Curator List for 2014 Mango Festival

[DuncanYoung]

http://www.fairchildgarden.org/livingcollections/tropicalfruitprogram/Fairchilds17thAnnualInternationalMangoFestival/internationalmangofestival/

[Mr. Clean]

They added two mangos from Columbia:  Azucar and Vallenato

I wonder how a Columbia mango will grow in south  Florida weather.   Thoughts?

[Patrick]

I think the analysis they provide in their explanation of each is based on South Florida growing conditions from their collection no?

[gunnar429]

why no Mahachanok?  they love trees that can be kept manageable in size

[natsgarden123]

they really don't change the list much.... 

[bsbullie]

And to add to Nat's comment, they keep promoting varieties they should remove from their list.

Yes, Patrick, I do believe theyr description tend or try to be based on South Florida, of at least South Miami-Dade growing locale.

[Squam256]

Its been a couple years since I had Azucar but I don't remember it being particularly fibrous in Colombia. The description makes it sound like a turpentine-type.

[gunnar429]

The problem i have with these lists is that they only offer a few different ones each year to go along with the "favorites" that are on the list each year.  That would be ok, except that they usually don't have the fruit to sample so you have to go on a whim.  I have been in the sampling room each year and usually it consists of kent, keitt, and a few other old-time varieties.  Am i missing something?  I guess i could pony up a hundred bucks and bid at the auction, but a mango festival that is selling the trees should have a way for others to taste the fruit before making the selection for a tree.  This may not even be possible, but how many people can get a mango tree each year with the idea "just trust us, it's good."

[gunnar429]

i like the way that azucar looks though....might be fun to have some little mango thirst quenchers if you can roll em and suck out the juice.

Can anyone comment on the azucar's taste?

[Squam256]

This may not even be possible, but how many people can get a mango tree each year with the idea "just trust us, it's good."

People here do that all the time. They'll line up to buy a new variety without ever having tried it or seen the tree just based off an interesting sounding name and description.

Some of the standbys belong on the list every year.....Angie, Fairchild, Cogshall, Rosigold....these are productive, manageable trees with good quality fruit that have a place in most yards.

But Richard likes to mix it up and internationalize it. The result is some varieties that really don't fit well on a list for the generally uneducated buying public.

[ClayMango]

So they're leaving out the Top Tier Zill Varieties?

[gunnar429]

I, as well as others, am guilty of buying many trees i have not tasted simply due to outstanding reviews, but their Mango curators) track record isn't outstanding.  There have been some questionable write-ups over the years....at least the forum can be fact-checked by others to get a consensus (at times).  I love that they are internationalizing it, just wish they would really promote those trees by letting festival-goers sample the fruit, especially from the rarer cultivars that aren't always available anyway.

[Squam256]

I love that they are internationalizing it, just wish they would really promote those trees by letting festival-goers sample the fruit, especially from the rarer cultivars that aren't always available anyway.

The trouble is that the timing has to mesh with the festival. Its easy to say they should have this or that mango available for sampling to the public but if there isn't enough or any ripe fruit that week there isn't much that can be done. Thousands of people go through those sampling lines over those 2 days, so as you can imagine they need to cut up a lot of mangos.

One thing I have noticed in the past is that they'll sometimes have some varieties early and run out....just as an example, a couple years ago they had Fairchild Ruby/J-12 on the sampling table at the beginning of the day but it was gone quickly and replaced by something else for the remainder.

[FRUITBOXHERO]

What a Bullshit list this is, 2 new mangos and then the same old same old as every other year! love going there but I might skip it this year!

[ClayMango]

All I'm saying is ....You dont put together a mango festival and only include 2 top tier Mangos such as Malika....then fill the rest of the line up with arguably bland flavored varieities...If this was Southern Ca....I get it.....But We're talking about the Mango Eclusive capital of the World Fl.....and you bring dirt to the table??? The coordinator for this event needs some help obiviously.

[zands]

With only two new Colombia varieties.....
This year line up early before 8 AM. There will be a foot race to grab these two. I like the looks of the Vallenato fruit

Photo of it here>>>
http://www.virtualherbarium.org/tropicalfruit/mangotrees.html

[gunnar429]

so you are saying they picked a time when many mangoes they wish to promote are not in season...so change the date so the festival lives up to what it should be.  I do not agree that the trees on the list year-in and year-out are bland...I will probably end up growing each of the mainstays.  But, clay is right that it could be SO much better.  My wife and I fork over $40 just for the opportunity to go inside and buy a tree or sample some fruit from PR or Mexico.  Yes, it's cool that they sell the mangoes from the farm, but to pay money for that opportunity when Truly Tropical, Excalibur, Pine Island, and others have many varieties to purchase without admission fee.  Yeah, there's an overpriced auction and a few seminars, but the least they could do is give you a "free" smoothie for the $20 admission.

I love Fairchild, but they disappoint me with the mango festival and their edible garden....I doubt David Fairchild would be happy with Bonnie plants from HD at his edible garden, just outside the Whitman Pavilion, no less.  I have heard good things about F&S park, but have never been, so maybe their festivals will be more to my liking.

A place as significant as Fairchild should have a different triopical fruit festival each month of the wet season (Jackfruit, mango, annonas, jaboticaba, etc.). 


Anyway, I will most-likely go and fight for one of the Colombian types....

[Squam256]

so you are saying they picked a time when many mangoes they wish to promote are not in season...so change the date so the festival lives up to what it should be.

I'm saying its a 2 day festival out of a season that runs 5 months. Inevitably you will be limited by whats available during the festival. They hold it in July, which is close enough to the peak of the total season. Mangoes have different seasons and don't all ripen at the same time and their patterns change yearly. Angie fruit may be available when Mallika fruit is not, etc. Trying to plan the festival around when a couple varieties might be available for tasting is foolish. And as I already pointed out, they often have different varieties for sampling that they run out of because there just isn't enough of it for everyone to try.

Complaining about the fruit available for sample when literally 10,000 people are visiting the festival just sounds silly. The trees on the curator's choice list have to be ordered months before its even known for sure when what cultivars will be available.

My wife and I fork over $40 just for the opportunity to go inside and buy a tree or sample some fruit from PR or Mexico.  Yes, it's cool that they sell the mangoes from the farm, but to pay money for that opportunity when Truly Tropical, Excalibur, Pine Island, and others have many varieties to purchase without admission fee.  Yeah, there's an overpriced auction and a few seminars, but the least they could do is give you a "free" smoothie for the $20 admission.

Then don't go. Save your money.

[Patrick]

Your best bet for avoiding the $40 admission is to join a local botanical garden that's part of the nationwide network.  I have used my Mounts Botanical Family membership to go to Fairchild during festivals and saved $120 each visit.  My annual membership is $75 a year and covers my wife, myself, my daughter, and one of her friends.  If you hit two or three festivals it translates into a real savings.  If you think about it, a movie night with a small family runs about $100, and the money doesn't really do much for promoting good health and communication!  Support Botanical Gardens! Buy books, souvenirs, and plants from them!

[DuncanYoung]

Your best bet for avoiding the $40 admission is to join a local botanical garden that's part of the nationwide network.  I have used my Mounts Botanical Family membership to go to Fairchild during festivals and saved $120 each visit.  My annual membership is $75 a year and covers my wife, myself, my daughter, and one of her friends.  If you hit two or three festivals it translates into a real savings.  If you think about it, a movie night with a small family runs about $100, and the money doesn't really do much for promoting good heath and communication!  Support Botanical Gardens! Buy books, souvenirs, and plants from them!

Good reminder Patrick! 

[Tropicdude]

It seems they are trying to run themes at Fairchild, If I remember correctly last year was Mexico, and the year before that was Hawaii,  or whatever, the thing is, I think the Curators choice list should be about the very best mangoes for Florida climate.  production, taste, disease resistance etc.  Although I am sure "Azucar" is sweet, but its basically a sucking mango.  dime a dozen down here in the DR.

The list should not change much, until a new variety is judged worthy to knock out a older variety.

Nothing wrong with introducing new varieties to the public though.

[LEOOEL]

In the statement for the 'Angie' mango, in the Curator List for 2014 Mango Festival, it mentions that 'Angie' is an 'Alphonso' class mango. I like that.

My 'Alphonso' mango tree produced flowers for the first time ever this year, but now they've gone away with no fruit set. I'm planning to be fair and patient with it for a couple of more years. But, if fruit is a now show, the 'Angie' mango is a contender to replace it with, especially if I can get a grafted 'Angie' with a rootstock that will lead to a giant tree size. I've noticed how some nureseries (T.T.) sell the same mango variety but say: this one will be large size tree and this one will be dwarf size.

Like the 'Alphonso,' my 'Tommy Atkins' also flowered for the first time ever this year. And, unlike the 'Alphonso,' it is holding on to some fruit set. Unlike the bland, store bought, 'Tommy Atkins,' I plan to let the fruit ripen on the tree and then do a report on the all around quality of the fruit and tree.

[bsbullie]

Leo - it sounds as if your trees are young however Alphonso is a very poor bearer in South Florida.  Do not expect much fruit off of this variety, even as it matures with age.

[Tropicdude]

I get the feeling that Alphonso is one of those trees that just takes a long time for the tree to produce a lot of fruit.  I have a couple trees in container, and they are very slow growing compared to all the other trees I have in containers.

Those that I have seen in ground, about 8 years old,  were not that big.   

[bsbullie]

I have seen in ground tree that is of decent size.  It flat out does not produce.

I get the feeling that Alphonso is one of those trees that just takes a long time for the tree to produce a lot of fruit.  I have a couple trees in container, and they are very slow growing compared to all the other trees I have in containers.

Those that I have seen in ground, about 8 years old,  were not that big.