
- Botanical Name: Mangifera Indica
- Family: Anacardiaceae
- Origin: Indo-Burma region
- Mango seed kernels contain 9.5% protein.
- Intercropping can be done up to 5-6 years in a mango orchard
- Viability of stone 30 days
- The ideal temperature for mango cultivation 24-27°C
- Mango thrives well in tropical and sub-tropical climates.
- It can be grown from sea level to an altitude of about 1400 meters.
- Mango grows in all soils with good depth and drainage except black cotton soils.
- The optimum PH is 5.5 to 7.0.
- It cannot tolerate saline conditions.
- North India mangoes Langra and Dashehari are alternate bearers.
- Variety
- Off-Season mango (Fruit maturity: January to February): Niranjan
- Canning Variety: Alphonso
- Mutant variety: Rosica
Propagation
- Mango is commercially propagated by
- Veneer grafting
- Approach grafting
- Softwood grafting
- June to Sept/Oct is best for grafting.
- Polyembryonic seedlings are best in providing uniform rootstocks.
- Totapuri red small and Olour are dwarfing rootstocks.
- Mango does not show a significant variation on different rootstocks.
Management of fertilizers
- FYM: 10kg
- Bone meal: 2.5 kg
- Bearing trees may be given
- N: 750 gm/year/tree.
- P2O5: 200gm/year/tree.
- K2O: 700 gm/year/tree.
- Manures should be applied in a small trench dug from about 1.5-2m from the trunk up to the drip line.
- Bearing trees should be irrigated regularly at 10-15 days intervals from fruitset to maturity.
- The plant should be given rest by stopping irrigations at least 2-3 months before flowering for maximum fruit bud development.
- Pits of 90 x 90 x 90 cm are dug at a spacing of 8-10 M. Pits may be filled with FYM.
Planting
- Planting is done during the rainy season graft union should be kept at least 6 inches above the soil at planting. Staking should be done and watered soon after planting.
- Weeds can be controlled by the application of 4 kg/ha Atrazine/oxyflurofen (Goal) @ 800ml/ha as pre-emergence and application of 2 liters/ha Gramaxone (Paraquat)/as post-emergence.
- Mango needs no regular pruning except removing dead and diseased branches.
- Flower bud formation takes place 2-3 months prior to flowering.
- Flowering occurs from Nov-Dec to Feb-Mar depending upon locality and variety and continues for about 2-3 weeks.
- Flowers are polygamous-sex ratio can be improved by the application of NAA 200ppm at flower bud initiation stage.
- Fruit drop
- 1. Soon after flower opening
- 2. After pollination and fertilization
- 3. At grain stage of the fruit.
- Drop of grownup fruits is a major problem.
Physiological Disorder
- Mango malformation
- Two types of malformation
- Vegetative malformation
- Vegetative malformation resembles a “bunchy top” which may dry and die in due course.
- Floral malformation
- Floral malformation results in enlargement of flowers with new flowers being produced even after fruit set but with less % of hermaphrodite flowers.
- Malformation is serious in North than in South.
- It may result in loss of about 50-60% of the total crop.
- Krishnabhog, Collecter, Langra, Neelum are tolerant (seedling trees are found to be tolerant)
- Control measures
- Application of plant growth regulators and phenolic compounds (NAA,Ethrel,GA, Paclobutrozol, etc.)
- Deblossoming: at bud brust stage-ethrel
- Biennial bearing in mango
- Mango producing good crop one year and no crop or fewer crops in the next year is known as biennial bearing or alternate bearing.
- This is genetic and inherent in mango varieties.
- Blacktip
- A physiological disorder causing distal end of fruit to become black hard
- Polluted atmosphere with smoke, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, acetylene causes this disorder
- Spraying Borax 0.6 percent from fruit set at 10-15 days intervals controls this (Punjab, UP, Bihar, W,B)
- Clustering (Jhumka)
- Clustering of fruits without growth at the tip of the panicale caused by adverse weather (low temperature) during Feb-March.
- Most of the fruits drop+shrivel ed and aborted embryos.
- Spongy tissue
- Fruit appears normal extremely but contains yellowish, sour spongy tissue inside high temperature, convertive heat and exposing to sunlight after harvest are supposed to be the causes.
- Soft Nose
- A physiological disorder caused by Ca deficiency causing a breakdown of flesh towards the apex of the fruit before ripening.