Dwarf mango
Mangifera indica
Also known asMango · Condo mango · Pickering · Cogshall · Carrie · Aam
Environment
The bounded range this crop tolerates.
Climate and zones
- USDA zones
- 10–13 (winter low around -1°C)
- Frost
- frost sensitive (dies at first frost)
- Season
- year-round tropical
Growing systems
Root mass: very heavy. Thin-channel systems can't hold this crop.
Growing media
| Medium | pH effect | Retention | Bacterial surface |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soil-based mix (Potting soil) | varies | high | high |
| Coco coir (Coconut coir) | slightly acidic | high | moderate |
Nutrient demand by stage
NPK ratios are relative weights. EC targets shift through the plant's life.
| Stage | N | P | K | EC (mS/cm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| seedling | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0.8 |
| vegetative | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1.5 |
| flowering | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1.8 |
| fruiting | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1.7 |
Companion-growing notes
- Heavy uptake of nitrogen, potassium. Co-grown crops with the same demand will end up deficient even at "correct" EC.
- High transpiration. Regular reservoir top-ups needed during fruiting.
Aquaponics suitability
Not recommended
Fish waste alone doesn't supply enough of what this crop demands. Grows in hybrid systems with supplemental dosing, but expect active management.
Care notes
A challenging but rewarding container fruit for climate-controlled greenhouses. Use a large container (around 60 L) with well-drained media. Hold EC around 1.2-2.0 mS/cm and pH 5.5-7.0. Grow at 20–35°C, but note flowering needs a brief cool, dry spell, about 15–20°C for four to six weeks, mimicking the tropical dry season. Light demand is very high, 25-36 mol/m2/day, more than most supplemental lighting provides, so a bright south-facing greenhouse spot matters. Grafted stock fruits at two to four years, and most varieties are self-fertile, so a single tree can crop; flowers come on panicles, each setting one to five fruits from hundreds of tiny flowers. Anthracnose is the main disease in humid air, managed with fungicide during flowering and good airflow. Fruit ripens three to five months after flowering. For temperate growers this is a luxury hobby crop, not an orchard-yield producer, but a few homegrown mangoes are a real reward.
Notable varieties
| Cultivar | Type | Days | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pickering | open pollinated | 1460 | Florida dwarf cultivar, the most container-friendly mango at 2-2.5 m mature. Sweet coconut-noted flesh, no fiber. Heavy reliable producer once established. The variety to start with for home growing. Available widely from Florida tropical-fruit nurseries. |
| Cogshall | open pollinated | 1460 | Florida dwarf cultivar, 2.5-3 m mature. Sweet rich flesh, very low fiber, excellent eating quality. Slower-growing than Pickering, useful for serious container culture. Resistant to anthracnose, important in humid Florida conditions. |
| Carrie | open pollinated | 1460 | 1940 Florida selection. Sweet aromatic flesh, semi-fibrous. Compact tree 3-4 m. Susceptible to anthracnose so needs dry climate or copper spray. Popular in California where humidity is lower. Excellent eating quality. |
| Mallika | open pollinated | 1460 | Indian dwarf hybrid (Neelum × Dasheri), 3-4 m mature. Sweet honeyed flesh with the classic Indian-mango aromatic. The Indian-cuisine mango. Heavy producer, ripens July-August. Sometimes available in US tropical-fruit catalogs. |
| Nam Doc Mai | open pollinated | 1460 | Thai cultivar, dwarf forms reach 2.5-3 m. Long thin yellow fruit, very sweet, low fiber, fragrant. The Thai-cuisine mango, eaten both green (with salt and chili) and ripe. Popular across Southeast Asia, increasingly available in US. |