Mango is a fruit which is indigenous to the Indian subcontinent, belonging to the genus Mangifera, consisting of numerous species of tropical fruiting trees in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae. While other Mangifera species (e.g. horse mango, M. foetida) are also grown on a more localized basis, Mangifera indica – the common mango or Indian mango – is the only mango tree commonly cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions, and its fruit is distributed essentially world-wide. Mango is a popular garden fruit tree and propagated commercially in small orchards in Malaysia. In most of Malay rural or sub rural areas, mango is planted as a garden fruit trees in front or beside the houses.
In several cultures, its fruit and leaves are ritually used as floral decorations at weddings, public celebrations and religious ceremonies.
Mango trees (Mangifera indica L.) grow up to 35–40 m (115–130 ft) tall, with a crown radius of 10 m (33 ft). The mango tree is long-lived, as some specimens still fruit after 300 years. In deep soil, the taproot descends to a depth of 6 m (20 ft) with profuse, wide-spreading feeder roots; the tree also sends down many anchor roots, which penetrate several feet of soil. The stem of mango tree is hard and in Malaysia it is one of the sources of timber after properly treated.
The leaves are evergreen, alternate, simple, 15–35 cm (5.9–14 in) long and 6–16 cm (2.4–6.3 in) broad; when the leaves are young they are orange-pink, rapidly changing to a dark glossy red, then dark green as they mature. The flowers are produced in terminal panicles 10–40 cm (3.9–16 in) long; each flower is small and white with five petals 5–10 mm (0.20–0.39 in) long, with a mild sweet odor suggestive of lily of the valley. The fruit takes three to six months to ripen.
| mango and the green leaves |
The ripe fruit varies in size and color. Cultivars are variously yellow, orange, red or green, and carry a single flat, oblong pit that can be fibrous or hairy on the surface, and which does not separate easily from the pulp. Ripe, unpeeled fruit gives off a distinctive resinous, sweet smell.
Inside the pit 1–2 mm (0.039–0.079 in) thick is a thin lining covering a single seed, 4–7 mm (0.16–0.28 in) long. The seed contains the plant embryo.
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| a mango and its cross section exposing the seed |
Mangoes have been cultivated in the Indian subcontinent for thousands of years and reached East Asia between the 5th and 4th centuries BC. By the 10th century AD, cultivation had begun in East Africa. The 14th century Moroccan traveler, Ibn Battuta, reported it at Mogadishu. Cultivation came later to Brazil, the West Indies and Mexico, where an appropriate climate allows its growth. Mango is now cultivated in most frost-free tropical and warmer subtropical climates; nearly half of the world's mangoes are cultivated in India alone.
Mango is also being grown in Andalusia, Spain (mainly in Málaga province), which is one of the few places in mainland Europe that allows growth of tropical plants and fruit trees. Many of the 1,000 + mango cultivars are easily cultivated using grafted saplings, ranging from the "turpentine mango" (named for its strong taste of turpentine, which according to the Oxford Companion to Food some varieties actually contain) to the huevos de toro ("eggs of the bull", a euphemism for "bull's testicles", referring to the shape and size). Other cultivators include North, South and Central America, the Caribbean, south, west and central Africa, Australia, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Southeast Asia.
Though India is the largest producer of mangoes, it accounts for less than one percent of the international mango trade, consuming most of its own output. Dwarf or semi-dwarf varieties serve as ornamental plants and can be grown in containers. A wide variety of diseases can afflict mangoes; see List of mango diseases.
| mango called as emas hitam or black gold |
| this type of mango is eaten together with glutinous rice |
Mangoes are used in preserves like moramba, amchur (dried and powdered unripe mango) and pickles, including a spicy mustard-oil pickle. Ripe mangoes are often cut into thin layers, desiccated, folded, and then cut. These bars are similar to dried guava fruit bars available in some countries. The fruit is also added to cereal products like muesli and oat granola.
Unripe mango may be eaten with salt, fish sauce or with dash combination of ketchup, chilly sauce, vinegar and salt. Dried strips of sweet, ripe mango (sometimes combined with seedless tamarind to form mangorind) are also popular. Mangoes may be used to make juices, mango nectar, and as a flavoring and major ingredient in ice cream and sorbetes. Young mangoes are sour and not suitable to be eaten freshly. In Malaysia and Thailand young preserved mangoes are a very popular.
| young or unripe mango |
| unripe mangoes |
| preserved young mangoes with sweet and sour taste |
Mango is used to make juices, smoothies, ice cream, fruit bars, raspados, aguas frescas, pies and sweet chili sauce, or mixed with chamoy, a sweet and spicy chili paste. It is popular on a stick dipped in hot chili powder and salt or also as a main ingredient in fresh fruit combinations. In Central America, mango is either eaten green mixed with salt, vinegar, black pepper and hot sauce, or ripe in various forms. Toasted and ground pumpkin seed (called pepita) with lime and salt are the norm when eating green mangoes. Some people also add soy sauce or chili sauce.
Pieces of mango can be mashed and used as a topping on ice cream or blended with milk and ice as milkshakes. Sweet glutinous rice is flavored with coconut, then served with sliced mango as a dessert. In other parts of Southeast Asia, mangoes are pickled with fish sauce and rice vinegar. Green mangoes can be used in mango salad with fish sauce and dried shrimp. Mango with condensed milk may be used as a topping for shaved ice.
| a delicious mango juice drink |
Many hundreds of named mango cultivators exist. In mango orchards, several cultivators are often crossed to improve pollination. Many desired cultivators are monoembryonic and must be propagated by grafting or they do not breed true. A common ono-embryonic cultivator is Alphonso, an important export product. Cultivators that excel in one climate may fail elsewhere. For example, Indian cultivators such as Julie, a prolific cultivator in Jamaica, require annual fungicide treatment to escape a lethal fungal disease known as anthracnose in Florida. Asian mangoes are resistant to anthracnose.
The current world market is dominated by the cultivar Tommy Atkins, a seedling of Haden that first fruited in 1940 in southern Florida, US. It was initially rejected commercially by Florida researchers. For example, 80% of mangoes in UK supermarkets are Tommy Atkins. Despite its fibrous flesh and fair taste, growers worldwide have embraced the cultivar for its exceptional productivity and disease resistance, shelf-life, transportability and size and appealing color. Tommy Atkins is predominant in the US as well, although other cultivars, such Kent, Keitt, the Haitian-grown Madame Francis and the Mexican grown Champagne are widely available.
In urban areas of southern Florida, small gardens have fueled the desire for dwarf mango trees. The Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden has promoted "condo mangoes," such as Fairchild, which produces at a height below 2–2.5 m (6.6–8.2 ft). Condo mango is a term that became popular some years ago in Florida, US, and the word "condo" is derived from the word condominium because a condo mango tree, being dwarfed and small in size, was suitable for container growing in condominiums.
Essentially, "condo" means a smaller variety of tree that is dwarf or semidwarf in nature, e.g. Ice Cream, or grafted to achieve a dwarfing characteristic, that can be maintained to a certain size with careful foliage pruning and root pruning if necessary. While condo has been generally associated with mango trees, it can be applied to any fruit tree that is a natural dwarf or has been dwarfed similar to the bonsai technique. As such, the words "condo" and "dwarf" are interchangeable.
There is an Australian variety of mango known as R2E2, a name based on the original plant's orchard row location. This variety produces large (up to 1 kilograms (2 lb)) yellow-red fruit that attracts a premium price in the Australian market.
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