Mango Tree (Mangifera indica)

Mango Tree (Mangifera indica)

My wife and I love mangos, so we took a lot of time researching the different varieties before finally taking the plunge. We started by attending the annual fruit festival at Fruit and Spice Park in the Redland; we were able to speak to several growers and sample some of the different varieties, and we learned a lot.  For instance, bigger isn’t necessarily better; some of the biggest, most beautiful varieties are also the most bland. We decided on the Glenn variety, which is widely regarded for its taste and consistency.  It produces less fruit than the common store-sold varieties, but the fruit is a much higher quality. We then set out to find a tree that was grafted rather than grown from seed (those grown from a seed generally take much longer to fruit than those grafted from fruit-bearing trees) and that was mature enough to produce fruit during the first season.  I found a good tree at a moderate price at a fruit tree farm down off Krome Avenue and brought it home and planted it with plenty of room for growth in full sunlight. It initially produced about a dozen fruit, but only one reached full ripeness; it’s amazing how nature recognizes the limitations of a tree to sustain the number of fruit and methodically drops the lesser fruits to refocus its energy on the very best.  Even though it only produced one mango that first year, it was the best mango we had ever tasted in our lives. The tree is now more than a year in the ground and is thriving; it grows quickly and is quite easy to maintain.  It is a hardy tree and fares pretty well during our infrequent cold snaps.