Planting And Growing Pomegranates

Let good food be thy medicine – Hippocrates

Pomegranate - (punica granatum)

This article will make you think twice about eating pomegranates. It’s an amazing fruit, an absolute powerhouse when it comes to good health and as a source of preventative medicine.
Pomegranates carry triple the amount of antioxidants found in tomatoes, red wine or green tea, and a key ingredient to a healthier heart. Recent research conducted in the Middle East (where pomegranate is a regular part of the diet), has shown that cases of prostate cancer in men is lower than other parts of the world. This has been linked back to flavonoids carried in pomegranates and consumed regularly by Middle Easterners. Flavonoids are a type of antioxidant, which put up a strong defense against many types of cancers, including prostate cancer.

While the medical and health benefits contained in this ostentatious and ancient fruit are many, this article will focus on selecting, planting, growing and eating pomegranates right here in Melbourne, Victoria. Much has been written about its health and medical benefits and these can be found elsewhere on the net. At the end of this article I will give you links to suitable sites for further information in this regard.

About the Tree
If you are buying and planting a pomegranate tree as an ornamental, forget it. It’s thorny and sprawling with branches growing all over the place and covered in masses of insignificant leaves. Keeping this tree pruned can be a nightmare, but regular trimming can make the job easier. In some parts of Europe, farmers grew it as a hedge, or “living” fence to enclose farm animals. Its spiky, rough and brambly branches also deterred intruders such as sheep thieves.
However, when pomegranate trees are hedged or even planted to close together, they rarely produce good fruit. The tree needs its own space with little else growing within a 3-meter diameter.
Despite its disagreeable appearance as a tree, it does produce an outstanding, beautiful crimson red flower, which turns into one of the most delightful fruits on earth.
Only those who have tasted a fully ripened pomegranate can really appreciate its unparalleled flavor. It is a very sweet and juicy fruit, even rivaling the juice content of a Valencia orange.

Maintaining The Tree
Find a tree, which is between two to three years old, with at least three leading branches. Prune off any branches below the tree to a foot from the ground up and clean up any deadwood. Try to produce a vase shaped tree, trimming most of the horizontal, inner growth. Fruit on the inside of any fruit tree sees little sun and struggles to ripen. Remember, “No sun, no sugar.”
Pomegranates also produce suckers from the roots, which should be removed.
During winter, prune back the branches of a young tree hard so that they remain short. This will eventually produce a tree with a strong, compact frame. In following winters, do the same with new growth from the primary branches. Do not let too many secondary branches to develop from the primary branches. Overcrowding of branches is common with pomegranate trees.
Watering And Feeding
Although pomegranate trees are extremely drought-tolerant, they will require water while fruit is developing. However over watering can cause fruit to split. The best way to avoid this is to maintain a regular watering pattern during summer, keeping the soil constantly moist. As for fertilizing, pomegranates can benefit from applications of manure tice per year. They do well from the nitrogen, which manures provide. A dose of potash during flowering will also aid fruit development.
As for fruiting, pomegranates can begin to fruit as early as their third year. They are a long-lived tree and have been known to survive for more than two hundred years. Harvesting usually occurs from mid to late autumn.