Growing Mango Tree In Backyard - A Beginners Guide

Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

Here, today in this article we are going to discuss how to grow a Mango Tree in the backyard. In this article, we also discuss the below topics about growing Mango Tree in the backyard:

Introduction to growing Mango Tree in backyard
Varieties of Mangoes in India
Pick an area to grow your Mango Tree in the backyard
Propagation for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Propagation from seeds for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Propagation from grafting for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Climatic conditions for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Soil Requirement for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Water requirement for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Fertilizer requirement for growing Mango Tree in backyard
Keep weeds away from your Mango Tree in the backyard
Prune your Mango Tree When it is necessary
Pests and diseases of Mango Tree
When to pick Mango Fruits from a tree in the backyard?
Mango harvesting tips

A Step-By-Step Guide to Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

As we all know, the national fruit of India is Mango. Mango is a summer fruit. It is also known as the ‘king of all fruits’ Mango Tree can grow up to 40m in height. They are topped with a rounded canopy of foliage. They can live for more than 100 years. Usually, they are grafted onto the roots of smaller trees so that they can’t grow as tall. The Mango Tree belongs to the cashew family (Anacardiaceae). This tree loves a warm climate. They are easy to grow.

Varieties of Mangoes in India

There are nearly 24 varieties of mangoes in India. They are listed below:

Alphonso Mangoes
Kesar Mangoes
Dasheri Mangoes
Himsagar and Kishan Bhog Mangoes
Chausa Mangoes
Badami Mangoes
Safeda Mangoes
Bombay Green Mangoes
Langra Mangoes
Totapuri Mangoes
Neelam Mangoes
Raspuri Mangoes
Malgoa/Mulgoba Mangoes
Lakshmanbhog Mangoes
Amrapali Mangoes
Imam Pasand Mangoes
Fazli Mangoes
Mankurad Mangoes
Paheri/Pairi Mangoes
Mallika Mangoes
Gulab Khaas Mangoes
Vanraj Mangoes
Kilichundan Mango
Rumani Mangoes

Growing Process of Mango Tree in Backyard

Mango Trees grow very well on the ground. Mango Tree begins to fruit within three years after you plant. Mangoes are rich in vitamin A, D, and vitamin C. They are deep-rooted plants. Mangos are evergreen and tropical fruit.

Pick an Area to Grow Your Mango Tree in Backyard

Mango Trees prefer direct sunlight and lots of sunlight. Depending upon species, the size of the Mango Tree varies. They can grow up to 3–4.6 m. so, for this reason, you need to choose an area that will give your tree plenty of space to survive without being shaded by other trees.

Propagation for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

Mango Trees can be propagated in one of two ways: via seeds and via grafting. Propagation through seeds, take a longer time to produce mangoes and it is more difficult to manage than those that have been grafted. The most preferred method for propagation is grafting.

Propagation from Seeds for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

Take a mango; remove all the existing fruit, until the pit is exposed. Clean the pit with a scrubber, until all hairs have been removed. While scrubbing, be careful you should not scrub away at the outer coating of the pit; you should only remove the fruit fibers that are still attached to the pit. Then you need to dry the pit in a cool place overnight. There should not be direct sunlight. Open the pit with the help of a sharp knife be careful not to cut deep inside. Then you’ll find a large bean of mango. Then plant the seed in the ground. Seed propagation takes a long time to produce fruits.

Propagation from Grafting for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

The grafting of a Mango Tree is the practice of bearing the tree to a separate seedling or transferring a piece of the mature called rootstock. Attempt your grafting during warm conditions when the temperature is above 18°C. For grafting, you want a healthy rootstock. Your selected seedling stem should be between 1 to 2.5 cm across, free from all pests and diseases, and vibrant green in color. You need to cut the rootstock from the tree about 4 inches above the soil. Take care of the stem not to damage below the cut.

The next step is locating a replacement growth shoot or scion on an existing mango. The thickness of the scion should be adequate to or slightly smaller than the harvested rootstock and then will have fresh buds and leaves. You need to cut the 7.5 to 15 cm long piece of the scion from the tree and reduce the uppermost leaves. With the help of a sharp knife, you need to make a wedge within the cut end of the scion and cut the bark away along all sides to make an exact angled point. Place the scion wedge into the slot you have cut within the rootstock. Be aware they need to line up. To secure the rootstock to the scion, use grafting tape. Cover with a bag over the new graft and tie it off at rock bottom to make a warm, humid environment and protect the new graft from all the insects and pests. Once the tree has begun growing, remove the bag. Once the tree produces new leaves, remove the tape from the graft. Plant it in soil and water the tree, but don’t overwater after grafting.

Climatic Conditions for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

Mango Tree survives well under humid and dry conditions. During its growing season, it requires good rainfall i.e. June to October, and dry weather, rainless from November onwards. During flowering, rainy or cloudy weather favors the incidence of powdery mildew disease and leafhoppers.

Soil Requirement for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

A Mango Tree needs very light and well-drained soil that is very rich in organic matter. The pH level should be around 5.5-7.5 which means slightly acidic to neutral in range. For better yield and quality, you can add 1/3 part compost or aged manure to the soil when you plant.

Water Requirement for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

Be careful while watering your Mango Tree, though this plant needs regular water. Overwatering can destroy your Mango Tree. Water regularly in the starting stage and reduce watering when your Mango Tree started flowering.

After the bearing of fruits, start to water moderately. Start watering regularly from the flowering stage to the fruiting stage until 40-50% of the tree is full of flowers. Water until a few weeks or for a month left before harvesting the mangoes. At this time, again start to water moderately.

Fertilizer, Nutrient Requirement for Growing Mango Tree in Backyard

You need to wait until you notice some growth in your Mango Tree before you begin fertilizing your Mango Tree. After that, for the first year, you can fertilize your Mango Tree once a month. Use an organic fertilizer that means non-chemical fertilizer — the best fertilizer with a 6-6-6-2 mix should be very good for your Mango Tree. You can even use liquid fertilizer by dissolving the fertilizer in a bit of warm water for application, and you can store it for your monthly use.

How to Keep Weeds Away From Your Mango Tree in Backyard?

If weeds are not removed regularly they may become a serious problem around your Mango Trees. You need to weed regularly, remove other plants that sprout up near the trunk of the Mango Tree. To prevent weed growths add a thick layer of mulch around the tree to help trap in moisture. To supply the tree with nutrients you can add a bit of compost to the mulch as well.

Prune Your Mango Tree When it is Necessary

Pruning of Mango Tree (Pic Credit: Pixabay)

Pruning aims to form much space for branches, as the fruit will develop at the end of the branches that are known as terminal flowers. If there is too much crowding near the center from the trunk cut branches 1 inch, typically after the last fruit of the season that means in the fall. You can prune your tree by simply cutting off branches that are too tall and wide to limit its outward growth.

In case if you miss this: Starting Terrace Garden In India.

Pests and Diseases of Mango Tree

Pests are listed below:

Fruit fly

Symptoms – The adult woman flies lay egg slightly below the skin of semi repine fruits. This develops and feeds inside the fruit, causing the flesh to show brown and soft which emits a foul smell. This damage can also be a chance as an entry site for fungal and bacterial pathogens.

Management – 1) You need to collect the fallen fruits and destroy them as soon as possible. 2) To reduce fly’s damage you need to harvest fruits early.

3) To monitor fruit flies use traps

Mango hoppers

Symptoms – Drying of leaves and fall of leaves. Because of these mango hoppers.

Management – Use organic pesticides.

Mango mealybugs

Symptoms – Both nymphs and feminine insects suck sap from all parts mango. The infected inflorescences may dry up affecting the fruit set and should cause fruit drop. By the effect of fruit setting, several infected plants may show wilting.

Management – You need to collect and burn all the fallen leaves and twigs and watering your Mango Tree during October kills eggs present in the soil.

Mango Tree borer

Symptoms – If there are circular holes in the bark this may be first noticed damage by the borer. This damage indicates the borer has chewed the barks of the Mango Tree.

Management – when adult insects are present application of the required amount of insecticide to the trunk and branches of the tree to kill any eggs and larvae that are present; insecticide may deter adult feeding and to grow twigs and green shoots.

White Mango Scale

Symptoms – Female and male scale insects suck the sap from fruits, leaves, and branches which causes defoliation, drying up of twigs, less blossoming, and reduces the quality of fruit.

Management – Remove the infected plant parts from your tree. Spray the emulsive oil or suitable insecticides to reduce the population of scales.

Diseases are listed below:

Algal leaf spot

Symptoms – Orange rusty spots on both upper and lower surfaces of the leaf.

Management – To promote vigor, ensure that your Mango Trees are properly pruned and fertilized and you need to remove all weeds from around tree bases; to increase air circulation around the trees employ wider tree spacing; badly infected trees can be treated with copper-containing fungicides.

Anthracnose

Symptoms – Infected flowers may drop from the tree. You can observe small dark spots on flowers.

Management – Required amount of fungicide should be applied during flowering and fruit development.

Phoma blight

Symptoms – You can observe orange pustules that are present on infected bark.

Management – Use an appropriate fungicide.

Powdery mildew

Symptoms – There will be a gray-white powdery growth on leaves, flowers, and fruit.

Management – At controlling powdery mildew fungicides are very effective if applied at the first sign of the disease you can control.

Sooty mold

Symptoms – The leaves, twigs, inflorescence, and fruits of the tree are covered with shiny black and sticky growth of fungal infection.

Management – If plants are small you need to wash mold with a strong stream of water and spraying starch also removes sooty mold.

Bacterial black spot

Symptoms – Fruits dropping from plant and angular, water-soaked spots on leaves.

Management – You need to prune out infected twigs and provide windbreaks for plants.

When to Pick Mango Fruits from Tree in the Backyard?

To harvest a mature mango fruit it takes nearly 120 to 140 days from fruit set
At maturity, sides of mango fruits get raised, and partly attached to the stalk gets sunken
When the dark green fruits start turning pale green to yellowish that is maturity
A clear white layer on fruit skin is formed at maturity, in some mango varieties.

Mango Harvesting Tips

You should not keep the freshly harvested fruits under direct sunlight
Harvesting the mango fruit along with its stalk attached to it is good; otherwise, the sticky mucilage will ooze out from the fruit forming black spots near the stalk end
It is recommended to do 2-3 rounds of harvesting in a weekly interval because all the fruits on the same Mango Tree may not mature at the same time
While harvesting, use specialized mango harvesters and do not let the fruits fall on the ground.
After the harvest of fruits, immediately for avoiding injuries caused due to sap flow. Harvested fruits should be under the treatment of decapping that means the removal of sap from the stem end attached to the fruit
After harvesting of fruit, immediately you should first collect your fruits to a shady place to remove the over heat and after that, they need to be washed and dried before storage

Growing Mango Tree In Backyard – A Beginners Guide

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