pomegranate

Photo: Augustus Binu : flickr — CC BY-SA 3.0 · source

Survives zone 7 through 9

Harvest calendar

Best planted in early spring after your last frost, or in fall before the ground freezes, depending on your climate.

Juicy sweet-tart arils.

Hardiness

Zone 7–9

Habit

Shrub

Edible part

Fruit

Ripens

Autumn — does not ripen off the tree

Mature size

Shrub 3–6 m; EXCELLENT in containers. ⚠ 'Nana' is ornamental with poor eating quality

Light

Full sun (needs heat to ripen)

Soil pH

5.5–7.5 (alkaline-tolerant)

Environment

Semi-arid

Native range

Iran and the mountains of Central Asia through to northern India, with a very long history of cultivation west across the Mediterranean; wild populations survive in the Kopet Dag and the Hindu Kush.

Status

Cultivated

Years to fruit

2–3 yrs (full crop ~yr 5)

Growth speed

Fast — 60 cm a year when young, and it fruits early

Spacing

400 cm (157 in) apart — about 16 m² (172 sq ft) per plant

Leaf shape

Opposite or nearly so, narrow and oblong 2–8 cm, glossy bright green and slightly leathery, flushing bronze-red on new growth — a neat, small, tidy leaf on spiny twiggy branches. Deciduous in cool climates, near-evergreen in warm ones.

Root system

Shallow to moderately deep, fibrous, wide-spreading and strongly suckering from the base — the suckers are the plant's natural habit and the easiest means of propagation, but they must be removed from a grafted or trained tree. Notably tolerant of drought, salt and alkaline soil.

Fruit description

A leathery-skinned berry 6–12 cm holding hundreds of arils — juicy, jewel-red seed coats around a crunchy seed — in white pith-walled chambers. Sweet-tart and excellent. ⚠ It does not ripen off the tree, so it must be left until fully coloured and heavy; and fruit left too long in wet weather splits.

Propagation

Hardwood cuttings in winter root very easily and are the standard method; suckers can simply be detached with roots. Seed germinates readily but does not come true.

Pollination

Self-fertile, better with a partner

The edible parts listed above are a starting point, not a field guide. Identify a plant with certainty — ideally against a local authority — before eating any part of it, and read the full disclaimer. Spotted something wrong? Report it.