dwarf Mango pruning (forum)

AlexWarren starts with ...
Hi,

I am not sure if i need to trim my dwarf mango tree or not. After the first year i had to cut of the top of it as it looked to have died after fruiting but struggling to ripen. Now it is going really well again with masses amount of fruit but again not sure if it can handle the weight.
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Time: 12th September 2013 11:24am

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About the Author AlexWarren
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vlct says...
Over all it looks pretty flimsy. Here's a photo of my seedling to see how vigorously I've pruned it. Topped at 30 cm to create a good trunk. Than pruned the 4 new limbs at 1ft. Now I will be doing again to give it a nice structure. Although if u where to do this it would set the plant back and maybe put it under some stress. Also wait until it has finished fruiting if your goin to make any drastic decisions. Good luck

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Time: 14th September 2013 6:12am

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About the Author vlct
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vlct says...
How high is the trunk the size of the fence 1.6 m ?

Time: 14th September 2013 6:15am

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About the Author vlct
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amanda says...
That's a beautiful healthy looking mangoe u have grown there vict..! Is it in a pot?

What do you feed yours? And do you water with tap water or rain/bore?

I like the pruning job too...I have two new plants that need shaping this summer also...

Time: 14th September 2013 10:10am

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About the Author amanda19
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vlct says...
Thanks it's in a 50ltr pot w some good potting mix and pig manure. It was getting tap but now rain only. When it gets a new flush I give it some seasol, thats about it. Its on the north side of the house now so I expect some big growth this spring/autum.

Time: 14th September 2013 11:35am

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AlexWarren says...
Should i trim the fruit of it?

the fence height is 1.8 meters.
Is is probably about 7cm wide at the bottom.

Time: 23rd September 2013 4:19pm

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About the Author AlexWarren
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VF says...
More fruit is initially set than the tree will ever grow to full size, so I'd wait a while and see what actually starts growing properly. If you feel the branch can't support the fruit, you can either prop the branch up or thin the fruit. Then after harvest, give the tree a prune if needed to shape.

Time: 26th September 2013 9:57pm

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Tommoz says...
Is it normal that spikes have leaves on them too? That's what mine has at the moment.

Where should the cut be made when pruning spikes? Flush with the stem?

Time: 20th December 2013 9:28pm

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Brain says...
It is possible there are leaves with the flower spikes. i recall seeing a picture here where another member has half a spike with leaves and half with flowers split vertically.

I think most ppl would prune at the base of the spike. Though if you really want a strong tree, I'd prune a bit further down, to where the nodes are spaced out and not compressed.

Time: 23rd December 2013 11:03am

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About the Author Brain
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Tommoz says...
Thanks Brain. I missed your response somehow and today got busted by the boss for cutting off the spikes completely. Boss thought they could of grown into great laterals if pruned in right place.

Time: 27th December 2013 1:09am

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Original Post was last edited: 27th December 2013 1:09am

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Brain says...
if there is one thing I learnt in life, that is the 'boss' is always right, and even when they are wrong, they are still right!

what type of mango do you have exactly Tommoz?

Time: 30th December 2013 11:29am

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About the Author Brain
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Tommoz says...
Dwarf Kwan, sometimes spelled Kuan, which is meant to be like a Nam Doc Mai only bigger fruit.

Time: 30th December 2013 12:17pm

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Alan in Perth says...
I need some advice on pruning my dwarf mango please. It's a Red Alison Kensington Pride grafted dwarf mango. I planted it in November 2012, in my north-facing garden in Perth. I protected it with shade cloth for the first two summers. It's grown tall, spindly and top-heavy - the top would collapse altogether if it weren't held up (as you can see in the pictures) with star pickets and stockings. "Google prune" tells me if I severely prune it, it will develop branches at a lower level, and so grow 'out' rather than 'up', but I'd like some reassurance before I take the secateurs to it, so that I don't (a) kill it; (b) provoke it to reject the graft; or (c) simply fail to achieve the right result. The tree has never been pruned; all I've done so far (since the photos were taken) is to pick off the flowering buds since the tree is obviously incapable of carrying any fruit at present. The main trunk is 1.25 metres tall from ground level up to the point where it branches into two. Can any forum members give me some advice please: where to prune (i.e. how high to cut) and when to prune (what time of year). Thanks!
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Time: 9th July 2015 11:20pm

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Original Post was last edited: 9th July 2015 11:18pm
About the Author Alan in Perth
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Waterfall says...
If it were mine I would wait until the start of spring then cut off just above the graft. Its hard to see from the photos but I assume the graft is the thick part just below the kink in the main trunk? if so I would cut just above that kink, 20cm above the graft is more than enough.

I have done this with 3 of my own mango trees, you can see some photos, 2 of them are grafted onto dwarf rootstock and the other is a KP seedling which I cut very low.

There is a risk that after cutting you will get flowers again instead of branches, if this happens then you can just wait until the fruit are pea size then remove.

I would also remove the star pickets which lets it move in the wind and develop strong roots.

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Time: 10th July 2015 10:09am

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About the Author Waterfall
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Brain says...
The Alison Red KP is quite dwarf and like yours, it really doesn't like branching out, despite my tip prune.

Though, the rootstock and the stem does thicken slightly over time.

you can try tip pruning it - i.e. pinch the buds right at the end of the branch and the hope is that the plant then will shun upward growth and try to grow sideways a bit. But just keep in mind it's a very compact plant.

Not sure when is the best time but I tend to do it either early spring - when the buds start to swell or after fruit harvest.

The Mackay KP is on the other hand much more vigorous and responds very well to tip pruning.

And to Waterfall, I have similar set up to you with the same pots! though i found that you might have to upsize when the tree is starting to grow bigger. Mine seem to be comfortable with around 40 cm square pots. The King Thai needs bigger pot still.



Time: 10th July 2015 5:46pm

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About the Author Brain
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Waterfall says...
My mangoes are all in the ground now Brain, the photo of the NDM in a pot is an old one taken just after lopping the top off.

Time: 10th July 2015 8:47pm

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About the Author Waterfall
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Alan in Perth says...
Hi folks, I just thought I'd post a picture of my dwarf Mango after its drastic pruning last winter. Unlike previous years, it didn't flower at all; it put all its energy into branching out again - but the result is a much more stable tree. I'm hoping for some fruit this summer!
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Time: 4th June 2016 8:33pm

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