Mango Workshop Fruit and Spice Park

[ericalynne]

About 80 people took part in the Mango Workshop at the Fruit and Spice Park, taught by Chris Rollins. After the talk, the highlight was the display of at least 200 varieties of mangoes (and probably more) for us to admire and then taste. Here are a few things that I learned:

Lemon Meringue mango was really first called Po Pyu Kalay, and it really does taste like sweet creamy lemon. Chris said Maurice Kong brought this back from Burma.

Coconut Cream mango really does taste like coconut cream.

Bombay mango is freestone.

Chris suggested Florigon, Fairchild and Carrie for good disease resistance, and Early Gold for an early mango. (In Florida.)

I have some photos, but have not been able to upload them. I will post if I can figure out why it isn't working.

Erica
Venus
9b

[FloridaGreenMan]

Just 200 varieties? Chris must be slacking off! They have more....

[ericalynne]

Not all are ripe right now.....

[FloridaGreenMan]

Just messin with you...where else in the world are 200 distinct cultivars of mangos considered too few??? That is freakin amazing!!!!

[MangoFang]

Cool - I've got a Bombay, so looking forward next year to see this "freestone" aspect...

Did they have any Venus mangoes, Eric?


Gary

[JoeP450]

What I found very interesting is that there are so many offshoot cultivars of the Saigon mango, and how those mangos were organized together in their own section for sampling.

I also found the st Maui mango very interesting, I had it once before at the sampling booth during the "mangos of Hawaii" theme at Fairchild gardens and it was cubed and presented on a paper plate. When I first had it I thought tangy peachy pineapple and fiberless, not bad at all but lacking in some overall twist. This time at the sampling today I was able to sample the st Maui with rind attached and I was so surprised at the resinous twist that the rind produced with all the same tangy peachy pineapple taste very good!

I also was very confused at the Hindi besenara which this years LOOKED AND TASTED NOTHING LIKE what I was raving about last year, the flesh this year was yellow where last year the flesh was deep orange and delicious there must have been some mislabeling going on. 

This years "Hindi besenara"

 And here are pics from one of the Hindi besenara that I brought home last year.





Out of the mangos I tried today I felt malika was IMO in its prime : )

Joep450

[kalan]

Chris suggested Florigon, Fairchild and Carrie for good disease resistance

I was always under the impression that Carrie was quite disease prone...
Confused now.
Kalan

[bsbullie]

Carrie is one of the cleanest, most disease resistant mangoes in Florida.

[gunnar429]

early golds were excellent last week as well as this week.  Also, cr confirmed that dupuis and dupuis saigon were one and the same. 

had  to use a crane to lift my bag at the end.  easily 80 lbs!

[ericalynne]

Last night I couldn't get the photos to upload from my laptop, but working fine on my desktop this morning. It was a lot of fun. I brought home 2 Fruit and Spice tote bags full of mangoes and my house is redolent of mangoes dehydrating. What a wonderful season.

Also noted: Hindi is an Egyptian mango, but we didn't get to try it because it was not ripe.

Also attending was a man from California who was connected with the Fruit Hunter movie/book, but I did not catch the connection.

If you want to taste mangoes, this is WAY better than at the Fairchild festival. We could request samples, and they were a good sized chunk or slice - not a sliver - and very little waiting. We had also sticky rice and mango which was delicious.

There was also a group of mango relatives for tasting.

Photos in order:

Admiring the mangoes (before we tasted them, they were available for photos.)
Chris Rollins - the Fruit Hunter guy is right behind him. Somebody on the forum probably can identify him.
Sticky Rice and mango - this woman brings this treat every year and it was delicious. She says you are only supposed to use Nam Doc Mai mangoes with it, but this was a mixture because there weren't enough NDMs.
2 Tables of Mangoes for Sampling, there were also two more rows...
Maurice Kong - some of you know him. I took a grafting class from him once.
Warren Condon - he is a faithful volunteer at FSP and Fairchild and very generous with his time.
There were many other volunteers there and I don't know them, but they were helpful and knowledgeable.

Erica

[Sleepdoc]

What I found very interesting is that there are so many offshoot cultivars of the Saigon mango, and how those mangos were organized together in their own section for sampling.

I also found the st Maui mango very interesting, I had it once before at the sampling booth during the "mangos of Hawaii" theme at Fairchild gardens and it was cubed and presented on a paper plate. When I first had it I thought tangy peachy pineapple and fiberless, not bad at all but lacking in some overall twist. This time at the sampling today I was able to sample the st Maui with rind attached and I was so surprised at the resinous twist that the rind produced with all the same tangy peachy pineapple taste very good!

I also was very confused at the Hindi besenara which this years LOOKED AND TASTED NOTHING LIKE what I was raving about last year, the flesh this year was yellow where last year the flesh was deep orange and delicious there must have been some mislabeling going on. 

This years "Hindi besenara"

 And here are pics from one of the Hindi besenara that I brought home last year.





Out of the mangos I tried today I felt malika was IMO in its prime : )

Joep450

It is my belief that the Hindi Bessenara is the mango in your first picture.  I think I have personally solved the confusion stated above.  This also solves a mystery in my own memory, and the mislabeling and planting of a tree in my own yard. 


The Hindi Bessenara tree at the Fruit and Spice park is planted in very close proximity to the Mesk mango.  I believe these two are so closely planted, that occasionally the fruit, and budwood, are often mistaken for one another. 

I believe your 2nd and 3rd picture to be that of the Mesk, and I have planted in my yard a Mesk ( labelled as Hindi Bessenara).

[JoeP450]

Hey Sleepdoc,

Last year chris personally handed me sample cuttings from this mango, and then when it came time to fill up the to go bags I ran to that mango "hindi bessenara" first and loaded up lol.  Maybe it was mislabeled but I am positive it is not mesk, mesk looked the same last year and this year and I personally don't like the taste of mesk. I read a PDF of Egyptian mango cultivars and the description describes what I thought last year was hindi bessenara as what I had pictured.

I planted out the seed of the one pictured in the green cutting board and it was poly and sprouted 3 shoots which I separated and are now growing in 3- 1 gallon pots.... maybe in 10 years I'll get to enjoy the mango again haha.

joep450

 

[JoeP450]

Hey sleep doc here is a link to that pdf on Egyptian cultivars, http://www.manarasoft.com/pdf/P42.pdf by the way I love the descriptions of the mangos and how detailed they are; obviously from scientific background : ) I think the descriptions start on pg 34 both mesk and Hindi bessenara are described.

-joep450

[Sleepdoc]

Joe, I can assure you that there is a tree tagged "Hindi Bessenara" at the fruit and spice park that bears mangoes with an appearance identical to your first photo.   I seriously doubt that the tree labeled " Hindi Bessenara" produced the mangoes in your 2nd and 3rd photo.  There is simply too much difference.

I can also assure you that there is a tree labeled "MESK" right next to it, so close the branches are touching. 

I know this since Brandon and I looked at and discussed this issue about 3 weeks ago while visiting the F&S park.  The two trees were full of fruit. 

My tree I planted at home was also full of unripe fruit with the same exact appearance (size, shape color) as the tree labeled MESK.

Your second and third pics may or may not be from the tree labeled MESK.  Just a reasonable guess on my part.  My "MESK" tree produced fruit a few years ago that were similar shaped and colored ( after fully ripened) .   


 

[gunnar429]

Also attending was a man from California who was connected with the Fruit Hunter movie/book, but I did not catch the connection.

If you want to taste mangoes, this is WAY better than at the Fairchild festival. We could request samples, and they were a good sized chunk or slice - not a sliver - and very little waiting. We had also sticky rice and mango which was delicious.

There was also a group of mango relatives for tasting.

Photos in order:

Admiring the mangoes (before we tasted them, they were available for photos.)
Chris Rollins - the Fruit Hunter guy is right behind him. Somebody on the forum probably can identify him.
Sticky Rice and mango - this woman brings this treat every year and it was delicious. She says you are only supposed to use Nam Doc Mai mangoes with it, but this was a mixture because there weren't enough NDMs.
2 Tables of Mangoes for Sampling, there were also two more rows...
Maurice Kong - some of you know him. I took a grafting class from him once.
Warren Condon - he is a faithful volunteer at FSP and Fairchild and very generous with his time.
There were many other volunteers there and I don't know them, but they were helpful and knowledgeable.

Erica

The connection to fruit hunters is that the guy (want to say his name is steve but i forget) owns exotica nursery in Cali.  He was in the movie.

[Tropicdude]

Hey sleep doc here is a link to that pdf on Egyptian cultivars, http://www.manarasoft.com/pdf/P42.pdf by the way I love the descriptions of the mangos and how detailed they are; obviously from scientific background : ) I think the descriptions start on pg 34 both mesk and Hindi bessenara are described.

-joep450

Thanks Joe for that pdf link, I love these research documents.  the report has information on the Timour, ( Taimour ) which I have been looking for.  an excellent tasting variety I tried last year.  If I ever tried my hand at breeding,  I definitely consider Timour,  it already has perfect commercial size, great taste, and disease resistance. but for commercial use it needs color, and preferably a mono embryonic seed, which usually translates  to better flesh seed ratio.   anyway I am getting carried away again.

I do have  a request Joe, could you do a full review of ST Maui, on your review thread?

[gunnar429]

is anyone propagating early gold?