Pictures of my 3 gallon mango trees....one needing alot of help! =(

[Nursejolly]

So this is the first tree I bought.  A nam doc mai with the infamous LaVerne Nursery high graft.




And here are the 3 trees I ordered from Top Tropical.

Okrung Mango



Pim Sen Mun (over 5 feet tall!)




Keo Savoy-she was looking okay but now needs help



Is she dying?



They said that it's not uncommon for the trees to lose their leaves but she just doesn't look good.
I've kept the 3 shipped trees in indirect sunlight and have watered them every other day.  Today I applied the gromore seaweed extract.  Any other suggestions?  Or is this just what happens with shipped trees and I have to go through the motions.  Thanks in advance for any advice!

[fruitlovers]

Looks like that mango tree is dehydrating rapidly. I would cut all the dead leaves off. The leaves that have some green in them would leave only 1/4 of the leaf. This will slow down the drying process. Would be good to tent that tree inside plastic bag after watering it thoroughly and wetting all the leaves. Important that you keep it moist until it perks up. Good luck.

[puglvr1]

That last picture you posted reminded me so much of what happened to my Pickering that died from root rot. The leaves looks VERY dehydrated but yet when I removed the root ball (very carefully) from the pot to check what the roots looked it...the bottom of the pot was extremely wet even though the top few inches were dry. I think watering it every other day is way too much by the looks of your soil it appears to have a lot of peat? Which is very water retentive. Again this is just my own experience with my tree that eventually died from root rot. Its really very confusing to me as well when it was happening...because the leaves looked very dehydrated I thought the plant needed more water...but in fact the soil underneath was soaking wet, which eventually caused its decline.

I do agree that tenting the leaves might help but make sure you don't tent the pot itself or the soil will never dry out. Just my 2 cents...Good luck!!

[Nursejolly]

Oscar- thank you for the advice. Could I just use a plastic grocery bag or does it need to be clear? Would you tie it tight around the top of just leave it open?

Nancy- you made a good point and I just thought my pots don't have any drainage holes!!!! Rookie move. I bought them because they were pretty colors.  It looks like it may have some ventilation at the bottom but no holes. I will have my husband drill some holes in them.  I'm hoping the roots aren't soaking wet.
I only watered them every other day because the directions said to water it frequently.
I stuck my finger deep in the soil to see if it felt dry and it did so I watered them.


Also do you think it's too soon to put them outside? I received the trees Thursday evening.

[puglvr1]

I def. wouldn't put the dehydrated one in full sun quite yet...bright indirect light would be best...as for the others if they appear healthy I would VERY slowly give them an hour or so of early morning sun and by a week or so they should be able to handle it...but the key is to gradually introduce to full sun especially if they've been in a shipping box and out of direct sun for a while.

Definitely have your hubby drill some holes on that pot....ASAP,lol  ...Good luck!!

[Charlie23]

is it possible to request these online nurseries to ship ones that are blooming already?   That's what i usually look for at my local nurseries.

[KarenRei]

Eek, definitely sounds like too much water.  I lost a carrie a couple years ago to root rot.  Who would say to water a mango every other day?  :Þ  Maybe a banana...  pretty hard to rot them unless they're in standing water 

I have nothing better to add than what fruitlovers said - standard procedure for root rot and dehydration in general (remedy the cause of dehydration, limit the leaf area to a bare minimum, keep out of direct sun, and tent).  Best of luck toward your mango's recovery!

[Nursejolly]

Ok I pinched off all the leaves.  They were yellow/brown and crunchy...wasn't any green left so I just cut them all off.  I sprayed the bag and spray where the leaves were growing before.  Do I need a bigger bag or is this okay?

[fruitlovers]

Hi Nursejolly, all the leaves drying is not a good sign. Keep the plant in full shade until it starts to leaf out again. That plastic bag is ok. Just cut the tips of the bag off to allow a little air in. Yes, make sure to drill holes in all the pots for good water drainage. Good luck.

[murahilin]

Ok I pinched off all the leaves.  They were yellow/brown and crunchy...wasn't any green left so I just cut them all off.  I sprayed the bag and spray where the leaves were growing before.  Do I need a bigger bag or is this okay?

With no more leaves, I wouldn't even worry about bagging it. I would just stick it outside somewhere with partial shade. I think your keeping the mango trees inside was one of the biggest detriments to your trees. They would probably do better outside. Also, make sure you've solved the drainage problem.

[Nursejolly]

Mura- really?  Well most people suggested keeping the trees in the shade for the first couple weeks as they adjust to this environment.  So you think outside but somewhere shady?


Also, I took the tree out of the pot just to make sure that the root was not wet.  The root ball was moist but not wet so I just changed the soil out.  The pots DO have drainage holes...just at the very bottom so I was wrong.  Anyways I'm hoping this one makes it!  What is everyone's experience when your trees come to this point?  Do they usually make it or die?

[murahilin]

Mura- really?  Well most people suggested keeping the trees in the shade for the first couple weeks as they adjust to this environment.  So you think outside but somewhere shady?


Also, I took the tree out of the pot just to make sure that the root was not wet.  The root ball was moist but not wet so I just changed the soil out.  The pots DO have drainage holes...just at the very bottom so I was wrong.  Anyways I'm hoping this one makes it!  What is everyone's experience when your trees come to this point?  Do they usually make it or die?

Yup. I would stick em all outside and monitor them daily.

Mango trees are pretty tough and I've seen mango trees come in from other countries totally bare rooted with no leaves survive by just potting them up. Your trees only came from FL so I think they'd have a better chance of surviving. The leaves drying up on the tree is worse than the leaves dropping. From the pics, the trunk looked pretty healthy. The younger top wood on the mango tree might die but it will likely shoot out from along the trunk.

[bsbullie]

Jessica - when your tree was inside, was it in the air conditioning ?

I agree with murahilin, outside it goes and I might even consider cutting the trunk back some.

[Nursejolly]

Ok outside but in the shade? And I should take the plastic bag off so it doesn't cook my tree right?

BSbullie- No AC.  In a sunroom with a huge window.  And I'm not even going to try cutting the trunk.  I'm def not at that level yet!  I'll probably end up cutting the whole grafted part off! Hahaha! =)

Thanks again everyone for all the helpful tips.

[bsbullie]

Ok outside but in the shade? And I should take the plastic bag off so it doesn't cook my tree right?

BSbullie- No AC.  In a sunroom with a huge window.  And I'm not even going to try cutting the trunk.  I'm def not at that level yet!  I'll probably end up cutting the whole grafted part off! Hahaha! =)

Thanks again everyone for all the helpful tips.

Yes, in the shade; and yes, remove the bag (do you have a tree that you could put it under to provide a good shading (no direct sunlight) ?  As this is a Florida mango (and not LaVerne, you would have to cut it almost to the ground to go below the graft...you should have no problem seeing the grafting union  Cutting a foot or two off would not put you in any danger of getting near the graft.

[murahilin]

Yes, in the shade; and yes, remove the bag (do you have a tree that you could put it under to provide a good shading (no direct sunlight) ?  As this is a Florida mango (and not LaVerne, you would have to cut it almost to the ground to go below the graft...you should have no problem seeing the grafting union  Cutting a foot or two off would not put you in any danger of getting near the graft.

I don't think cutting it back may be necessary. Since there are no leaves on it, there is a lot less risk of loss of moisture through transpiration and by cutting it, it would open the already weakened tree up to possible bacterial and fungal infections. It would probably be best to just let it die back to wherever it wishes and then once the wood has died, cut back above where it has healed to avoid reopening the already compartmentalized section of tree.

[fruitlovers]

Mango trees are pretty tough and I've seen mango trees come in from other countries totally bare rooted with no leaves survive by just potting them up. Your trees only came from FL so I think they'd have a better chance of surviving. The leaves drying up on the tree is worse than the leaves dropping. From the pics, the trunk looked pretty healthy. The younger top wood on the mango tree might die but it will likely shoot out from along the trunk.

What often happens in cases like this is that the top wood dies off and tree resprouts, but below the graft line. So at that time you've lost the cultivar. If you do take it outside i suggest deep shade until it starts to leaf out. Any sun on that bare wood is going to cook it.

[Nursejolly]

Oh I hope not! This is one of the sweet crunchy green mangos.  These Florida trees are grafted on Manila mango trunks?   Well all I can do is hope for the best.  Thanks again everyone.  I honestly didn't expect all the trees to make it but this is the one I REALLY wanted.

[bsbullie]

Oh I hope not! This is one of the sweet crunchy green mangos.  These Florida trees are grafted on Manila mango trunks?   Well all I can do is hope for the best.  Thanks again everyone.  I honestly didn't expect all the trees to make it but this is the one I REALLY wanted.

Not likely as the rootstock is most likely a type for Florida soils.  Good chance it is on a Turpentine type rootstock.