When one attempts to collect conifers from sources other than your backyard, with each introduction you are inviting potential problems from somebody else's backyard. Scale, aphids, mites, root disease, etc. Believe it or not chemicals are used, and used commonly in the production of ornamental crops and conifers are no exception. Some nurseries are more attentive than others with efforts to limit the spread of fungal issues, and pest. Others do not seem to concern them selves much with shipping their problems to others. It can take some time and money to weed out the bad ones, and even companies with good reputations can still send out plants with problems. Whether they do this knowingly, I'm not sure. Some issues that may be only minor problems in a dry climate may pick up steam in a humid one. Issues also can be completely masked by chemical protection, and then when treatment stops suddenly with the new owner, then the problems begin to show. The issues are not necessarily insurmountable, in all cases, especially if it is more of an aesthetic issue which is what my problem is. I have my share of plants in the morgue pile from stuff I grew and killed as well as items others shipped me and died despite my best efforts. I have had growers ship me their scale problems, but with a dose or two of safari I finally figured out how to quickly and cheaply solve that problem. Needle disease may not be as simple to fix over a few weeks, but needle disease is only detrimental to the long term health if you stand by and do nothing, just as letting some insect destroy a plant. Yes, over time I might decide that certain pines are not resistant enough in my climate to continue growing. I tried to add up all the different companies I have purchased conifers and maples from and the count is at least 25. 25 chances that other peoples problems enter my growing area. Issues like this can be very risky. Sudden oak death being an example of how serious shipping plants around the country and the world can be. Am I going to stop collecting conifers and Japanese maples because of the potential risk? Not likely. I come from an organic vegetable growing background. I did not have the luxury of the simple chemical fix. You have to understand the life cycle of what you are dealing with and do your best to interrupt the lifecycle to reduce the severity of the problem. These pines are not at risk of dying, they just do not look as good as I would like them to look. Since they are ornamentals I would like them to look as good as they can. With time, attention to sanitation, optimizing irrigation techniques, and a few well timed chemical applications the severity and need for a constant battle scheme are not likely necessary. If it is I will probably retire the worst of the worst. In my area there is a well known perennial grower who claims to have to kill a plant species 3 times before he finally throws in the towel. I'm not even close to there yet. The pines are not dying they just look a little homely. The reason for my post was to get professional growers opinions, techniques and philosophies in dealing with such maters, but again no help from them. Thanks to Dax for a recommendation. I guess the only way to get input from the professional growers is to misspell the name of a cultivar.

jstropic, unfortunately most mango varieties are prone to anthracnose, some just more susceptible than others. I'm not sure what zone you live in(you don't have it listed). Are you planning on planting it in the ground or container? During heavy rains it is recommended to spray with copper to keep anthracnose under control. But if you don't want to spray, you may just have to hope for the best and hope it recovers on its own. I have a Carrie, and I am NOT a big fan of the taste. In my opinion I just don't like the taste of this fruit, to me it has a weird aftertaste. But it is my opinion only, as I know there are many that LOVE this mango. My Carrie mango has always had issues, I think it is suffering from mango die back. If I lose it, it is fine...since I don't like the taste anyways. I have young Glenns, Cogshalls and a Keitt that seems to be doing well so far, and just a couple of weeks ago I bought a Lancetilla. I'm sure others will post with their recommendations. Hope you find one that will be disease resistant for you.

Heelo Tasty, I am glad to hear from another person who is going to give a mango a try in a temperate climate. I purchased a Cogshall mango last July from a nursery in Seffner Fl. I had the advantage of being able to select the tree myself. I removed the tree from its pot and removed the majority of the soil from the pot. With the help of my friend we formed a triangular shaped box and I then wrapped the rootball in wet paper towles and then a bag.Iboxedt up and carried it on the plane. When I got back home, I mixed organic miracle grow and perlite. I mixed 70% miracle Grow with 30% perlite. I chose the organic potting soil for the nutritional value for the tree. However the soil is VERY heavy. I used the perlite to lighten the soil. You may choose to use a lighter soil blend maybe even a catus blend. Mango is not very sensitive to soil but you want something that is free draining and has a good nutritional content. I then potted it up at the same level it was at in its original nursery pot. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. You dont want to encourage rot. I then sprinkled on Miacle Grow Shak and Feed continous release plant food. This formula gives the tree a small amount of fertilizer continously for three months. this is also VERY important. Mango trees are very sensitive to fertilizer, and you can actually burn the roots. You will knw if you have by the look of the leaves. They will actually look brown on the tips, and if you dont correct it the tree will drop leaves and die. My Cogshall tree told me when to feed it. I fed it when there was new growth or new groth that had not hardened yet. Also, I had done a lot of research regarding there care especially in a northern climate. I felt pretty confident not only regarding there needs but what tree would be best for me to start with. When I looked at the Cogshall description I came across the fact that it was anthracnose resistant. I interpreted that as meaning that the tree would not get this. I also found that it was a condo type meaning that it was a true dwarf. Standard mango trees can grow to quite large proportions, and unless you want to be pruning a lot including the roots, the cond types are the best suited for us(unless you have a greenhouse). I planted y mango and placed it in a spot where it was on conrete and recieving mostly direct sun. This combonation proved very well. I only made one big mistake. I emailed Pine, and one of there staff told me that I hould allow it to dry in between waterings. I did that and lost about 20% of the branches. I would suggest that you keep the whole root ball moist, not wet all the time. Ididn't mist it in fear of ending up with a mold, but I did end up with a small anthracnose problem. i was able to treat the anthracnose with liquid copper fungicide. Since you are not getting your tree until June, I would order some of this. You can google Liquid Copper and find an online dealer and buy it there. I strongly recommend doing that and also finding someone who sells the fertilzer for tropical fruit trees. I would check and see if it is good for mango also. You may not need it. My tree seems pretty happy. Matter of fact, mine is going to bloom here in the next few weeks! I fertilized it again at half the strength recommended on the box. I just used Miracle Grow all purpose fertilizer. I want to get an organic fertilizer for tropical fruit trees, and also micro nutrients. I think if the tree has what it needs as far as light, water, and nutrition, it will grow and fruit faster, and be more resistant to diseases and any molds. This should give you a good start with your Mango tree. Just remember light indoors, but if you aare growing citrus you should be fine. I have mine under flourecents and so far so good. I hope his helps you, and if you have more questions let me know. I don't know much about pomegranite. I am not much of a fan of them, but someone here should be able to help you. I am curious as to which mango you chose and where you bought it. Good luck! I do have pics of my tree here, just google my username and you will find it. Andrew

Horticultural oils can be of use in scale/mealy bug infestations as well. Even insecticidal soap can work on the "crawler" stage, that brief time period where the immature insects are leaving mom and going to set up shop somewhere else on the plant. At that stage, they are very vulnerable to such sprays. Mealybug, which the photo looks like to me, is a soft scale. so long as you can get the soap and/or oil to it, you'll clean them up too. Failing these ideas, there are more heavy artillery controls for scale, but I always start with the "soft" controls first. +oM