Mango fruits have a heady aroma when ripe.
The mango is a very important fruit crop in various tropical areas of the world. The seedlings grow readily from ripe fruit, while cuttings normally only have a 40 percent success rate. Grocery store mangoes are not specially treated and as long as you allow the fruits to ripen, the seeds have a good chance of sprouting. While you can sprout a mango seed in the warmth of your kitchen, unless you live in a tropical area, the life of the sprouted mango might be limited.
Fresh Seed
Start with a fresh seed. If you purchased a mango on the green side, wait for it to ripen before you use it. Save the seed after you scrub all the fleshy fruit matter off of its surface, but don't let it get dry. Unlike non-tropically based plant seeds, mango seeds lose their viability quickly as they dry out. You will want to be ready to plant the seed on the same day you open the mango.
Preparation
The seed benefits from a little preparation to help the new seedling emerge. Growers often score the convex side of the husk with a sharp knife to slide the kernel out. They then inspect the seed for any signs of seed weevil larva and rinse it in a fungicide solution. The mango seed kernel sprouts after just a couple of weeks of being planted curved side-down, partially under some moist soil. Of course, the germination occurs only under temperatures similar to the tropics, or those about 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
Type
Mango seeds are either monoembryonic or polyembryonic. This simply means that the fruit is the product of the sexual combination of two plants and therefore a hybrid, or it is a clone of the parent plant and will be just like it. Yellow Indian mangoes are mostly monoembryonic while mangoes from Southeast Asia are mostly polyembryonic; polyembryonic plants are hardier that monoembryonic plants and develop a deep orange to red blush when ripe. Polyembryonic seeds will produce more than one sprout per seed; you will need to separate the different sprouts carefully.
Climate
Climate is the greatest obstacle to growing a mango outside of the tropics. Not only does a mango need the heat and associated moisture of up to 100 inches of rain per year, but it also needs a long dry period to produce fruit. Once outdoor temperatures drop down to freezing, most mangoes will succumb and die shortly afterwards. If you are successful in sprouting a mango seed and have a greenhouse to grow it in, be prepared for extensive care to keep it alive. Most greenhouse mango plants will survive only if they are already established.
Tags: mango seed, when ripe
