Mango Melee
By David Hamada
Summertime in St. Croix is mango season, and its abundance will be celebrated at the 13th Annual Mango Melee and Tropical Fruit Festival at the St. George Village Botanical Garden on Sunday, July 5 from noon to 6:30 pm.
Often described as "the Queen of Tropical Fruit," the mango reigns over our summer season. With a supremely distinctive shape, smell, color and taste, no other fruit evokes the warmth, flavors, fragrances and exotic beauty of the Tropics.
A joint effort by the V.I. Department of Tourism, the V.I. Department of Agriculture, UVI Cooperative Extension Service, UVI Agricultural Experiment Station, and the St. George Village Botanical Garden has produced St. Croix's most popular summer festival and teaches us about the agricultural and horticultural potential for this very popular fruit.
During mango season, its abundance got people searching for ways to extend the season during which mangoes can be enjoyed, from mango wine and beer to mango butter, and even mango sushi, everyone can enjoy and learn about the many ways mango can be prepared and enjoyed year-round.
After Hurricane Lenny in 1999 affected the mango crop the following season, Mango Melee expanded to include a variety of other tropical fruits and their uses as well. One of the main features of the festival is the display of over 80 varieties of mango and over 30 other types of fruit - all of which are grown on St. Croix! For those who have never heard of bilimbi or miracle fruit, or have ever wondered what to do with jackfruit, a visit to Mango Melee is a fun and educational experience.
Other highlights include food vendors selling a staggering variety of products made from mango and other tropical fruits, craft vendors, a farmers' market featuring fresh fruit and live fruit trees, as well as fun and educational children's activities and games.
Educational presentations throughout the day teach how to successfully cultivate and use many local fruits. It's also a chance to sample fruit juices and taste varieties of mango and learn how different each can be, and how each is best suited for a different use, from juicing, to cooking, to eating fresh!
"Mango Dis, Mango Dat" is an extremely popular food contest featuring drinks, deserts and sauces. Entries are judged on presentation, creativity, best use of the fruit, and taste. After judging, samples of the entries are then offered for sale, and they go fast!
The most popular element each year is the Mango-Eating Contest where hundreds of spectators gather on the lawn to watch two separate competitions: one for adults and one for children. Contestants challenge each other to see who can eat ten mangoes in the shortest period of time. Anyone who has ever eaten a fresh, ripe and juicy mango can understand how messy and entertaining this contest really is!
The Nursery and Museum Store will be open and tours of the 16-acre grounds are offered throughout the day. The day ends with a silent auction of the fresh fruit from the displays, and dancing the Electric Slide. For more information, contact the Botanical Garden at 692-2874.
