So....a mild winter.....What's happening in your yard?

myamberdog

Just wanted to wake up the forum a bit and see how everyone's tropicals are doing....I'm assuming you all have had a mild winter (certainly after December) like I did here in Palm Springs, so things should be really moving now for you guys.

I've got mangoes flowering like CRAZY, clearly at least 3 weeks ahead of time......here's a little video taken of my place about 3 weeks ago so everything has gone even crazier since then....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaHjbklEStE

Kellogg-Briand · Joined: 08 Mar 2013 Posts: 24 Location: Phoenix - Zone 10a

That's great that your mangoes are doing so well. I'm trying one last time with a Kent and a Haden variety. The Kent is outside and the Haden is inside planted in gritty mix. Currently, all my citrus plants are in full bloom and two avocado trees are blooming. My coffee plants have doubled in size since last year and my Ice Cream Bean (Inga Edulis), Tamarind, and Macadamia trees are all growing well. Unfortunately, my deciduous plants, like the pomegranates, never went fully dormant due to the mild winter. My plumeria was the only plant to drop leaves this winter. I started an indoor collection of ultra tropical plants (Cacao, Soursop, Mangosteen, Coconut Palm etc...) last year that are all doing well. It is about fifty plants strong now, and they are all in gritty mix which was a massive undertaking. Anyway, that is a general synopsis of my tropical plants. I hope you have a ton of mangoes to enjoy this year. Happy gardening.

myamberdog · Posted: Sun Mar 02, 2014 4:26 pm Post subject:

Kellogg - sounds excellent. Yes, indoor plants always seem to take
very special attention AND good luck. I'd love to grow at Coconut
Palm, tried once, but it died - but I had it outside....

Any pictures you'd like to share?

MDog

Kellogg-Briand · Joined: 08 Mar 2013 Posts: 24 Location: Phoenix - Zone 10a

My tropical plants are not as photogenic right now because they were weighed down by the rain; however, here are a few that were taken a few minutes ago. The mangoes are still very small so there is not much to show. If there is any plant you might be interested in, I'll add more pictures.

vjardin · Joined: 07 Jul 2013 Posts: 9 Location: Mesa, AZ

Kellogg,
What's in the gritty mix that you use for your tropicals?

Kellogg-Briand · Joined: 08 Mar 2013 Posts: 24 Location: Phoenix - Zone 10a

The gritty mix is one part pine bark, one park Turface MVP, and one part granite. For the pine bark, I use Repti-bark (available at Petco, Petsmart, or Amazon.com). I get the Turface MVP from Ewing Irrigation at Chandler and Roosevelt. For the granite, I buy aquarium pebbles (river rock) from Petco or Petsmart. Walmart may have the aquarium pebbles; however, I have never checked. The mix I use is a little larger than recommended for average particle size; however, the entire mix is within the recommended range (1/8 - 1/4 inch). Note that the aquarium pebbles are around the 1/4 inch size. I tried granite (or poultry) grit which is smaller; however, I could not find it for an economical price locally. Also, I fertilize weekly with Foliage Pro.

phoenixtropicals · Posted: Sun Mar 02, 2014 8:53 pm Post subject:

Yes, a wonderfully mild winter here in Mesa AZ as well. I'm looking forward to lots of guavas and mangoes this year. My Keller mango is starting to bloom. A word of advice on the mangoes. Try a seedling in addition to grafted trees because they are way more vigorous. My Keitt grafted mango seems to be permanent dwarf, whereas my Keller seedling grows like crazy and even though its a seedling it has delicious fruit.

myamberdog · Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2014 10:31 pm Post subject:

My only experience to date, with seedlings, is a seedling Nam Doc Mai whose fruits are very different looking than the "normal" looking Nam Doc Mai - see picture of last year's fruit. See how fat it is? Although it did taste pretty close to a typical NDM......I just worry that seedlings have quite a bit of diversity from their polyembryonic parents.....happened with a couple Manila Seedlings I have as well...sooooo different when it came to their fruits....

Kellogg - nice cozy setup! What will you do when they all REALLY start to grow?

MDog

MKIVRYAN · Joined: 07 Dec 2010 Posts: 154 Location: Phoenix/Scottsdale

After last years winter I set up 2 greenhouses that I ended up not needing this winter. Oh well, everyone is happy! Let the growing commence! Smile

phoenixtropicals · Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 7:48 pm Post subject:

Nice video myAmberDog! Thanks.