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Promised Land Mangoes

Welcome to the land of mangoes and honey

941-402-1503

Promised Land Mangoes and Honey
at the Old Pineland Mango Grove
7127 Pineland Road, Bokeelia FL
239-369-3896
promisedlandmangoes@gmail.com

Open year-round on Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays
from 10:30 AM to 5 PM.
Please check our Facebook page for the latest updates and information.

Frequently Asked Questions

What varieties of mangoes do you have?

• Our primary variety is the Smith, however we do have limited quantities of Kents, Zills, Keitts and one Carrie tree. Depending on the year we may also have Tommy Atkins, Madame Frances and Valencia Prides and more. Please call for availability.
  

What do your mangoes taste like?

• Every variety is going to have a unique, distinct flavor. The Smith has a lovely peachy flavor, with distinct tropical notes. The Kents and Zills tend to have a bit more brightness to them.

Your mangoes are green. How are they ripe?

• Certain Haden variety mangoes (like the Smiths and Kents) will stay green until maturity. The pink blush on these mangoes is an indication of how much sun they received (like a suntan) and not the ripeness. You know they are fully ripe with they "give" when lightly squeezed and they have an aromatic scent.
  

Why do you pick your mangoes before they are totally ripe?

• If we picked all of our mangoes when they were ready to eat, most of them would go bad before you could get to them. We pick them when they are about one week from ripeness. This does not affect the quality of the fruit in any way. It also keeps the birds and squirrels from getting to them before you!
  

Where should I store my mangoes?

• If the mangoes are not ready to eat today, keep them on the counter . If you put them in the refrigerator the ripening process will stop. When they are aromatic and slightly soft, store them in the refrigerator. They do not need to be kept in a paper bag to ripen. They can be cut up and stored in plastic bags in the freezer for several months (particularly our Smiths)
  

How should I cut up my mangoes?

• We like to peel ours with our favorite vegetable peeler and then slice the cheeks from the seed, but the National Mango Board has a great tutorial on it here.
  

But I am allergic to mango peels! How can I still eat them?

• Some of us are allergic to mango peels too! The compound in mango peels and sap that most people are allergic to is called Urushiol. We recommend using gloves when handling and processing your mangoes. It can also be good to rinse the fruit once the peel is removed. You should be fine after that, but please exercise caution! Our mangoes contain just as much Urushiol as everyone else's. If we get some peel oil or sap on our skin, we wash it with dish soap and use some Hydrocortisone topically. (We are not doctors or medical professionals. Please consult a doctor if you have an allergy or medical condition) 
  

I know mangoes taste good fresh, but what else can I do with a mango?

• What CAN'T you do with a mango?! We put them in all of our mango preserves, but that's just the beginning. Mangoes are great in smoothies, milkshakes, baked goods, salads, sauces, stir-fry, casseroles. Mango goes well with dark chocolate as well as chilies, from pork to pancakes. The National Mango Board has many wonderful recipes here and we have a couple of our very own dessert recipes here
  

Where does your honey come from?

• We have our own beehives at the back of our grove. We think we have the best bees around and so we work very hard to make sure they're happy and healthy. We have over 20 individual hives of bees, each one home to thousands of hard-working ladies (worker bees are all female) who produce every drop of your Island Blossom and Mango Blossom Honey
  

What is the difference between Island Blossom and Mango Blossom Honey? Don't all honeys taste the same?

• Heavens no! Every different flower has a different composition of nectar and pollen and thus becomes a different type of honey. If you really want to hear about how different honeys can be, ask Chris about Maleluca and Spanish Needle Honeys (hint: They're not very good). Our Island Blossom honey is a summer wildflower honey that, in 2015, has large amounts of Sable Palm nectar. To us it has a more conventional honey taste. Our Mango Blossom, however, is a bit "brighter" and has a more distinct flavor. We offer honey tastings at our farm stand if you'd like to try for yourself, but get there early! We tend to sell out of our Mango Blossom. Curious about the different types of honey? Visit the National Honey Board to see just how many types there are!
  

Honey is pretty sweet though, are there any health benefits to it?

• Honey is the best kind of sweet. Not only is it a wonderful, natural sweetener for your coffee and tea, biscuits, yogurt or cereal, but it is healthy too! Raw honey like ours is full of antibiotic properties, making it a wonderful addition to medicinal tea. We have many repeat customers who eat our honey to help treat their seasonal allergies because our honey still contains some pollen. We have also heard from people who apply it to their cuts and scrapes, but again, we're not doctors, so always consult a professional before trying any new treatment. Our Type 1 Diabetic daughter Nancy uses it before any other sweeteners because it's as natural as you can get. She says it's worth the extra insulin over those not-as-tasty (and she claims unhealthy) diet sweeteners.  
  

My honey has crystallized. Does that mean it's bad?

• Honey has the capacity to be good for long periods of time and does not require refrigeration. Some honeys have higher moisture content than others and are more prone to crystallize, especially if they are in a cold environment. We recommend storing your honey in a dry, temperature-stable environment like a kitchen cabinet. If your honey does crystallize, heat some water to about 150 degrees Fahrenheit (long before boiling, just hot) and submerge the honey bottle in the water. This should melt the crystals. However, crystallized honey still retains the same flavor and health benefits as regular honey. It is 100% fine to use. 
  

I want to visit your grove but I'm allergic to bees. What should I do?

• We have no control over where our bees go to find pollen and flower nectar. Occasionally they come to visit us in the farm store. They're very sweet bees however, they are still bees and do have the capacity to sting. We hope that anyone with an allergy would bring their Epi-Pen with them when they visit the grove, however we suggest that if you have an allergy or sensitivity to bees, perhaps you should send some one to the grove in your place.
  

You seem really passionate about bees. Why?

• Without bees, butterflies and other pollinators, we wouldn't have mangoes. When our mango trees bloom in the winter, we need the bees to travel from flower to flower distributing pollen or our mango crop would be much smaller. Each year as more farms employ systemic pesticides and use organic pesticides which contain neonicotinoids, the global bee population diminishes. We won't just lose honey if we lose our bees, we will potentially lose the ability to grow the very food that we eat. We NEED our bees!
  

Do you have a question that we haven't answered here? Call us at 239-369-3896 or email us at promisedlandmangoes@gmail.com