.
2. Multi-grafted Glenn, Alfonso, Valencia Pride (VP), and Haden? (purchased from Mimosa LA in Nov 2012 in a 20 gallon pot). See comments below (close-up of multi-grafted tree).
3. Timotayo (La Verne Nursery grown, purchased from Lowes in Oct 2013)...MangoProfessor's creation that he supposedly lost patent control over by ownership change and mistake at La Verne Nursery. Let's see how cold hardy this variety is...although it doesn't really get too cold where I live in North Orange County CA (zone 10b).
4. Carrie (PIN grown, purchased in summer 2013 from Mimosa LA in a 15 gallon pot). Had 1 fruit that was flavorful but not sickening sweet as PIN and others have described. In fact, I felt it was a little tart. But the flesh was very fragrant near the skin. This must be the piney taste that I have heard people describe. According to Gilbert at Mimosa LA, I picked it just a little too early. It had a yellow patch on the sunny facing side and it came off the tree fairly easily in a 90 degree twist. Next year, I will wait a little longer...maybe yellow at the bottom beak....which would mean picking in mid-October.
5. Keitt (La Verne nursery grown, purchased from Lowes in May 2013 in a 5 gallon pot and transferred to a 7 gallon pot). Probably will get fruit in 2 years.
6. Manila mango puchased from Home Depot in winter 2012-3 and used for grafting experiments. Still in its 5 gallon pot. Haven't been successful at grafting yet.
Close-up of the multi-grafted tree:
Glenn at middle right...can you believe this tiny little graft delivered 3 good sized fruit this year. Sweet and flavorful. Yellow-orange color inside.
VP on far left...delivered 1 nice fruit. Very sweet and flavorful...with a little tartness.
Alfonso in middle of picture ....didn't fruit. Anxiously waiting for next year.
Haden at top (cut off in picture) ...I don't think it is a Haden based on shape and taste. Gilbert and Tom at Mimosa LA claim the tree was originally a Haden from La Verne before they grafted onto it. However, the 3 fruit from it this year was extremely elongated shaped (like Maha Chanok) and sweet, but lacked any tropical mango flavor that is characteristic of Haden. There was also a lot of fiber at the seed. Maybe I will top work this someday with another variety. I'll give it 1 more chance this year.
In-ground tree:
Bought this tree 10 years ago (in 2003) from Mimosa Anaheim. It was already an adult size (5-6 ft tall) in a 2 ft wide box and was labelled "Indian".
I thought it was a Baileys Marvel tree until I compared it against a "real" Glenn fruit this year from my multi-grafted tree. I compared outward appearance, color inside, texture, flavor, size of seed). I do note that the fruit should not be allowed to ripen too long on the tree as it becomes acidity/sour if you let it stay too long. If it falls on the ground, it is generally overripe.
Its kind of weird...I use the smell test to determine when to pick it. If I can smell the tropical mango scent at the skin, then its ready to pick. Color alone doesn't determine ripeness, especially the ones that are inside the canopy and green.
My tree is now 10 feet tall in the ground and a favorite amongst my family. It has been pruned every year, but never at the top. It is pruned because I planted it too close to the wall and I wanted to prevent the tree from tipping over. The growth is relatively slow and matches the characteristic of the Glenn. Now I am curious if anyone here in So Cal has a Bailey's Marvel.
Whew...sorry for the long post.
Thanks.
Warren