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Index : Citrus and Other Fruits
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- 29. Pomegranates Well Suited to Tucson - Top
- Pomegranates are popular fruits for desert cultivation. They are native to southeastern Europe and Asia and were grown in ancient Egypt, Babylon, India and Iran. Cultivated extensively in Spain, pomegranates moved with the missionaries into Mexico, California, and Arizona in the 16th century.
Pomegranate fruits are small purplish-red berries about 2 to 5 inches in diameter. They resemble small apples, and derive their name from the French word Pome', meaning apple. Fruits have numerous seeds are each surrounded by a pink to purplish-red Judy, pulp which is the edible portion. The pulp is somewhat puckery to the taste. Although eaten fresh, pomegranate is most popular made into jelly. Fruit ripens from August to October.
Normally a dense, bushy, deciduous shrub, 6 to 12 feet tall, the plant has slender, somewhat thorny branches. It may be trained as a small tree reaching 15 feet in height. It is also attractive espaliered against a wall. Pomegranates grow well in our alkaline desert soils and can withstand scorching heat and freezing temperatures as low as 10° F. For good fruit development, watering on a regular basis is important. Water requirements for pomegranates are about the same for citrus.
Pomegranate plants are available at local nurseries and garden centers, usually in 5 gallon containers. The variety Wonderful' is the best fruiting variety. Other pomegranate varieties are available, but they are ornamental types and produce only, dry inedible berries.
New plants may also be obtained by taking cuttings from known fruitful individuals. Pomegranates grown from seed do not come true-to-type. To propagate by cuttings, remove shoots 6 to 8 inches long, with the thickness of a pencil or larger. Cuttings should be taken in February or March and placed vertically in soil with the top dormant bud exposed. Dusting a rooting hormone, such as Rootone, on the cut end may speed root formation.
When trained as a tree, pomegranates tend toward a bushy habit with many suckers arising from the root and crown area. Tree-type plants can be produced by allowing only one trunk to develop. Additionally suckers should be removed frequently around the main trunk(s). The goal is to produce a stocky, compact framework. To this end, plants should be cut back to 2 to 2.5 feet tall at planting. Branches should be thinned to allow 3 to 5 symmetrically spaced scaffold branches to remain at a level at least 10 inches above the ground. A year after planting, branches should be shortened to 3/5 of their length. Interfering branches and shouts should then be removed to allow 2 or 3 shoots per scaffold branch.
Light annual pruning of established trees encourages production of good quality fruit. Dead or damaged wood should be removed in late winter. Suckering growth should be removed as it appears.
Do not fertilize at the time of planting! Young trees should receive about 2 pounds of an8-8-8 or similar analysis fertilizer in November and March. Mature trees require 5 pounds of a similar analysis fertilizer at the same intervals. Excessive or late applications tend to delay fruit maturity and reduce color and quality.
Pomegranate trees are self-fruitful. That is, they pollinate themselves. Severe fruit drop during the plant's juvenile period (3-5 years) is not uncommon. Fruit drop is aggravated by practices favoring leafy growth such as over-fertilization and excess watering. Avoid putting young plants under stressful conditions. Mature trees seem to set and hold fruit better than younger trees, so have patients!
A free pomegranate jelly recipe can be yours by sending a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Pomegranate Recipe, Pima County Cooperative Extension, 4210 N. Campbell Ave., Tucson, Az. 85719-1109
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Written by John Begeman, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the University of Arizona, 520-626-5161.
Material originally appeared in Arizona Daily Star gardening column, on
August 30, 1998
- Updated: August 30, 2001
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