Mango trees are lovely shade trees that also happen to bear tasty fruit. However, there are instances when a smaller-than-store-bought mango tree is what you need. Mango trees are notoriously unwieldy due to their propensity for rapid expansion. To one’s relief, there are means by which one can prune a mango tree to maintain a modest size.
So, you may be wondering how to keep your mango tree small if you only have a limited amount of space for your garden or yard. To keep your mango tree from reaching a height of more than 10 feet, you can do a few easy things in your own yard.
Selecting A Small Mango Tree
Picking the proper variety of mango trees is the first step in keeping mango trees small in your garden.
Dwarf mango trees are perfect for urban balconies and patios because of their tiny stature (approximately 10 to 13 feet or 3 to 4 meters). They are small enough to be grown in a greenhouse, even in temperate climes, or covered with netting to deter birds. Sensation, Palmer, and Irwin are just a few examples of popular miniature mango cultivars.
Placing Mango Trees in Pots
Mango trees in containers don’t need a lot of room so you can put them just about anywhere. If you want to keep the soil from getting waterlogged, use a high-quality potting mix and a large container with drainage holes on the bottom. Put the pot where it will get at least six hours of sun a day.
Mango trees are tropical plants that require constant warmth; if you live in a region with harsh winters, you should bring your tree indoors or place it in a greenhouse. If you plan on planting your mango tree outdoors, protect it from the cold by wrapping the trunk with a burlap.
Mango Tree Pruning
The process of pruning a mango tree may be summed up in a common sense. Pruning is done primarily to strengthen a tree’s framework so it can be harvested without inflicting any harm to the plant. The ideal tree has multiple trunks, a wide canopy, and a broad, low base. The curve of your tree will suffer if you prune too much, too soon.
When a fruit reaches pea size, it is pruned because it is no longer edible in its current state. Without bee pollination, the fruitlet will likely lose its color and eventually die. Thinning will prevent this if the fruit has not yet reached full maturity. It’s important to remember that thinning isn’t always good for the tree. It would be best if you kept a close eye on the thinning rate to ensure you don’t waste any fruit because you overestimated the thinning rate.
When deciding how to prune a mango tree, it’s important to take into account a few different elements. If your mango tree, for instance, grows too large for the space you have allotted it, and it could potentially damage the trees in your neighborhood. A heading cut of roughly 3 inches (7.5 cm) is recommended if you decide to trim the branches. It is hoped that this cut will stimulate the tree’s branching. Leaving a scaffold branch in place may lead to a low-canopy tree, but it will give the tree greater height and improve fruit output in the long run.
You can start cutting back the tree’s inner branches once it’s around two to four feet tall.
The canopy will be able to open and let in more air and light as a result of your efforts. In addition, it will facilitate the treatment of the tree. Trimming the tree’s outer branches is unnecessary. Fruit quality will suffer as a result. It’s best to have an expert take a stab at pruning a mango tree if you’re unsure how to do it yourself.
What Time of Year Is Best for Mango Tree Pruning?
When the tree is about a meter tall, right after harvest is ideal. This typically occurs in the winter months of December and January. Pre-flowering pruning should be performed two to three years after planting, between two and four weeks before the May flowering period begins. Early-onset of fruiting allows for immediate harvesting. Mango trees can be pruned now for the best results.
Mango Tree Watering
Careful attention to how often and how often you water a mango tree is necessary if you want to keep it from getting too big. Excessive growth and the onset of illnesses like tip burn are both consequences of an inadequate water supply. If you overwater your tree, it will grow too fast, the salt will pile up, and the soil will become extremely unstable.
Overwatering causes the leaves to be yellow, the plant to scorch, and water blisters to form on the stems. Keep an eye out for these symptoms to determine if your tree is getting too much or too little water.
Mango trees require different amounts of water depending on the season, the quantity of rainfall, the temperature, and the soil’s ability to retain moisture. Fall is a time when watering needs to be reduced. However, in tropical climates, this may not be necessary.
But if your mango tree is still young, you should water it heavily; therefore, monitor soil moisture levels once a week. Soil should be moist in the top three inches; if it is dry, you may need to irrigate. Mulch the tree’s base if you reside in a location with dry, sandy soil.
Watering a mango tree is just as important as fertilizing it to ensure a healthy crop. Maintain consistent, moderate watering for your mango tree during the growing season, except when picking fruit. You can supplement its natural diet with a balanced fertilizer that is low in nitrogen during the flowering stage and high in potassium and phosphorus during the vegetative stage.
Maintaining a healthy mango tree requires regular watering throughout the year. When summer arrives, it’s time to increase your watering schedule. Fertilize it with liquid once every two to three weeks during the spring and summer. It’s important to prune your mango tree annually to eliminate dead or damaged limbs. Mulch can also be used to shield the fruit from the elements and any potential predators. Using mulch to shield a tree whose fruitiness you can’t predict is a good idea.
Therefore, To Sum Up
Two of the most crucial things you can do to maintain a little mango tree are regular pruning and fertilization. Pruning serves multiple purposes: it helps lower the tree’s size, removes branches that cast too much shade on the tree’s central growth zone, and improves conditions for fruiting.
Trees benefit from fertilizer, which promotes healthier development at the expense of size. You can prune it at any time of year, but be careful not to remove too much all at once. When pruning a mango tree, you should remove any branches growing horizontally or vertically rather than at an angle to the trunk. This will promote the tree’s growth upward instead of outward.
Pinch off young leaves as they appear after planting in a container. Indeed, specific methods aren’t as powerful as others, but they still have their uses.
