Some photos would help, otherwise it would be like shooting into the dark. It could be too dark, or too wet, or too cold. Hard to say.

You're absolutely right, tropicbreezent. I thought of that later yesterday. I am attaching three photos now. I hope they give a better idea of the possible issues. I have not water it this week yet, fearing that might aggravate the problem. It is easier for them to recover from under watering than from over watering, as far as my experience tells me. I might be utterly wrong. I am far from an expert in plants. Thank you! :)

To me it looks like the light is too low. Although, those leaves do look reasonably okay. I get seedlings sprouting in the garden. Where it's too shaded and wet they often look like that.

Thank you for you reply tropicbreezent. It is surprising the they it might be suffering from lack of light. It is on a SW facing window and the room is pretty warm. But since there is a big cherry tree near the window, I will try to move it to another SW window (I have tree rooms facing that direction) to see how it reacts.

Thank you again! :)

Your mix looks peaty and DRY, DRY, DRY. Put it into a bigger container with decent soil, put it outside in full sun if you can. If your summer is hot, it should eventually grow. BTW, mangos tend to grow in growth spurts. You will see no growth, then rapid new growth. Don't be afraid to water your plant once it is in better conditions.

Thank you for the input, subtropix. The soil surface was dry because, as I mentioned above, I was afraid that the slow growth was due to overwatering it. This morning, I moved it to a brighter window (although it faces the same direction, I recorded a higher light index in the new location) and I gave it a good watering. I'll move it to a bigger pot. As for the quality of the soil, I used a regular potting soil. I think it's miracle growth, or similar. I thought that was decent. Putting it outside is not an option for me, unfortunately. Although I live in an apartment whose building has a huge back garden, the landlord does not allow anyone to use it. It's SO frustrating to watch him go there 1 hour per day, around 7pm, to remove a few weeds (he is 92 yo)… If I put it in the front, he might very well take it so… Indoors is all I have. :)

More water- and a bit of fertilizer can work miracles. Water soluble might be best. But any dry organic would do also. Just be careful not to over do it.

Thanks, stonofh. I though fertilizer this early in the plant's development was usually harmful. But, at this point, I haven't much to loose. There have been no alterations since I moved the plant to a window with more light so… I'll try to add some fertilizer to the water (I only use water soluble) next time I water it. Keeping you all posted on the developments. Thank you all for your help.

I have noticed an overall trend regarding our treatment of many many plants on this and other plant fora. Used to be (in the distant past), the big mistake was OVERwatering. It now seems that we have hyper-corrected and growing everything as if were cacti. My own bias though, is that all my tropicals spend the milder months (March-November) outside in full sun and heat, and I cannot keep up with watering.

You might be right, subtropix. Watering indoors, however, tends to be a bit trickier than outdoors. I've grown up in the countryside. We had a beautiful garden where my grandmother grew a bit of everything. I still go there once or twice a year, and my grandma continues to grow whatever she wants, alongside with keeping a gigantic, beautiful lemon tree, a rosemary plant that it turn into an enormous bush, mint, cilantro, parsley, and a variety of flowers. I never had water related problems with any kind of plant while I was able to grow them outdoors, where they belong. Growing things indoors has been one of the biggest frustrations for me. Hopefully, I will be able to return to the country one day. Meanwhile, I will continue learning from the community of indoors gardeners and, hopefully, from my mistakes :)

Thank you greenman62. The page is very helpful, and the information in there confirms what I was trying to deny: I cannot successfully grow mangos indoors (unless it's in a greenhouse, maybe?). It makes sense.

You could always use high intensity lighting. Its what many do to have outdoor quality plants indoors. Plumeria- tropical Bonsai.

I haven't consider that option. Thank you stanofh.

Veronica, I feel for you with not having outdoor space. Direct sunlight is very important for mango trees. What type of mango tree are you growing? Only a few varieties of mango trees will do well in a pot.

Thank you Figsinhawaii. I believe it is a manila mango - those with golden-yellow skin and a more oblong shape. Lately, I have been saving the pits of another variety, which I do not know the name. They have green and red skin, and are a bit more fibrous. The pits, however, seem bigger, and so I have saved all of them to try to germinate this variety as well. Which varieties are more suitable to grow in containers?

Veronica, where do you live? Do you have access to a nursery in which you can special order any fruit trees that they do not have in stock? If I were you, I would try grow a grafted mango tree vice a tree that had been grown from seed. A grafted mango tree could bear fruit within 2- 5 years and with a seedling tree, it could take at least twice that timeframe. A seedling tree could take 10 years to fruit and you would never see that with a grafted tree. I know it is wonderful to grow a tree from a seed, but honestly, I would be too anxious to wait that long for fruit.

You should research the Julie, Carrie, and Fairchild mango trees. Julie and Carrie trees are semi to semi-dwarf trees and can be kept in a container if managed and pruned properly. I've heard that Fairchild mango trees, while they tend to be a small-medium tree if planted in-ground, can also be kept in a container. Attached is a link to "condo mango" trees. You should read and research every variety in this link and determine which one you'd like to have a go at! Remember, access to sunlight is very crucial, so find the window in which the most sunlight penetrates through brightly and the longest amount of hours and put your container there.

I have a yard large enough for a full-size mango tree (I have my favorite type planted smack in the middle of the yard) and also full-size lemon tree. Therefore, any additional fruit trees in my backyard must be potted because I do not have additional space. As such, I have an avocado tree called a Littlecado and two additional mango trees that are in containers.. one of them has two large mangoes on it already! The one with the fruit is still in its 2-3 gallon plastic nursery bag. Sometime after the mangoes ripen and mango season is over here in Hawaii, I will move it to a larger container. However, unfortunately, I do not know the variety of mango. I bought it amongst the "clearance rack" plants at a local nursery because the tag fell off and the employees didn't know which type of mango tree it was. As most people shop for a mango tree with a specific variety in mind, it wasn't selling so they marked the price down to half-price. I snatched it up the second I saw it. Once the fruit ripens, I will take one of the mangoes to a local mango farm or to the University of Hawaii to have it officially classified. Regarding my avocado, I've read that the Littlecado is not the best-tasting avocado of them all, but it does taste good and considering its small size, I'm going to try growing to its max potential.

Should you decide on a grafted mango tree, please let me know what you decided upon!

-- attached is my photo of my two little container mangos, one of which is the "mystery" mango variety that already has two fruits. Also, in the background, you can see my potted Littlecado avocado tree. Sigh... yes, I know.. I need proper grass. I'm working on that. I need to re-do the patio concrete and then take out the existing remnants of grass, weeds, and plant grass.

http://www.tropicalfruitnursery.com/mango/condo.shtml

Thanks so much for your advice figsinhawaii!

I wish I lived in Hawaii! :) But, I actually live in coastal Connecticut, so my only chance to have a mango tree is to have it in a container. Otherwise, it wouldn't survive the first winter. Your mango trees look great! And they are producing fruit already! That is so wonderful! The avocado looks beautiful as well. I have had several in the last 3 years, but they all perished during the winter. The last one was doing great, miraculously. But I transplanted it to a larger pot in early Spring and it didn't like it. It died. I am very experienced in killing plants, it seems. It is a real talent. :P

I have two avocado pits with beautiful roots already. I hope these two make it. I'll keep on trying, regardless. I like to see things grow. It is beautiful to see Nature in action.

I have never tried to graft any plant, but getting a grafted tree would be a smart way to go. I know there are several nurseries around here, but I don't know if they would order something they do not have in stock. I will have to find out.

Thank you for the link. I am going to explore it.

Happy weekend!

Hello all,

Thank you again for all the advice. As promised, I am writing to update you on my mango tree. It started growing again! Hurray! That top inch or so that you see in the photo came up in the last 2 or 3 days. I know that I will have to pinch the top off in order to get a bushier tree. For what I read, I should wait until the second set of leaves develops completely and then pinch the third set. Is that the way you do it?

not a hard-and-fast rule.

i go a bit more by height, i dont think i would tip something under 2ft tall.

I see. And that is obviously working for you! Look at all the new shoots your tree have there! Beautiful! :)

I am certainly keeping that in mind. Thank you Greenman!

Hay all I just came to this site through Google with my same problem as veronica, but for me I have plenty of sunlight and above all its a perfect climate as summer to grow only I learnt that I might be over watering and stop water for some time and hope for the best.....

I lived in Germany and can not grow mango several times of trying.Here it is.

After growing several leaves it ends up like this.

Marieta,that looks like not enough sun and warmth for the seedling. Or,you let it go too dry for too long.

My 2 ft mango trees second set of leaves are well and strong for first three weeks . But its been 2 weeks its same. Third set of leaves are not coming out nor the mango plant is growing above 1 feet. Greenman62 & stanofh said about external nutrients at this stage. What type of nutrients and how much should I use? Please advise.

Hi all, my name is Shoamar and I’m currently growing my own mango tree called “Amari”. I’ve been having issues with him regarding his growth he‘s about 4 weeks old and his leaves are developing but he isn‘t growing. Is this normal? here are photos of him from the past three days.

Would be helpful if you described the conditions it's growing in.

Well it’s hot here 30-34°C these past few days, I put him in a damp zip lock bag at night. I give him 4 hrs of sun everyday since I’ve got nowhere to be thanks to COVID. Hopefully that helps

Those temperatures are good, but are you in your winter or summer, what are the night temperatures like? I wouldn't put it in a ziplock over night, Air humidity is higher over night anyway and drops during the day, it's better to have good air circulation. Sunlight is important, so long as it's not going into direct sun suddenly. But since you already have it 4 hours in direct sun that shouldn't be a problem.

Right now it’s summer so temperatures like those are considered high. At night it’s around 18-24°C but the room is around 22-26°C or rather “feels like”. I did this at first to keep it warm and create a “rainforest” like atmosphere but I’ll keep it out from now on. Thanks so much for the advice!

Mangos aren't from a rainforest climate. They're monsoonal, which means a hot, humid wet season (summer) with higher temperatures day and night, and a hot, low humidity, dry season (winter) with higher day temperatures and a lot lower at night. Too much humidity can cause fungal diseases so in general it's good to water the base of the plant and keep water off the leaves, especially in the colder months.

Looking at the photos the mango looks good. They grow and then stop a while. New growth comes with a flush of new leaves. So it's growing normally. When your winter comes there wouldn't be much growth but still take it out into the sun each day as much as you can. Temperatures below 15C you should have it inside/warmer. It will actually survive lower temperatures, but better if warmer.

A seed grown mango can take around 8 years to produce fruit. But then you can't guarantee the fruit will be much good.

Ok I see! I’m learning a lot. He’s my first mango that’s gotten this far in terms of growth so forgive me for the limited knowledge. It’s reassuring to hear he’s growing normally. It tends to be below 15°C here during the winter but whenever it’s above that I’ll definitely expose him to direct sunlight. By “much good” do you mean taste wise?

Grafted trees produce fruit that is practically the same as that from the parent plant so you know what you're getting. In a seed the genetics are mixed up (by pollination) so the new plant isn't the same as the parent plant. The fruit won't be the same and most people feel there's a big chance it'll have a worse taste. It's a long time to wait to find out what it's going to taste like.

It’ll be worth the wait

Or..buy a LED grow light and you can just put a timer on that and grow that mango indoors. Put some small potted flowering things next to it for color,or grow indoor veggies. Your indoor garden.Those LED's can put out a heck of a lot of light compared to old bulbs of the same wattage.

Check out Amazon,ebay...Google Shopping.

Sorry to jump in on this thread, mine looks pretty similar to Shoamar’s but the leaves are starting to go a little brown. It’s been kept in a conservatory in south facing sunlight (today’s a little colder and cloudier with the remains of a storm), it’s usually about 28°C in the day and drops down to about 20 at night. I’ve been adding a small amount of water every day and its in compost potting mix.

Has anyone had theirs do this? It’s not growing taller but does have 3 new leaves growing with the older ones browning... It’s about 2 months old

Thanks!

What can I do with my mango??I can't let it outside because the weather is cold so I have it inside my house near a sunny window but is stop gworning is 4 and half months. Is normal?? Also I afraid to water it because as I can see my pot is keeping a moisture that why I dont overwater it.. any idea what to do??

Will this continue to grow?