Mango Pests, Diseases, and Nutritional Problems

[Guanabanus]

Powdery Mildew usually isn't very active in hot weather.

[gychang]

Doesn't look like mbbs on the LZ. Not sure which nutrient is lacking (zinc, mn, mg, fe), but I've been able to convert that into green via the following program:

 - Hars 0-3-16 once every 3 - 4 months
 - Helena's micronutrient mix (0-0-6) once a year

Hi all! When you guys say Hars 0-3-16, is hars the brand or are you buying from jar the person on this forum?  I’m having trouble googling it. Thanks!

[Guanabanus]

The 0-3-16 custom mix, referred to here, is my formulation / customer request, which the manufacturer then modified to accommodate the WolfTrax minor elements products, instead of the chelates that I had requested.  The manufacturer is Wedgeworth's Inc., in Belle Glade, Florida.

This is so far only available in Palm Beach County: 1) To members of the local chapter of the Rare Fruit Council, at their twice-a-year plant sales, or by special arrangement at the monthly meetings;  2) To walk-in customers at Truly Tropical in Delray Beach;  3) to my customers, in conjunction with consultations or fruit tree service visits, in Palm Beach and Boward Counties.

Other fruit clubs, or joint-ordering groups, could carry this.   The MINIMUM ORDER is FOUR TONS, because it is a custom mix, that no warehouse carries.  The factory delivers all over south and central Florida.

The formula may be imitated by others.  I do not have any exclusivity, or earn any commission on anyone's order.

The distributor that we deal with is Mr. Kriss Ramroop, Plant Health Solutions.  krissramroop@gmail.com

[Oolie]

If you don't mind sharing the formulation, I'm sure there's a few on the West Coast who would love to imitate it.

Especially if the formulation is quick-release/water soluble.

Fertigation is quickly catching on here due to arid climate/imported water.

[willsmith1686]

I was looking at a website for tips on my own mango problems shortly before reading your post. Couple of bits on this site that sound like what you are talking about...

https://docsbay.net/mango-diseases-and-their-control

Hope that helps.

[tropical-farmer]

Going around my yard this morning i noticed all the mango trees that flushed in the last 1-2 weeks have this weird curly pattern. I did not notice any bugs on the undersurface or on top and do not see any discoloration in the leaves. Could this be a response to the drought in this area, the north miami beach did not get a good rain in the last 2 weeks. Could this be some nutritional deficiency? Surprising is that the trees in the same area that flushed a few weeks back and have enlarged leaves and show no deficiency, and these affected trees are scattered around the yard. Even a potted Nam doc mai has new flushes that showed this.
Any suggestions will be appreciated.

[Tommyng]

To see if these trees really need water you have to dig around in the dirt and see if it’s dry. Zinc deficiency can cause curling. Have you been fertilizing these trees recently?

[tropical-farmer]

I haven’t fertilized them. They dont get city water. I collect rain water and have been using them in buckets whenever dry period starts. Some of the trees have been in ground for 1 yr now and were bought as 7 gallons last year.
The soil is dry and the thick mulch isnt helping due to high heat and lack of rain. But is it common to have leaf curl due to drought, is it a mechanism of the plant to reduce loss of moisture? I will look into zinc deficiency, and how these curly leaf will look as they grow bigger. They have flushed many times before but never had this problem.

[Tommyng]

Try making a berm around the trees when you water them. It’s likely the heat and not enough water causing the curling because drought conditions curl leaves on other trees.

[Oolie]

Drought can exacerbate zinc deficiency.

http://vikaspedia.in/agriculture/crop-production/integrated-pest-managment/ipm-for-fruit-crops/ipm-strategies-for-mango/nutritional-deficiencies-of-mango

[tropical-farmer]

Drought can exacerbate zinc deficiency.

http://vikaspedia.in/agriculture/crop-production/integrated-pest-managment/ipm-for-fruit-crops/ipm-strategies-for-mango/nutritional-deficiencies-of-mango

thanks. Seems like drought and zinc deficiency is the case. Is there a way to provide  zinc through soil irrigation rather than foliar spray?

[Oolie]

Drought can exacerbate zinc deficiency.

http://vikaspedia.in/agriculture/crop-production/integrated-pest-managment/ipm-for-fruit-crops/ipm-strategies-for-mango/nutritional-deficiencies-of-mango

thanks. Seems like drought and zinc deficiency is the case. Is there a way to provide  zinc through soil irrigation rather than foliar spray?

No, Zinc is very immobile in soil, so consistent foliar applications are required to combat deficiency of this essential micro-nutrient.

If the tree responds well to regular foliar applications, it can "outgrow" the issue, but in many situations this does not happen. It depends on a number of factors. I had an 'Aloha' in a pot that had this real bad, but I put it in the ground and it responded extraordinarily.

[tropical-farmer]

Thanks Oolie, i did a citrus foliar spray this evening. It seems to have zinc together with manganese, copper and sulphur in it so hope this will help. There is some rain predicted in 2-3 days so hoping for the best. The vikaspedia link was also very helpful.

[BPelkey]

This Nam Doc Mai mango was planted early this year and was growing nicely.  It looked good.

About 2 days ago 2 of 3 branches started to droop, and now they appear dead.  Where the leaves connect to the branches, and where the branches connect to the trunk, sap is oozing. 

Can anyone identify the probable cause and any solutions?

Ignore the black strings in the pics, they are holding to plant to the stakes.

[Tommyng]

Is this tree in a lot of shade? I had a Nam doc Mai with a similar problem. It was a fungal infection. I used a copper spray. Cut off dead branches and took it out from under a banana tree so it could get better light. It healed up and flushing.

[BPelkey]

This tree is in partial shade, but mostly full sun.  Pruning plus Copper seems like a good suggestion, thanks.

[Tommyng]

Don’t prune, just cut off dead material.

[FloridaBoy]

I'll post pictures soon but maybe you guys can help in the meantime.  I have a little sientalone tree that is flushing out and it seems like a bunch of small red ants have made it their new home.  I dont know if theyre damaging the tree but it doesnt look good to me.  I will say that this happened on another graft I had that was flushing out.  Has anyone heard of these little red ants camping out on new leaf growth?

[simon_grow]

This Nam Doc Mai mango was planted early this year and was growing nicely.  It looked good.

About 2 days ago 2 of 3 branches started to droop, and now they appear dead.  Where the leaves connect to the branches, and where the branches connect to the trunk, sap is oozing. 

Can anyone identify the probable cause and any solutions?

Ignore the black strings in the pics, they are holding to plant to the stakes.

You really need to send in tissue samples for definitive diagnosis but it looks like the vascular tissue is dying so it could be Phomopsis or some other form of die back, potentially caused by fungi. Die back can be caused by organisms other than Phomopsis.

A systemic Fungicide may help your plant.

Simon

[simon_grow]

I'll post pictures soon but maybe you guys can help in the meantime.  I have a little sientalone tree that is flushing out and it seems like a bunch of small red ants have made it their new home.  I dont know if theyre damaging the tree but it doesnt look good to me.  I will say that this happened on another graft I had that was flushing out.  Has anyone heard of these little red ants camping out on new leaf growth?

Ants can farm aphids, mealybugs and the honeydew excreted by these sucking insects can grow sooty mold. It’s best to get them off your tree by using something like tanglefoot

Simon

[Oolie]

I have only known Argentinian ants to farm aphids and mealybugs.

In Europe they spray a Calcium Oxide (lime) mix on the trunks of fruit trees to deter ants.

[Guanabanus]

Contact the Plant Diagnostic Clinic at the Tropical Research and Education Center, Homestead, Florida.  There is a reasonable fee.  They will want your pictures, including of the whole plant in its surroundings, and a still alive part of the plant that is infected.  If you wait until the whole plant is dead, don't send it, as it will just be thrown out.

[FloridaBoy]

I'll post pictures soon but maybe you guys can help in the meantime.  I have a little sientalone tree that is flushing out and it seems like a bunch of small red ants have made it their new home.  I dont know if theyre damaging the tree but it doesnt look good to me.  I will say that this happened on another graft I had that was flushing out.  Has anyone heard of these little red ants camping out on new leaf growth?

Ants can farm aphids, mealybugs and the honeydew excreted by these sucking insects can grow sooty mold. It’s best to get them off your tree by using something like tanglefoot

Simon

Thanks Simon,

Why are ants so dang smart?  So they chose my plant of all plants too.  Do they particularly only focus on new growth shoots?

Best Regards,

Alex

[simon_grow]

Not sure why but I’ve also seen ants nest in air layers placed in Lychee trees under the plastic wrap and aluminum foil. I’ve also found and nests in my potted mango trees, living in the soil of the pot.

If the ants are mostly on the new growth, you should keep your eyes out for sucking insects as sucking insects like aphids prefer newer growth.

Maybe observe them for a bit to see what they’re actually doing.

Simon

[SHV]

I could use some help with a persistent problem on my Sensation Mango seedling.  This has been in the ground for 3 years, but is a 6-7 year old tree.  It produced its first fruit this year, 1 mango    but as long as it's been in the ground, ~50% of the new growth has a black crusty line that forms along the midrib of each leaf.  You can see it clearly in the images.  Also, a good portion of that new growth forms small leafs that often never fully develop, curl, then shrivel up and die.  Those leaves that do form normally without the black midrib are small in size (4-6 inch) compared to the leaves (8-12 in+) on my other healthy mango trees. You can see the shriveled leaf litter on the ground.  I have tried a systemic fungicide, foliar sprays (fish emulsion/Kelp), 16-16-16 pellet fertilizer with iron, zinc, manganese micronutrients.  None of these seem to eliminate the problem.  Any thoughts on this issue?  Thanks in advance!