Mangoes Begin to Cut a Place in the Market

What is the world’s most popular fruit?

If you answer, “The mango,” you might well be right. The fruit, a relative rarity in the United States, is a daily staple in tropical areas where it is often eaten at breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Like many other tropical and subtropical fruits, the mango has taken well to the climate of North County. Although most groves are still in the experimental stages, a handful of growers already send home-grown mangoes to market.

Art Devine, owner of the Devine Ranch in Escondido, recently opened the gates of his unusual estate to the members of the California Rare Fruit Growers Inc.

Five thousand trees--avocados, citrus, cherimoyas and mangoes--cling to the 144 acres of boulder-strewn hillsides of the Devine Ranch. Hidden among the avocados, mature mango trees are heavy with fruit. Many were planted by the ranch’s previous owner more than 20 years ago.

At times, the green, smooth-skinned mangoes are difficult to differentiate from the equally dark green avocados. However, they are larger in general and more oval; inside they are yellow to orange in color, and when ripe the texture is similar to that of a peach.

Paul Thompson, a Bonsall resident and widely recognized expert in the field of grafting exotic trees, had a hand in developing the Devine Ranch grove. “I grafted over 23 different varieties of mangoes on the original trees,” he says. “Some of them grew, some of them not.”

The hillside ranch property is very rocky--so much so that water and rain absorption is limited. The rocks also end up stabilizing the temperature of the groves.

“At night, the rocks reflect the heat. We often find the temperature in our hills is 10 degrees warmer than the valley below,” Devine said. All to the benefit of tropical fruit trees.

Last year, 1,200 pounds of mangoes were harvested on the ranch. The grower has unusual plans for the future marketing of his sweet-fleshed mangoes. “Eventually, my plan is for individuals to be subscribers. Maybe I’ll involve young people to make weekly deliveries of a few pounds of mangoes at a time, like a paper route.”

Still, commercial growing of mangoes in North County has a long way to go to compete on the world market.

Several local sources credit Thompson with bringing mangoes to the attention of North County growers in 1963. Thompson’s legendary Edgehill Grove in Vista contained several mango trees when he bought it several decades ago.

“The previous owner had mango trees of his own, probably planted at the turn of the century. This was proof positive that mangoes would grow in the area,” said Thompson, a founder of the California Rare Fruit Growers Inc. “At that time, I was in the nursery business. I brought in every mango variety I could lay my hands on from the tropics and from everywhere else.”

He increased his mango tree collection to 70 varieties. “They estimate there are over 1,000 varieties of mangoes in India alone,” Thompson said. “I would think there are more mangoes eaten around the world than apples.”

Andrea Peterson of Peterson and Pio Quality Produce is one of the growers who credits Thompson with doing the basic research for the suitability of mangoes in Southern California.

“Had it not been for him, we’d still be sitting here trying to grow the wrong varieties,” she said. “Thanks to him, we know which ones are suited to the area.”

Thompson grafted all of Peterson’s 60 trees four years ago. They are just beginning to bear fruit, albeit not in commercial quantities. One of the reasons Peterson is so upbeat about mangoes is that mangoes put down a long tap root, and their water requirements are less than for avocados. There is one drawback, however: “We all like mangoes so much that we eat most of them before we can take them to market.”

One of the most viable commercial mango enterprises in the Southland lies in the Coachella Valley. For the past several years, Sun World International, the same company that brought consumers the Divine ripe Tomato and the seedless watermelon, has been involved in mango development. The effort is surrounded by as much secrecy as a spy operation.

Ten-foot-high chain-link fences limit the boundary to the unusual mango grove--the world’s only crop to be harvested between late September and early November. This critical timing gives Sun World International a corner on the world market for a few weeks. The company began its research in 1982 by attempting to single out the one variety that would produce fruit in the Coachella Valley at that particular time of the year.

The Keitt mango--characterized by an intensely sweet flavor and a skin that remains green after harvest--was the one that best took to the aridity of the desert.

The years of research weren’t without their trials and tribulations, however: Ripe fruit would disappear from trees, carried away by thieves who thought anything grown on public land was their due. Just one missing fruit meant weeks or months of setback in the research process. Thus the 10-foot chain-link fence and armed guards were installed to protect the fledgling mangoes.

The company expects its reward in 1994, when the world’s first fall mangoes begin appearing with regularity on American supermarket shelves.

The mango’s aroma signifies when it is ripe enough to eat. The ripe, fruity smell goes along with a skin lightly tinged with a red blush and a yield to gentle pressure. Mangoes don’t need to be refrigerated unless they are cut open. Peel away the skin much like a banana, remove the pit, slice and serve. In Mexico, a squeeze of fresh lime juice is added for extra flavor.

Mangoes are rich in vitamins A and C and potassium. They blend well with chicken, fruit salads or seafood. They can be pureed or blended into a smoothie. Mangoes from Mexico are at their peak from April through August.

Andrea Peterson, Peterson and Pio Quality produce. 439-6466.

Devine Ranch. Open for special events for small groups, seminars and retreats. By arrangement only. Nominal fee required. (619) 743-0234.

Sun World International, P.O. Box 1028, Coachella, CA 92236.