How should I remove these mango flowers?

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

Howdy everybody,

I've got an African mango variety, not sure what it is, usually they can't survive our conditions, but trying my best to accommodate it well.

This is a grafted one, and had transplanted it a month ago, and now it's blooming as you can see in the picture, and I know I have to remove the flowers to promote branching as well as giving it time to develop better roots.

The question is how/where should I cut it? The grafted Scion itself is barely 30cm, and almost lost all the leaves after they got burned and found out I was watering it too often, now only watering each 5 days or so.

If I just cut the elongated mini stems that hold the flowers and leave the main thing or whatever it is called that sprouted from the flowers' bud, will it launch new shoots that will sport leaves? Or that stem/branch only supports flowers? I have killed all my mangoes and this is the last one so I'm worried about it.

Thanks for your insight.

Featured Answer

tropicbreezent

8 years ago

Is that all of the plant, or just one branch? Put simply, generally if you cut off flower buds too early the hormones that start the flowering are still there. The plant usually forms more flower buds. Let the flowers finish and cut them off before any fruit starts to develop, then there's less likelihood of getting more flowers.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (12)

GreeningTheDesert
Original Author
8 years ago
Wow, something new and important to know. Thanks.

Yes, that's pretty much everything plus 70cm of a rootstock.

It was grafted in Niger, not the best place for scientific proven grafting techniques and tools.
Related Professionals
Hilton Head Island Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Des Moines Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Worcester Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Saint Cloud Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Brooklyn Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Pine Bluff Landscape Contractors · Raleigh Landscape Contractors · Waterbury Landscape Contractors · Kearney Landscape Contractors · Platteville Landscape Contractors · Wenatchee Landscape Contractors · Natchitoches Architects & Building Designers · Detroit Architects & Building Designers · Lebanon Architects & Building Designers · Clearlake Architects & Building Designers
tropicbreezent
8 years ago
It may surprise you how much expertise can be found in the developing world, although admittedly not always guaranteed. But your main issue could be the rootstock they use is more suited to their environment and maybe not to yours. Root rot and fungal issues might not be much of a concern there.
GreeningTheDesert
Original Author
8 years ago

@tropicbreezent, do you reckon now I can break it off without getting flowering buds again?

Not all the flowers have bloomed, but I'm not sure the fruits won't start forming before all of them have opened.
tropicbreezent
8 years ago
You'll get 'pinhead' fruit forming while new buds are still opening, it can go on for quite a while. The best chance of not getting a new inflorescence is to wait until that first fruit starts to form. However, it's not a critical dividing line, one side or the other. It's more an approximation.
stanofh 10a Hayward,Ca S.F. bay area
8 years ago
I think,let it get to small green dots..then cut the panicle off. I've tried myself cutting them off early..and what I got was a callus on the tip of a branch..and it took most of that summer to sprout new growth. I also had one branch get the bud tip rubbed off hitting the eaves of a roof in winds..and that branch sent out three great vertical shoots that added like 1' of growth right there.

Mother Nature did a better job then me at Mango pruning.
GreeningTheDesert
Original Author
8 years ago
No hurry here, so gonna wait few more days.

Getting a mango to survive here sounds too good to be true, but I'm giving it my best! Darn! I so much Love Mangoes...
tropicbreezent
8 years ago
Mango production is a major industry here so I'm surrounded by a lot of Mango trees. The biggest producers here are large companies that have anywhere from 100,000 to 200,000 trees. I only have just over 500 trees, so not even a 'blip' on the radar, LOL.
GreeningTheDesert
Original Author
8 years ago
Sounds like you've got your heaven there :)

Enjoy...
lucky_cloud
8 years ago
My young grafted mango produced a panicle recently. I just left it alone - it thought about making one fruit but when it got to be the size of a small pebble, the whole inflorescence abscised itself. Now it is flushing a new set of leaves.
GreeningTheDesert
Original Author
8 years ago
Wait a minute Lucky Cloud. Do you mean the same panicle that set flowers have sent new leaves now?

This is getting super interesting, can you share a pic plz?
lucky_cloud
8 years ago
No, the panicle fell off, and the tree is now growing new leaves. Sorry for being unclear.