The Tropical Fruit Forum

I know it's still early in the season, and no Cotton Candy mangos are ripe yet, and as far as past seasons go, probably only a limited number of mango enthusiasts have tasted this particular mango.  But for those who have and can comment, besides being super-sweet, what is the flavor of this mango like?  Saying it tastes "like cotton candy" doesn't really tell us much.  I kinda wanted to put a tree in the ground now and take advantage of this growing season.  Also, if you happen to know, how does Orange Sherbet compare to PPK?  Is there any possible way it could be a better choice than PPK (which I've found to be outstanding)?

I watched all three videos on Truly Tropical's YouTube Channel in which Har Mahdeem and Marlys Zill discuss the new Zill varieties, and their favorites seem to be Peach Cobbler, Juicy Peach, Fruit Punch, Cotton Candy, and Orange Essence although they had good things to say about the others.  By the way, do we have any idea if Zill will release Orange Sherbert, which is a favorite of Richard Campbell?

It's my understanding that Paxton Prolific might require thinning since it sets fruit heavily without hand-pollination.  If you do that, would the fruit be identical in flavor and quality since PP is a bud sport of PM? 

Have you seen how PIN has revamped their website?  Unfortunately they didn't add any of the newer Zill mango varieties to their Mango Variety Viewer.  I would imagine that they do sell some of them.  Excalibur, on the other hand, lists Coconut Cream, Cotton Candy, Edgar, Fruit Punch, Honey Kiss, Juicy Peach, Lemon Zest, Orange Essence, Peach Cobbler, Pina Colada, Phoenix, Pineapple Pleasure, Providence, Seacrest, Sunrise, Sweet Tart, Ugly Betty, and Venus.  Wow!

I live in Deerfield Beach and have a 4-year-old Mallika tree which I need to remove to make room for something other than mango.  In the spring I cut it way back to the main branches, and it has filled out beautifully with new growth.  You'll have to dig it up yourself, but you don't need to get all the roots for the tree survive.  Contact me if interested.

Since these two fruit trees bear so heavily in South Florida, you're probably looking for ways to use the fruit.  If you enjoy fruit smoothies, either one is a great addition, and their flavor complements other fruit very well.  I'm using sapodillas at this time of year and starfruit during their season.  (HEALTH NUT ALERT: my standard breakfast--a smoothie with various fruits, plain Greek yogurt, chia seed, flax seed, hemp seed, apple juice or coconut water to make it liquid, and maybe a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.  Who knows--it may help me live to be 100, although my mother turns 100 this year without it!)

I'm not having much luck with Mallika.  It doesn't want to bear much fruit--hardly any blossoms again this year--and it's easily the least healthy and robust mango tree in my yard.  Also, I wasn't impressed with the flavor last year.  I'm thinking of replacing it with Honey Kiss.  I want to go with a small, compact tree.  Is Honey Kiss considered a fine-flavored mango that's SUPERIOR to Mallika?  Can you describe the difference in flavor?  I know it has a later season, but that works for me.

My tree is 3 to 4 years old.  It carried one avocado to maturity this year.  WHEN SHOULD I PICK IT?  (I picked the last Simmonds today, out of a total of 3.)

I planted a 3-gal. soursop/guanabana tree from Excalibur Nursery, Lake Worth, about 4 years ago.  I believe they told me it was grafted and low-fiber.  The tree is producing its first crop this year.  I am more than satisfied with the fruit.  I wouldn't call it fiberless or even low-fiber (maybe there's no such thing?), but nevertheless, it's sweet and delicious, and the tree is bearing heavily.  I scoop out the pulp and mash it through a coarse strainer (not too much work really), and then use the resulting fiberless pulp in various ways.  What a great fruit!  Definitely a favorite.  I recommend Excalibur 100% for soursop trees.   

I have some very small Sun Gold papaya plants (3), which I started from certified seed (Aloha Seed).  Sun Gold is supposed to be a sweeter variety than Red Lady.  Described as "Robust plant/Excellent yielder/Tolerant to PRSV/Fruit sets at 75 cm."  If you have something to trade for them, let me know.  If you have nothing to trade but would still like them, also let me know.

The upside to severely pruning mango trees to limit size would be manageability, easy picking, and growing (a number of) trees where space is limited.  But wouldn't the downside be limiting the potential of your trees especially in regards to production?  What would a happy medium be?  The ideal size.  Fifteen-foot-tall trees?  Of course, there would be variation between cultivars.  (I'm writing this as I watch the little mangos continue to fall from my six-foot-tall Pickering tree.)

Did you see Jimmy Kimmel last night?  Jessica Chastain was a guest, and she had just returned from working in Asia.  She brought a "gift" for Jimmy, which was a durian fruit.  She told him she had fallen in love with the fruit in Asia.  Jimmy cut it open, and was instantly repelled by the odor.  When he tasted it, he said it was somewhere on the border between horrible and delicious, and then he subsequently said he felt like he was going to throw up.  Anyway, it was totally hilarious and served to introduce durian to late-night TV viewers in the USA.  If you go to the website for the show, you can view it.

http://youtu.be/SIYeWH7cjWg