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hmhausman

First Mango Blooms of the 2010-2011 season

hmhausman
13 years ago

Very much the same as last year, the first mango blooms to begin showing themselves are on Rosigold, Edward and Thai Everbearing.

Harry

Comments (66)

  • alicia_grower
    13 years ago

    Hoping for a mild winter for everyone :)
    Does anyone have a picture of what it looks like to start pushing bloom spikes out? Or maybe another thread that I have passed up? My NDM is pushing something out, very new to this.

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Here's a video that will be very instructive on the mango bloom cycle. Happy blooming!

    Harry

    Here is a link that might be useful: Stages of Mango Bloom Cycle

  • alicia_grower
    13 years ago

    Couldn't have asked for a better video showing different bloom cycles!
    Thanks Harry.
    Alicia

  • puglvr1
    13 years ago

    Hi Alicia, you might have to wait till its at least an inch or so before you'll be able to tell for sure...sometimes they are mixed...blooms and leaves on the same stem. But once they get get big enough...you will be able to tell right away. Here's a few pictures that might help.
    {{gwi:1332430}}
    {{gwi:1332431}}
    {{gwi:1332432}}
    {{gwi:1332433}}

    These were all taken before...NONE of mine are blooming right now :o(

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Noticed blooms on Jakarta this morning.

  • tammysf
    13 years ago

    i think my alphonso is on "florida" time still because i started getting flowrs in October that are now small fruit. I will need to prune off the infloresence. they are pretty big and weigh down my small tree.

    harry, when do alphonso's normally bloom?

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Tammy:

    Alphonso is supposed to bear in late June and July here in Florida. The beginning of blooms can vary depending on the year and onset of the annual cycles of cooler, dryer air. Unfortunately, since mine has never set any fruit after three years of blooming, I am unable to confirm the season of this mango.

    Harry

  • franktank232
    13 years ago

    Harry-

    Caught a statistic earlier that i thought i'd share. In Ecuador, A grower of Kent/Tommy Atkins is pulling 3,300 boxes off of an acre of land. I believe a box is roughly 8.8lbs... You think you can top that? :)

  • mango_kush
    13 years ago

    in a good year that sounds about right. there are Kent mango trees here higher than the telephone poles, by the end of season people are using wheelbarrows

  • franktank232
    13 years ago

    Awesome... Make them Ataulfos and i'm there!

    That is a LOT of mangoes!

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    FranTank:

    I don't know how many boxes my yard yields in a good year. But I have had to use the wheel barrow method of collection every morning and afternoon in a good year. I may not be quite up to the Ecuadorian numbers standards, but I am growing a whole lot more in the way of better variety mangoes.

    Harry

  • mangodog
    13 years ago

    puglvr - ahhhhh........pregnancy......every time i see a mango beginning to bloom, I get all choked up in side.....those pictures are wonderful!!!!!

    I hope you floridians have a prosperous fruit season this year.......mangodog

  • alicia_grower
    13 years ago

    Yes Puglvr those pictures are great, you are always such a big help! Pretty positive that my NDM is starting to push blooms out! I would be going nutty at Harrys watching all those trees! Exciting :D

  • franktank232
    13 years ago

    Harry-

    Not fair man...not fair. I've got snow in the forecast for this weekend. I'll try to block any cold fronts from making it too far down the peninsula.

  • puglvr1
    13 years ago

    Thanks Mangodog and Alicia! I can only hope I see those beautiful blooms this year too...just gotta keep Jack Frost far far away :o)

    Keeping fingers crossed for you Alicia!!

  • mangodog
    13 years ago

    IN fact, pugvlr, the 3 mango trees I just bought from Pine Island Nursery seeem to each be bringing forth floresence as we speak. Since I've only see mango trees growing here in the Coachella Valley (think Palm Springs - 120 miles east of L.A.) bloom in spring time, I'm thinking they are picking up from the Florida cycle in which they were grown(?)

    JFernandez - you are in LaHabra I think and Simon down in San Diego (I think), is it possible my NORMAL bloom and fruit cycles (springish blooms, summerish fruits)are different from even yours which sound like they are in the fall too, like the Floridians? Simon has major coastal influence and JFernandez is only 20 miles from the Pacific - perhaps that's it.....

    Any other California desert mango growers out there to compare notes with!

    Gary

  • cath41
    13 years ago

    Talk about instant gratification! In late summer I bought 2 mangoes from Pine Island, a Carrie and a Pickering. The Pickering has a 5" bloom spike already. I just hope it can continue to develop. Conditions are a little rough and ready here. It's growing in the walkout basement at West windows.
    Should I let the spike develop and bear fruit if it can?

    This brings to mind a question. Contributors to this forum have said that they limit the fruit bearing of young trees in order to develop a better tree which will then be capable of bearing more fruit over the life of the tree. But if the mango stays in a pot for life a large framework is not desirable. Are there other factors than size of framework that inhibit bearing if the tree is allowed to carry a heavy crop while young?

    Cath

  • jfernandez
    13 years ago

    Mangodog,

    I really don't know. I believe it has to do with the accumulating of heat units and night time temperatures. You collect a lot more units than us but is it usually cooler at night in the winter. Winter is in full swing in Orange County. The daytime high was 81F and it was 47F at 5:00am.

    Joe

  • mango_kush
    13 years ago

    cath41 i am not surprised your Pickering is pushing a bloom, its very precocious from every specimen i have witnessed.

    your tree needs to have a solid trunk before being able to carry fruit, it may break the limb if it develops

  • puglvr1
    13 years ago

    Congrats on the blooms Mangodog and Cath41!

    I agree with Mango kush, its best to let your tree get a little more established/stronger before you let a couple of fruits develop. Chances are even if the blooms mature and fruit, it doesn't necessarily mean the fruit will fully mature. My Potted Glenn after two years developed blooms and fruits...but apparently the tree wasn't mature/strong enough to "hold" them. They all dropped when they were slightly larger than pea size. Most of the times, the tree will tell you "if" its ready. The following year I had about 6-8 mature and very delicious mangoes from that tree.

    Good luck!

  • mangodog
    13 years ago

    thanks, puglvr and good luck with yours, cath who just turned 41! And where is it you raise your basement window mangos?

    ....agree JFernandez, we certainly collect a lot more heat units, but the nighttimes temps are actually similar....we were 52 last night, 49 the night before.....it's just so puzzling....so....on all your mangos you get fallish flowering and springish/summerish fruit ripening? Nothing blooms in the spring - March, April?

    Same questions for Simon, if he sees this post.....maybe the desert has a totally unique schedule....

    And still - no readers out there growing mangos here in my area?

    thanks folks....mangowoofie

  • cath41
    13 years ago

    Thank you Mangokush and Puglvr for your information, congratulatioms and encouragement.
    And thank you also to Mangodog... "just turned 41". If only.

    Cath

  • cath41
    13 years ago

    Forgot to answer your question. The basement is in a suburb of Dayton, Ohio.

    Cath

  • tammysf
    13 years ago

    @mangodog: i am in northern california and my alphonso bloomed last month and has tiny fruit....i will try to post a pic tonight...our temps are alot lower than yours.

  • tammysf
    13 years ago

    ok, here is my alphonso...flowers are all about dead with about 6 small fruit.

    {{gwi:1332434}}

    close up of one of panicles.

    {{gwi:1332435}}

    Here is a link that might be useful: Alphonso Mango Tree in Northern California

  • mangodog
    13 years ago

    tammy - looks like a good south wall exposure for your alphie....and extra stakes for support.....

    was this photo just taken? Have you decided if you will keep one mango on the tree to ripen?

    mangopup

  • tammysf
    13 years ago

    hey rodney,

    yes, just took the pic the same day it was posted. we have had some hot weather here.

    it was 89 on sunday and 92 yesterday.

  • jeffhagen
    13 years ago

    My glenn started coughing up blooms today. The neighbor's nam doc mai has blooms too. My mauritius has growth flush instead of blooms, so I guess that means no lychees again this year

    .

    Jeff

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Seems most of the mangoes are still not quite ready at my house to send up bloom. I did see some intial bloom spikes pushing on Carrie. Other than that it is status quo, with a few trees (like Madame Blanc) pushing new vegetative growth. Weather has been cooler and dryer for almost 7 weeks now. A couple of nights dropped into the upper 40's, enough to cause guanabanas to drop half their leaves. No fruit set on any mangoes here as of yet.

    Harry

  • mullenium
    13 years ago

    My nam doc is blooming and setting teeny fruit.. but my glenn whos a year older isnt blooming at all..

    is it just the difference between fruiting season between trees?

    One concern for me is the recent cold temps.. it hit 32 the other night.. with my C9 xmas lights thought it was a balmy 45 around the mango trees =)

  • ekimllabmik
    13 years ago

    I have quite a few varieties. NDM has fruit size of pea, with another flush of blooms starting. Carrie is just starting to bloom. Ice cream is blooming. I have multiple other varieties w/o blooms yet. Mallika, haden,po pu kalay,valencia pride. I just purchased 5 trees yesterday from a local nursery. I have been looking at them for months waiting to see if they were going to get some new trees. They got some keitt and tommys in 7 gal so I offered $5 a piece for the ugly trees. They were covered in scale but I think I can salvage. 5 for $35 in 3 gal pots. Edward, Julie, Glen Cogshall and East Indian. I am not sure what east indian is but for $7 I dont think I can go wrong. I am keeping them in quarantine repotting and spraying them. They were way too big for 3gal. root bound and lots of suckers below the graft on the julie. I will post some pics if I can figure that out.

  • mango_kush
    13 years ago

    thats a definite score, all excellent varieties. East Indian is a popular Jamaican variety with a resinous flavor. i bet they got scale from being crowded and will be fine if their canopy gets some ventilation. the only one i would worry about is Julie for anthracnose

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    East Indian= intense flavor with strong resinous twang and lots and lots of fiber

    Harry

  • ekimllabmik
    13 years ago

    Thanks for the info on the east indian. I have not tried Julie or East Indian and I am not a big fan of fiber but I am willing to nurse them back to health and give it a try. The julie is the only one i am not sure will survive. It has a stalk the size of a pencil and 3 or 4 suckers below the graft. All of the others have a diameter the size of a broom stick, and once in 10 gallon containers and pruned will certainly do well and have nice shapes.(Thats the plan anyway.)

  • mango_kush
    13 years ago

    dont give up on Julie, just keep the leaves clean and nip the ones below the graft. mangos are one of the most resilient fruit trees grown here

  • jeffhagen
    13 years ago

    The nurserymen in our area report that the julie is more sensitive than many other mangoes to: cold, over-fertilization, and over-watering. So, keep her dryish, lighten up on the fert, and bring her in when it gets into the low 30's.

    PS. My carrie just started blooming :-).

    Jeff

  • alicia_grower
    13 years ago

    Happy Thanksgiving all! My Ice Cream is in full bloom, just bought it yesterday lol. :)

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    It's been 9 days since my last bloom survey. As of today, things are really picking up. Add to the "in bloom" category the following:

    Cogshall, Extrema, Pickering, Jamaican Black, Spirit of 76, Jean Ellen, Southern Blush, Maha Chanook ( at least one of the four I have planted out), Rataul, Pim Saen Mun, Nam Doc Mai, Mallindi, Irwin, Golden Lippens, Glenn, Gary, and East Indian.

  • jfernandez
    13 years ago

    Fairchild botanical garden has nothing on you! Harry, how many varieties do you gave?

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Well, I'm not quite to Fairchild's proportions, but I am heading in that direction with the limited space I have. I guess on a per acre basis.....I am holding my own. My current count of mango culitvars (or seedling individuals that have been planted out) is 92 or so, I believe. Total mango trees planted out in the yard is around 106 with 3 additonal newly purchased or grafted trees still to be planted. Oooops, forgot another blooming tree.....Early Lemony Saigon out of the Smather's Four Fillies Farm collection is also in bloom. Now lets see if all this bloom equates to a better crop than last year's disastrous ice age limited one. Sorry to hear about all you Californians with the record cold. I feel your pain. Looks like you have to deal with the fickle arctic oscillation that we struggled with last year. Best of luck to you all.

    Harry

  • esco_socal
    13 years ago

    Harry
    Would you happen to know if your Lemon Saigon mango is the same as the mangos in these pictures?
    The mangos in these pictures are known as Xoai Cat Hoa Loc in Vietnam. Loosely translated Hoa Loc Sand(cat) Mango(xoai).


    {{gwi:1332438}}

    Tim

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Tim:

    No, those are not what I am calling the Early Lemony Saigon that I obtained from Four Fillies Farm. Those are much larger and much fatter than what I have.

    Harry

  • mangodog
    13 years ago

    esco - those green mangos in the tree picture have a wonderful sublime quality to them....I bet that Ong nursery near San Diego will have LOTS of asian varieties (like this one) which my research did no cover so I'll be uberly confused.....

    By the way Harry - what do you do with all those mangos that are produced in a good year? 106, mostly different trees, is an amazing collection....how many months out of the year do you actually consume mangos?

    mangosniffer

  • esco_socal
    13 years ago

    I'll just get in line like everyone else and wait my turn to order a big box with all different types from Harry :)
    having to wait that long is terrible though

    Tim

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Gee.....it's been so long since I had any mangoes that would be considered "extra" that I forget what I do with them. No, seriously, I have had bumper crops over the years. I have lots of people (family and friends) to feed; I have a small, honor system fruit stand in front of my house; there are many local customers that come by and buy in quantity and I do lots of dehydration of the extra fruit to last for when there are no mangoes. I was intending to start doing some shipping last season to folks on the Forum, but Mother Nature saw to it that that didn't happen. I would consider sending out fruits this year again, if there are any to send.....but I have come to realize that it is a pretty big pain in the butt to have to do all that packing and shipping.....just based on my limited shipping of fruit this past year. I do still invite anyone in the area to stop by to sample mangoes or lychees available and to buy what they wish based on what is available. I had started a list last year of those interested in perhaps getting mangoes shipped. I still have the list somewhere and I'll be happy to add anyone interested to that list in case I do have fruit available and the time for shipping it. BTW, mangoes usually begin ripening in early May......Rosigold, possibly in March or April....but the bulk of the crop really doesn't start until end of May/ early June and runs through end of August or early Spetember. There are fruits available into October but you have to fight the damned critters for the late season mangoes as they really focus on the few trees that still have fruit on them.

    Harry

  • mango_kush
    13 years ago

    Julie is the only one in my yard to bud, not a peep out of Rosigold

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Next mangoes noticed to be in bloom are Graham. Kau Dwarf, and Bailey's Marvel.

    Harry

  • alicia_grower
    13 years ago

    Very cool information I have, went to a a mango nursery today out in Wimauma,Fl to look at what trees were blooming. Noticed that not only they had blooms but their 15 yr old Keitt trees still had ripening fruit on them! Heard that was unheard of! Isn't keitts season done in Sept? Was given two nice size ones, can't wait for them to ripen!

  • hmhausman
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    I have heard of Keitt holding fruit into late October or early November, but never into December. Could be that the blooming on that tree was delayed by the cold this last winter. My problem is that the darned critters attack the late season mangoes unmercifully after all the rest of the fruits from the other mango trees are long gone. I have to end up picking the entire crop well before the end of September in order to be able to enjoy any substantial number of fruit.

    Harry

  • manny8077
    11 years ago

    when do lancetilla bloom

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