Will my mango tree be ok? Tip of tree is brown

[CrazyConure]

This tree had a rough start. It was in sandy soil with not much sunlight. I moved it to very rich soil with a ton of sunlight and I think it's perking up. The tips of all the leaves with dry and brown, so I cut it off. I have one concern though, there was growth on the tip of the actual tree that also turned brown. Will this not let the tree survive?

 

[Chuck]

Too soon to tell. It may grow a little strange but all you can do is keep it alive long enough for it to establish itself and then it will do what it will do. Just don't overwater and give it time. It looks like it may have been overwatered in the past. Have you enough room for a papaya too?

 

[CrazyConure]

Thank you. I don't have a papaya.

I'll give a full sized image of this tree.

 

[CrazyConure]

Scratch that. I can't get a good picture. It isn't too big. There in any much to see anyways. I was going to trim that too part off, but I decided it was better to ask before I did anything drastic. Good thing I asked.

Edit: I think it may have been overwatered. I'll keep very infrequent watering habits with this tree.

 

[CrazyConure]

It's getting worse. The browning is getting lower and lower. There was a leaf on that spot before, and it fell off when it turned brown.

 

[CrazyConure]

@Chuck, should I cut the top stem off? I have no clue on what I can do. I haven't watered the tree ever since my last post. It has been raining here.

 

[Chuck]

Have you taken it out of its pot and checked its roots to make sure they aren't rotting or have some fungal disease?

There is a product that I use as a last resort for very sick plants. It is called Super Thrive. It is a synthetic vitamin/protein and it does amazing things. Get some and try it. I don't think you have anything to lose and it's not expensive.

 

[Chuck]

@Chuck, should I cut the top stem off? I have no clue on what I can do. I haven't watered the tree ever since my last post. It has been raining here.

You may as well because once something is dead it stays dead.

 

[CrazyConure]

It's not rotten. I snipped off the top of the dying part. It was rough and brown on the inside.

Whatever I just did is called topping, right? Will that send out new growth shoots?

 

[Chuck]

It's not rotten. I snipped off the top of the dying part. It was rough and brown on the inside.

Whatever I just did is called topping, right? Will that send out new growth shoots?

Topping is where you cut off the living top of a tree. What you cut off is dead and will stay dead. New shoots, if they form will come from where a leaf meets the trunk. Remove it from the pot and look at the roots. They should be a light color if they are OK. I can't guarantee if this will work but it is what I would do in this case as I don't think you have anything to lose. I would remove the plant from the pot and wash away all of the soil from the roots. Then I would get rid of the soil in the pot, clean the pot with a bleach solution, rinse it and replant with new soil and water it in with Super Thrive.

 

[CrazyConure]

Ok. I will try that. I cut off a little of the living part as well. I did the same for the leaves and they didn't get anymore brown. I *think* it will be ok. I'll update with anything new I see.