Mango Trees Dying

[swissie]

By the end of July, I bought 5 Mango Trees at the local greenery. Hight between 50 cm and 1 meter. Planted them properly. gave water and a bit of "all purpose" fertilizer. The 1 meter plants have now brown leaves and are dead. The remaining 2 small ones have developped some fresh green leaves, but very slowly.

How come ? Soil is very "sandy". My Banana-Trees plus Corn thrive nicely in this type of soil.

Or have I just bought the larger ones at the nursery, when they were already "half dead" ? (They diden't have any fresh light green leaves on top, only dark green ones at the time of purchase.) ???

Thanks & cheers.

[loong]

1 meter high seems too large to buy from a nursery. What size was the bag/net that the roots were contained in?

Mangoes have a tap root and if this gets damaged you are basically buggered.

If soil is sandy, it may have been draining too well. It would need watering every day if no rain and possibly twice daily in the hot sun. Ideally, you should have dug in plenty of organic material before planting.

You say that you added all purpose fertiliser. If chemical fertiliser, not a good idea as can shock the roots, especially if put in the hole before planting.

Put a goodly amount of mulch around the tree, you can mix in a small amount of manure. Don't allow the mulch to touch the tree and make sure that it extends to just beyond the drip line. As the mulch breaks down, it will fertilise enough until the tree starts to produce.

[swissie]

1 meter high seems too large to buy from a nursery. What size was the bag/net that the roots were contained in?

Mangoes have a tap root and if this gets damaged you are basically buggered.

If soil is sandy, it may have been draining too well. It would need watering every day if no rain and possibly twice daily in the hot sun. Ideally, you should have dug in plenty of organic material before planting.

You say that you added all purpose fertiliser. If chemical fertiliser, not a good idea as can shock the roots, especially if put in the hole before planting.

Put a goodly amount of mulch around the tree, you can mix in a small amount of manure. Don't allow the mulch to touch the tree and make sure that it extends to just beyond the drip line. As the mulch breaks down, it will fertilise enough until the tree starts to produce.

If I read the above, I realize that I have done everything wrong. Will replant and will strictly go as descibed above. ( It's a miracle that at least 2 of them have survived so far.)

Thanks & cheers.

[soidog2]

Most likely the fertilizer did it, stay away from chemicals and use manure, moderately.

Don't forget to remove the grafting tape before you plant again.

[Khonwan]

Loong, Soidog2, have you guys tried chemical fertiliser with mango trees? I’m not much of a gardener, and realise that you both are, but I’ve planted mango trees years ago with chemical fertiliser in the hole (then some soil added before inserting the plant), and around the tree from time to time, and I’m pleased to report they are still doing well in front of my house. I do acknowledge that aged manure is very beneficial, and even vital in the case of sandy soil (my own is sandy-loam in front of my house).

Rgds

Khonwan

[loong]

Khonwan, my plot where I grow my veg etc for home consumption never sees any chemical fertiliser or pesticides.

Can't grow much under my mango or bamboo, so I use these areas to bulid my compost heaps. The heap under the mango I leave uncovered and so goodness leaches into the soil when it rains. Apart from that, I dom't add any fertiliser and get plenty of mangoes.

I planted some new mangos last year, grafted type, about 30cm tall and did some research at that time. The general consensus from the websites that I visited was that you should not add chemical fertiliser until the tree was reasonably well established, some recommended none for at least 2 years. I would think that the fact that you had a soil buffer zone between the roots and the chems was sensible. Probably gave the roots a chance to get established before growing into the fertilised soil.

Unfortunately, I went to the UK for a while and the weeds went wild. My FIL helpfully chopped down the weeds, allowed them to dry and then burned them off. Burned off my new mangos in the process. Only one survived and that was the one planted in the worst area where it doesn't get full sun all year round. It's growing ok, but slowly.

Sometimes, I get a bit miffed with the FIL, but he really only wants to help and be useful. His heart's in the right place and I laugh about things like that now

[Wombat6]

Have a look at the roots on the dead trees.......any sign of termite activity ?? Young mango trees are susceptible from termite attack if the trees are under stress. They need to have plenty of water until established

[onni4me]

Well...I grow mango trees so here few advises.

1. It is very likely that you have bought a tree that is without tap root. This since they just add to a root of another tree/plant a mango branch. Quicker fruit development but the tree will not be a big mango tree for 800 or so years...

2. If you are looking a proper mango tree, grow one yourself. Eat a ripe (make sure it's ripe) mango and save the seed. It is a seedwallet that you have in your hand. Let it dry somewhere in the kitchen or wherever. Wait until the seedwallet is dry like a thin cardbord. Cut it from one end and take the actual seed out. Note: If you plant it with the seedwallet, it might not taste like you expect. This is because mango is like apple. It can be terrible taste if it seeds from whole fruit, uneatable also. So, the only way to get the same taste is to remove the dried seedwallet and plant the actual seed.

3. Plant it in a pot with fertile soil. Put newspaper or something in first to prevent roots going out from the pot. Not too wet, mangoes rot if they get too much water. Wait until next year to plant it. When you plant it, BE VERY CAREFUL NOT TO DAMAGE THE TAP ROOT. It will grow nonetheless but will not be a real prosperous tree.

4. Mangoes don't like too much fertilizer, they like mock. Anything goes, leaves, smal branches. I myself use rice straw, it keeps the soil under the tree moist and fertile and and clean. They do sell fertilizer that suits but it is unnecessary. However, if you like to use such, wait around 2-4 weeks for the plant to get in proper roots before giving fertilizer. This because otherwise it might not get a good kickstart for the root growth.

5. Good form for a mango tree is like a bowl turned upside down. The best time to prune...I don't know. I would suggest to avoid the wet/rainy season since then it is more likely to catch some disease. Mangoes are quite tough plants and you can cut them almost as you wish but don't hack them like some Thais do. Do use soem protecting gloves since the mango branches have some irritating stuff that might cause a rash or skin irritation. If you do not cut it, it might grow up to a tree of 80-100 feet, so your choice.

That's my five cents. Good luck.