CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Origin: Mango (Mangifera indica) (Opioro) is a native to Southern Asia especially Burma and Eastern India. It is a member of cashew family (Anacardiacee) on of the most important and widely cultivataed fruits of the tropic world. Mango is considered as a king in Indian delicacy. The roots and bark of mango Mangifera indica (Anacardiceae) are astringent , acrid, anti-inflamatory and constipating. The leaves and flowers are refrigerant, styptic vulnerable and constipating dried or dehydrated products of urine mango flesh in the form of peeled sliced or powder) is used as an acidulant or a souring agent for curies. The tree is evergreen, often reaching 50 to 60 and attaining great age. Leaves are lanceolate, up to 12 inches long, the flowers small, pinkish and franggrant, are borne in large ferminal panicles. The fruits varies in seized and character, the smallest mangoes are no longer than plums while others may weigh 4 to 5 pds. Its form is oval, oval round, heart shape, kidney shape or long and slender. Some varieties are beautifully coloured with shades of red and yellow, while other are dull green. The single large seed is flattened, the flesh that surrounds. It is yellow to orange in colour, juicy sweet and of delicious spicy flavor, mangoes are a rich source of vitamin A, C and D, the uripe fruit is acidic, astringent and antislobutic, the ripe fruit is antislorbutic, diuretic laxative, anvigorating, flattening and astringent sum slices of unripe. Fruit is very useful in scurvy. The fried skin of the unripe fruit is given with sugar in menorhagia the fruit juice increases sexual vigour and sexual strength. It cures impotency. The ripe fruit is often used as a sexual tonic.
ADAPTATION: Mango basically require a frost free climate. Flowers and small fruit can be killed if temperature drops below 400C even for a short period. Young tree may be seriously damaged.
GROWTH HABIT: Mango tree make handsome landscape specimen and shade trees. They are fast growing with sufficient heat.
SOIL: Mango will grow in almost any well drained soil whether sandy, loamy or clay heavy wet soil. A PH between 5 -7 and 7 – 5 is preferred. Mango needs a deep soil to accommodate their extensive root systems.
IRRIGATION: Irrigation should start when the weather warms.
CULTURE: The mango grows to a good size and casts a dense shade, but the roots are not destructive. It acquires full sun and perfect air drainage in winter. It does best at the top or middle level of a slope if wind breaks should be provided in exposed area. The trees may also need staking in the desert. It needs the shade of other trees. Or plant on the North side of the house in the garden plant against a south wall or in an area surrounded by paying to provide maximum heat in the green house full light and free air movement are important to avoid disease.
FRUITS: The fruits grow at the end of long string like stem (the upper particle) with sometimes two or more fruits to a stem. The fruits are 2 to 9 inches long and may be kidney shape. The flower scar at the apex is predominantly in some cultivars plugging from the fruit. The leathery skin is waxy and smooth and when sap (ie) that is irritating to some people. The quantity of the fruit is passed on the scanty of fibre and animal turpentine taste. The flesh of mango is peach like and juice with more or less numerous fibres radiating from the hunk of the single large kidney shaped seed. Fibres are more pronounced in fruits growth with chemical fertilizers. The flavor is pleasant and rich high in acid and sugars. The seeds either have embryo producing one seeding or piovembronic producing several seeding that are identical but not always true to the same fruit. Some seedlings produce numerous tiny pathennocarpic fruit which fall to develop and abort mango trees tend to be alternate bearing. The mango fruit is a large, fleshy drupe containing edible medocarp of varying thickness. It is resinous and highly variable with respect to shape and size chlorophyll, carotenes, anthocyanins and xanthophylls are all present in the fruit, although chlorophyll disappears during ripening, where as authocyanins and carotenoids increase with maturity. Fruit colour at maturity is genotype – dependent. Fruit of Bombay green is greenish – yellow, dasheshari goa and Arumanis are yellow and Haden, Keih and Tommy Atkins have a striling red blush.
OBJECTIVES OF THIS RESEARCH
The aims and objectives of this research are:
1. To screen the flower and stalk of Mangifera indica for the presence of phytochemicals of interest.
2. To evaluate the anti-microbial efficiency of the flower and stalt of Mangifera indica.