Common Name: Mango

General Information

Mangifera indica is a large, evergreen tree with a dark green, umbrella-shaped, spreading crown; it can grow from 10 - 45 metres tall[]. The long bole can be 60 - 120cm in diameter[]. The tree has a deep, tap-root system[].
The mango is one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world, having been grown in India 4,000 years ago[]. From there its cultivation has spread and it is now grown extensively around the world in tropical regions, and the frost-free subtropics, for its edible fruit[].

Known Hazards

In sensitive individuals, ingestion of the fruit or skin contact with the juice may cause a rash like that of poison ivy[].

Botanical References

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Range

E. Asia - Indian subcontinent, Myanmar.

Habitat

A mid-canopy tree in humid tropical forests, usually growing in the more open, secondary formations, at elevations usually below 500 metres, but occasionally ascending to 1,700 metres[, ].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	30.00 m
Growth Rate	Medium
Pollinators	Bees, Bats, Flies, Ants
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

The optimal climate for growing mango ranges from the monsoon tropics to the frost-free subtropics, with a marked dry, or cool, season of at least three months to promote flowering[, ]. It succeeds at any elevation up to about 1,200 metres, but for commercial purposes 600 metres is the maximum elevation[, ]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 24 - 30°c, but can tolerate 8 - 48°c[]. When dormant, the plant can survive short-lived temperatures down to about -1°c, but young growth can be severely damaged at 0°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 600 - 1,500mm, but tolerates 300 - 2,600mm[]. The dry season of equatorial regions is too unreliable for commercial cultivation[]. Whilst trees generally grow best in moderately dry climates, some cultivars can thrive and produce even under rainforest conditions[].
Prefers a sunny position[]. Plants are not too fussy over soil, not needing very fertile conditions[]. However, they crop better in a rich, well-drained soil[], whilst very poor soil, or shallow land, is unsuitable[]. A pH in the range 6 - 7 is ideal[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 7.5, tolerating 4.3 - 8.5[]. Grows best in areas sheltered from strong, drying winds[]. Established plants are drought tolerant, and can also withstand occasional inundation of the soil[].
Trees produce a taproot up to 5 metres deep[].
Plants take 5 - 8 years from seed before they begin to fruit[]. Grafted plants commence bearing in 3 - 5 years[].
Individual trees often flower irregularly and may only produce one good crop every 3 - 4 year; some trees do not flower for periods of 10 - 20 years, sometimes even longer[, ].
Yields increase up to the 20th year, decline after the 40th year and the tree may live for 100 years or more[].
Flowering starts at the beginning of the rainy season and fruits ripen at the end of the rainy season[].
Most varieties are self-fertile, but produce larger crops when cross-pollinated[].
Yields of about 500 fruits per tree are average in 'on' years[].
A plantation of full-grown trees may produce 10 - 30 tonnes per hectare of fruit each year. Average yields are, however, often quite low with 6 tonnes being achieved in the Philippines, 3.5 tonnes in Peninsular Malaysia and 2.3 tonnes in Thailand[].
A very variable plant, there are many named varieties[, ].
Some forms of the mango produce polyembryonic seeds (more than one seedling is produced from each seed) - these forms produce a tree genetically identical to the parent[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked. One of the most popular fruits in the world, it is commonly eaten raw, is juiced and can also be prepared in a variety of ways such as in chutneys, jams, pickles etc[, ]. The dried, unripe fruit is ground into a powder and used as a flavouring in Indian cuisine[]. They are an ingredient of the spice mixture chat masala[]. A variable fruit, ranging in colour from green through orange and yellow to red, it can be anything from 50g to 1.5kg in weight[]. The fruit is usually 8 - 12cm long, but can be up to 30cm[]. The fruit contains about 15% sugars, 0.5% protein and significant amounts of vitamins A, B and C[].

The seeds are used in the preparation of dodol, or pudding[]. A starch and an edible fat can be obtained from them[]. The kernels are important as a famine food in India, but the astringency has to be removed by boiling, roasting and soaking them for a long time[].

Flowers[].

Young leaves[]. Cooked as a vegetable[].

Medicinal

The leaves are astringent and odontalgic[]. An infusion is drunk to reduce blood pressure and as a treatment for conditions such as angina, asthma, coughs and diabetes[, , ].
Externally, the leaves are used in a convalescent bath[]. A mouthwash made from the leaves is effective in hardening the gums and helping to treat dental problems[, , ]. The leaves are used to treat skin irritations[, ].
The charred and pulverized leaves are used to make a plaster for removing warts and also act as a styptic[].

The seed is astringent, antidiarrhoeal; anthelmintic when roasted[]. It is used to treat stubborn colds and coughs, obstinate diarrhoea and bleeding piles[]. The pulverised seed is made into a sweetened tea and drunk, or taken as powders, for treating dysentery[]. The seeds are ground up and used to treat scorpion stings[].

The bark is astringent, homeostatic and antirheumatic[]. Used in the treatment of haemorrhage, diarrhoea and throat problems[, ].
When incised, the bark yields an oleoresin which is stimulant, sudorific and antisyphilitic[].

The stem is astringent. It is used to treat diarrhoea and to remedy stomach-ache[].

The roots are diuretic[].

The flowers are aphrodisiac[].


The fruit is antiscorbutic and antidysenteric[].

Other Uses

The bark and the leaves are the source of a yellowish-brown dye used for silk[, ].

The flowers are used to repel mosquitoes[].

The slender branches are used as toothbrushes to treat toothache[].

Heartwood is pale yellowish-brown to reddish-brown, darkening on exposure, not clearly demarcated from the pale yellowish-brown sapwood. Grain somewhat wavy, texture moderately coarse; freshly cut wood is scentless. The wood is used for many purposes, including indoor construction, meat-chopping blocks, furniture, carpentry, flooring, boxes, crates and boat building (canoes and dugouts)[].
The wood is a source of 'machang' timber[]. We do not have a specific description for the wood of this speices, but a general description of machang timber is as follows:-
The heartwood is light brown or light grey brown, occasionally with chocolate or black streaky coreword; it is not clearly differentiated from the wide band of sapwood. The texture is moderately coarse to coarse and even; the grain interlocked and wavy. The wood is moderately heavy to heavy; moderately hard; not durable under exposed conditions, being susceptible to fungi, dry wood borers and termites. The wood seasons somewhat rapidly with only a slight risk of checking or distortion; once dry it is moderately stable in service. It can be worked with ordinary tools, there is a slight difficulty resawing when green, but is easy when dry; planing is easy but the surface produced is moderately smooth with grain pick-up on the radial side; nailing and screwing is excellent; gluing is correct. The wood is suitable for light construction, turnery, flooring, interior panelling, boxes, crates, pallets and plywood manufacture[]. Corewood can be used for decorative veneer production[, ].
With a calorific value of 4200 kcal/kg, the wood makes excellent charcoal and firewood[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as ripe[]. Wash the seed, dry in shade and sow about 5cm deep with the convex side up[]. Germination takes about 18 days if the seed is peeled first, or 30 days if it is not[]. Give the seedlings some shade as they grow[]. Plants that are raised in nursery beds can be transplanted without much difficulty before the taproot has developed to any great extent[]. However, seedlings raised in baskets or containers are preferable[].
Grafting onto a polyembryonic stock[].

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