Hi thanks! So the black part is the root huh?

So did you take the small box and fill it up with sphagnum moss and leave it in the sun or a dark place? And after it germinates, would I know how to position the seed into a pot?

Yes that's the root it will grow down and the leaves will come up right where the root comes out of the seed. And yes I had a small plastic container filled the bottom with moss and put seeds inside mangos, avocados even cuttings after when I feel the mangos should be planted I place them in soil the seed is flat the root should be facing down going down into the soil.

I wouldn't remove the seed from the husk. It gives the seed more protection until it's organised itself. As HFG said, which ever way it sprouts just plant the seeds roots down and stem up. I've found orientation of the seed doesn't really matter.

The photo shows a seed with root rot problem.

This is what I would do and had better than 90% success:
Use a pair scissor and cut around the fibrous edge of the husk ��" this is a safe way to get the seed out without accidentally damage it or cut oneself with a knife. Wash the seed cleanly in warm water (80��"85F). (Seed had been genetically programmed not to germinate while inside a fruit, and so wash clean the seed to set it âÂÂfreeâÂÂ.)
Place the seed in a clear plastic container, lying flat, with minimal water for moisture, and keep the container close to warm place to create an ideal environment for the seed at 80 to 85F. Within a week it should grow a root. When the root about üâ long, I use Scott tape to loop around the seed and hang it up from the containerâÂÂs bottom so the root has room to grow down ward instead of coiling around itself. About 2 to 3 weeks it should have a stem developed right above the root, and when it has several leaves then itâÂÂs safe to pot the young seedling into well-drain potting soil.

The photo shows a seed with root rot problem.

This is what I would do and had better than 90% success:
Use a pair scissor and cut around the fibrous edge of the husk ��" this is a safe way to get the seed out without accidentally damage it or cut oneself with a knife. Wash the seed cleanly in warm water (80��"85F). (Seed had been genetically programmed not to germinate while inside a fruit, and so wash clean the seed to set it âÂÂfreeâÂÂ.)
Place the seed in a clear plastic container, lying flat, with minimal water for moisture, and keep the container close to warm place to create an ideal environment for the seed at 80 to 85F. Within a week it should grow a root. When the root about üâ long, I use Scott tape to loop around the seed and hang it up from the containerâÂÂs bottom so the root has room to grow down ward instead of coiling around itself. About 2 to 3 weeks it should have a stem developed right above the root, and when it has several leaves then itâÂÂs safe to pot the young seedling into well-drain potting soil.

That's not actually correct, about having to remove the husk because "Seed had been genetically programmed not to germinate while inside a fruit". I always leave them in the husk to protect the seed and they always germinate. In fact I get a lot of volunteer seedlings where birds and flying foxes drop fruit they've been eating.Those not only have the husk but often half the fruit still on. The animals are quite wasteful.

tropicbreezent ,
Have you ever wondered why donâÂÂt we see more germinated seeds inside fruits? I believe itâÂÂs not happening as a result of Natural Selection ��" those that had germinated seeds inside fruits didnâÂÂt have the chance to pass down.
YouâÂÂre right that washing the seed is not required. Unwashed seeds eventually will germinate, as you had found out. But, wash off the âÂÂprotection chemicalâ would free the seed to germinate quicker.

Brian

Sapote, I have over 500 mango trees and have been growing them for years. I've learned that seeds in the fruits are immature and still developing. When they mature they're not dependent on someone coming along, cutting the husk off, washing the seed, etc. Otherwise the species would have become extinct long ago. Sort of like coconuts, they don't need the husk cut off to germinate, they do it unaided when they're mature.

tropicbreezent,
There are many ways to germinate mango seed: the natural way as you have done, and many other ways well suit for specific growing conditions.
Of course the thousand year old natural way would work, especially in the tropical condition. IâÂÂm one of those that prefer doing many thing natural way too ��" the natural way have been tested and proven for million years. Well, there are exception. For example, mango trees would grow to 50 feet in nature, and many under-developed places people still let them grow this way in their orchard. But we think itâÂÂs better to prune and train the young mango tree to keep them lower and develop a more horizontal shape for a better management program. In the case of germinating mango seed, the same is applied here, that I think remove the seed from its husk will help to speed up the germination process.

As about why not many mango seeds germinated within the fruit, IâÂÂm talking about mature, ripen fruits and not green immature mango. Rarely we found mango seeds germinated inside mature ripe fruits, and I believe this is due to some growing prohibit chemical within the fruit that stop the seed from germinating. When the fruits dropped to ground, and after some time the chemical faded away and the seed will germinate, as you have known.
We like to tinker with things, sometime against the natural way. We grow tropical fruits in desert, in green house, in New York. I would think in the same growing condition, i.e. in California, seeds removed and washed will germinate faster than seeds within their hush. Have you tried both method in a non-tropical condition?

Hi guys thanks for the advise! I planted a new seed and I think it's doing a lot better! In fact, something is sprouting! But, I'm not sure if its the root or sprout itself. Here's a picture of what I have now.

Is it the root? Or? And if it is, should I manipulate the position if the seed right away, or just let it do its thing? Thanks!

It's the sprount that rising up from ground (you're on the earth and the seed or plant knows which way is up and down.) Root will never rise up -- not on this earth.

I would leave it this way until it's about a foot then transplant to a bigger pot.

Brian

Thanks Brian, I thought it was the root at first because it had finger-like threads on the top and because it was red. However, now that I know it's the sprout, do I make a small greenhouse around it (made of a waterbottle that is)? Also it's bending at a right angle while growing... will this be fixed in time or do I force it to grow straight by means of Popsicle stick,etc? It's also turning a bit brownish towards the 'leaves' of the sprout-- I hope my baby isn't dying on me!

Leave it in the exact same condition that the seed had sprounted, except more light for the plant to grow. Don't water until the soil feel dried.

In what enviroment condition that the seed had sprounted? Knowing your condition will help us to lead you to the next step if it's not ideal.

As for the angle you asked, it's not the stem angle -- it's the leaves angle and it's normal. As about the color, I could not see detail on the photo to give you advice.

Brian

I don't know if you can see it well enough, but here's the sprout after 2 days since the last picture. The conditions for this plant is the same as how it germinated, however, I bought a plant light so that on cloudy days and cold mornings the plant will not be harmed. I use a water bottle by means of a small greenhouse and I poked holes in it to promote air circulation for the plant. The 'leaves' are actually a little green up close (you cannot see well in the picture) but you can definitely tell the sprout is growing crooked. I water everyday. And leave it in the sun after watering (about 1:30pm to 5:30pm), then place it inside a sink with the plant light shining until 9pm where I turn it off. In the morning, it is a bit cold outside, so I turn on the light until I come back from school (1:30pm) where the cycle starts again. I use my 'greenhouse' only when the plant is in direct sun.

EDIT: Sorry this was an accidental double post

{{!gwi}}

This post was edited by eointremont on Wed, Mar 27, 13 at 0:19

Do not water it everyday -- especially you're not in a tropical area. Feel the soil with fingure and water the whole soil wet with warm water (80 --85F) when soil is dried below 1 to 2" below the surface.

As about the crooked trunk, don't worry about it for now -- the young trunk is too fragile to do anything. Later, if it still bent at an angle, then when repot or replant, you could tilt the whole root-ball to have a vertical trunk in the new pot or place.

Brian

Thanks Brian for being so helpful!

I definitely agree that I watered it too much. Ill it it down to every 3-4 days. The tips of the leaves are kinda brownish and yellow.... Is this a sign of overwatering or too much sunlight? Or possibly air circulation? I know it's not exactly dying on me because it grew a little taller today, but I am interested in the color of the leaves. This picture you can see the color of the sprout much more clearly and you can tell its a bit brownish than the deep reddish color in the first picture.

Everyday, then 3-4 days... you still don't get it; water only when the soil feel dried, regardless of time.

These leaves may not be the permanent ones -- just like baby teeth -- and they will be replaced by a bigger permanent leaves. it color will change from red to green and so does the trunk. Everything looks fine.

Brian

Alright thanks Brian for your help!

what exactly is the cause for the seed to be dead? my 5 mango seeds which germinated after a month were dead with root rot and foul smell. what is the reason behind? excess of water?

Too much wet soil, not good drainage potting material, too cool, pathogen in soil...

I just planted 6 seeds laying flat just under the surface, and I had a 50% success rate on germination. 3 seeds went to rot. The little plants look pretty cool. They grow at a alarming rate. If its not too complicated, I'll try and post some pics.

Here is a pic of a mango sprout on day one. If you look closely, you can see two others behind it that are four days old.

This is the same plant on day two, today.

I ave two plants like this about 4" tall. They are four days old. They grow super fast!

Hi I tried planting a mango three times and it failed every time I tried. The first time I took the seed out of the husk put in a a plastic container with soil and put a plastic rap with over the pot, I waited about a weak and nothing happened. So I took the seed out and it was rotten. The second time I took the seed out of the husk and put it in a plastic container with water, I let it sit in the sun outside all day and all night hoping it would sprout roots, I did that with a peach seed and it grew into a beautiful tree. I waited about two weeks for the mango seed to at least sprout roots so I can plant it in a pot with soil, but the seed rotted again. The third time I decided to look up directions on how to do it the right way, so I took the seed out of the husk carefully I took a pepper towel dampen the paper towel with water wrapped the seed with the paper towel, put it in a plastic bag sealed it closed made sure their was air in the bag put it in my garage and waited three days later and the seed was rotten again. Now I need u to understand I did all of this in the Summer and due to the fact in Pennsylvania I get more seasons. I love mangoes and I really want to plant a mango tree. I know its a tropical fruit tree but I thought I could contain it in the winter. So I don't know if the rotting has anything to do with the heat, the seasons, or the fact that I live up north. Now I will continue to try and plant a mango tree, but I need some idvise and help what do I do to make sure the mango seed stays alive and grows into a tree. I hope everyone can help me with this. WHAT DO I DO!!!!!!

Do you know whether the fruit has been chilled at some stage? The seed you were trying may not have been viable. Sometimes it's difficulty to know how fruit has been treated before you get it. As I've mentioned before, there's no need to remove the seed from the husk. That does open the seed up to all sorts of fungus and infections before it has had a chance to germinate. And you can't germinate them in "non-tropical conditions". You have to make the conditions around the seed "tropical", like keeping temperatures up, day and night. However, that should be easy enough to do during summer.

Of course your other option is to get a tree, mail order or online. That way you can get a variety that you like and there is less waiting time for fruit. Seed grown trees can take years to fruit and then they don't produce true to their parent. You may end up with a better or worse fruit after waiting for years. You never know. Grafted trees can sometimes be already fruiting, or very close to fruiting. So if you're really keen for fruit, that would be your better option.

Okay so how do I make the seed germinate if its still in the husk. I get the mango from stores too eat. Just to let u know I'm 16 I wish I can bye a mango tree but I'm broke.

The mango won't worry whether you're 16 or 160, it'll still be the same. The advantage is you wouldn't be too old by the time a seed grown tree produced fruit. But yes, prices on trees do vary a lot depending on where you live. The difficulty though with seed grown trees is they take so long to mature and then you could easily end up with fruit you don't like. There is however another option and that's grafting a tree yourself. Not the easiest thing to do but there's a lot of advice available on the internet. You can start off with a seed grown tree, doesn't need to be very old, and you get a piece from an older tree of a variety you like. The piece from the older tree is called "scion wood". The scion is as old as the parent tree and so is able to produce fruit very early, and it's identical to the parent tree fruit. You can get scion wood by asking around on forums, there's always people who are willing to share a piece of their mature trees. There are also places that sell scion wood but try freebies first. For germinating seeds, the husk isn't a problem. The important thing is to keep up the warmth and to not let them dry out, that's what convinces the seed to start germinating - the tropical conditions you create. The big 'but' here is that you have viable seed. If you can't be sure the fruit hasn't been chilled or had something done that kills the seed then ask if someone can send you some seed. I would but I'm not in the US so quarantine would confiscate it before it got to you. You've started on the path already, and there's a bit of a way to go yet. But it's very doable. Just keep asking questions along the way.

Okay thank you so much.

Josh, this method has worked for me 8 of the last 10 seeds I germinated. Cut open the husk along the edge and remove the seed. Wrap in some moist paper towels. Place in a ziplock bag, zip it closed, and put in the cabinet over the refridgerator (which the refrigerator motor keeps quite warm) or other consistently warm dark spot. Check it in 2 weeks time - should see roots & sprout. CAREFULLY remove the moist paper towels, which might have some mold on them at this point - not to worry, it's never affected the results. Put the seed in some nice potting soil in a big plastic pot, very close to the surface, sprout-side-up and root-side-down. Place outside in filtered sun (in warm or hot weather) and keep moist. That sprout should start growing very quickly. GOOD LUCK!

Oh, and there is likely a fruit-growers-club in your area that might be able to provide some scion-wood for you to graft on your mango-seedling. They'd be delighted to interact with someone younger than 55 years old.