Introduction
An abundant harvest of juicy, red-gold fruit and attractive dark green, tropical foliage make mango a popular home landscape item in very large yards for warm climates. The trees grows to be 30 to 60 feet tall and almost 50 feet wide, so allow plenty of room for growth. New foliage is a brilliant reddish purple, and flower and fruit clusters extend well beyond the long, shiny leaves. The tree is covered with very showy, white, yellow, pinkish, or reddish flower spikes in March and early April. Mango trees grow quickly into round, multibranched, dense, spreading shade trees but placement is limited due to the falling fruit. Some people are allergic to the pollen, the sap and even the fruit.
General Information
Scientific name: Mangifera indica
Pronunciation: man-JIFF-er-uh IN-dih-kuh
Common name(s): mango
Family: Anacardiaceae
USDA hardiness zones: 10B through 11 (Figure 2)
Origin: native to southern Asia
UF/IFAS Invasive Assessment Status: aution, may be recommended but manage to prevent escape (Central, South); not considered a problem species at this time, may be recommended (North)
Uses: hedge; screen; shade; fruit
Description
Height: 30 to 60 feet
Spread: 30 to 50 feet
Crown uniformity: symmetrical
Crown shape: round
Crown density: dense
Growth rate: fast
Texture: coarse
Foliage
Leaf arrangement: alternate
Leaf type: simple
Leaf margin: entire, undulate
Leaf shape: lanceolate to elongated-elliptic
Leaf venation: pinnate, brachidodrome
Leaf type and persistence: evergreen, broadleaf evergreen
Leaf blade length: 4 to 12 inches
Leaf color: dark green and shiny on top, paler green underneath
Fall color: no color change
Fall characteristic: not showy
Flower
Flower color: white, yellowish, pinkish, or reddish
Flower characteristics: showy; emerges in clusters on 2 ½ - 15 ½" long, reddish, branched panicles
Flowering: late winter to early spring
Fruit
Fruit shape: oval or kidney-shaped
Fruit length: 3 to 10 inches
Fruit covering: fleshy drupe
Fruit color: turns from green to a mix of green, yellow, orange, or red when ripe
Fruit characteristics: attracts squirrels/mammals; showy; fruit/leaves a litter problem; fragrant
Trunk and Branches
Trunk/branches: branches droop; not showy; typically one trunk; no thorns
Bark: gray to brown, thick, smooth, and becomes scaly and flaky with age
Pruning requirement: needed for strong structure
Breakage: susceptible to breakage
Current year twig color: gray, brown
Current year twig thickness: medium, thick
Wood specific gravity: unknown
Culture
Light requirement: full sun
Soil tolerances: clay; sand; loam; alkaline; acidic; well-drained
Drought tolerance: moderate
Aerosol salt tolerance: moderate
Other
Roots: not a problem
Winter interest: no
Outstanding tree: no
Ozone sensitivity: unknown
Verticillium wilt susceptibility: unknown
Pest resistance: sensitive to pests/diseases
Use and Management
Mango trees grow best in full sun on fertile, well-drained soils and should have ample moisture. Leaf, flower, twig and fruit litter is a constant nuisance for some, and branches are subject to breakage during severe windstorms. It seems like something is always falling from a mango tree to litter the lawn. Place it in a bed with other plants to hide the litter.
There are several cultivars available which have been selected for fruit quality: `Keitt', `Hent', `Edward', `Glenn', `Haden' and others are best for Florida; `Alolia', `Edgehill', `Haden', `Manila' and others are recommended for California.
Propagation is by budding or veneer grafting on seedling rootstocks.
Pests
Scales followed by sooty mold and Mediterranean fruit fly are pests of this tree.
Diseases
Anthracnose on fruit and leaves is a serious problem for mango.
Reference
Koeser, A.K., Friedman, M.H., Hasing, G., Finley, H., Schelb, J. 2017. Trees: South Florida and the Keys. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.