Pruning Pomegranate Trees | 3 Easy Options for Size & Production

[@RodH-pj1py]

Those are some happy cats! ❤️ My cats also tend to follow me around when I'm tending to my plants in my garden.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They really do like to follow us around. Sounds like we both have furry little gardeners!

[@Pamsgarden213]

I love how you are inadvertently rubbing the cat while talking! My pomegranate is the last tree I have to prune this year. My 65th birthday is the 13th of this month and that entire day, all I am doing is garden work, my happy place!!!!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Aww, happy birthday Pam! Make sure Tony takes you out to dinner afterwards. Or at least cooks you something yummy!!

[@awathompson]

Great pruning tios for the valley but what are your pruning suggestions for place like Flagstaff, Payson, or Prescott?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

The primary difference will be the amount of material you take off each season. We get several feet of growth during our growing seasons, so you won't want to be as aggressive.

[@nekoDan]

Another informative pruning video. Good to see that there are multiple approaches. I like the multi trunk myself. Loved seeing the kitties frolicking in every shot!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you enjoyed this one. Those kitties are our fill-in grandchildren and seem to follow us everywhere!

[@malkiha]

Can you propogate all those prunings into cuttings? Would the rootstock be okay for this climate?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

You can definitely propagate those cuttings into new trees. No rootstocks on these.

[@malkiha]

@EdgeofNowhereFarm Thank you!! Going to go prune my tree right now and make a Bazillion more Plants! :)

[@QualityGardener]

This is probably the best video I've seen so far about Pomegranate pruning! Although I respect the first pruning and its natural bushy form, I really dig the second style of pruning which keeps the bush form elements, but in a controlled format. Great stuff ! 😊

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you enjoyed this one. We had a lot of folks asking how to prune these and we've tried a few different forms over the years. The controlled bush is our preference as well.

[@ericwiltz6584]

Pomegranates as an ornamental tree are absolutely beautiful! We lived in AZ and we use to look at our pomegranate tree as our X-mas tree!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I'll bet that was something to see. Especially around the holidays with ready made ornaments on those trees with the fruit!

[@yoyoyohihihidude]

Definitely need the follow up comparison

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We'll need to get that on camera this year. We've been neglecting the pomegranate content here on this property!

[@victorgoodrum1501]

Hey Duane, perfect timing. I am just getting around to pruning my pomegranate and I love the way you trim back the lower growth. I have plenty of room for it to grow but I wanted a more tree-like bush and I was afraid to cut back to much on the lower growth. I see how you make it work now. We got a lot of late fruit this year and it was great. Keep the GREAT videos coming.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you found this one in time! Ours are just starting to bud out. We like that late fruit as well. The Spring set is much larger for us, but the fruit struggles getting through the Summer unscathed (especially from birds), but that Fall set always does much better in that regard!

[@lcglazer]

Hopefully there's a follow up video this winter. I am undecided on how to prune mine.

[@Reciprocity_Soils]

Thanks a lot for the guidance and good to see the cooperation...always~ Would love to find a few acres in Wittman to grow more of the same good nutritious food.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Land is getting harder to come by around here, but there are still a few parcels in and around the Wittmann area.

[@taylorvanbuskirk8040]

Lori's so quiet lately, she like the lovely assistant...the "Vanna White of Edge of Nowhere Farm." LOL!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

One of these days we'll get her back in front of the camera for these. We're almost done with the pruning content, so she'll do more than "turn letters" here pretty soon!

[@taylorvanbuskirk8040]

Thanks for recognizing my "Wheel of Fortune" reference. LOL! @@EdgeofNowhereFarm

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@taylorvanbuskirk8040 of course, grew up with that gameshow!

[@3moirai]

What year wood do pomegranates grow on - First or second year or older wood? Reason I ask, is you trimmed a lot of branches off and wonder if that will affect fruit production.

[@bensonb99]

Second year

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

It looks like someone already answered this one but you will get fruit on any new growth from wood that is at least a year old and eventually will develop small fruiting spurs on most varieties. We've found that we never have to worry about a lack of production on our trees and we actually get 2 rounds of flower/fruit set in a year (Spring and Fall). So if you prune too heavy in the Winter, you'll still get flower/fruit set in the Fall on most of the older trees.

[@MakingMemoriesEveryday]

Thank you for posting this! We are fairly new homesteaders in Cochise county and planted a pomegranate tree , so this is super helpful!🙌

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Glad you enjoyed this one and congrats on that new tree. They are VERY forgiving, fruitful trees and grow well for all of us here in AZ.

[@stevezamarron3830]

My pomegranate trees are thorny and am having tough time proper pruning,they look like your last tree in video🇺🇸👍

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yeah, they can definitely reach out and grab you!

[@blinkitphotography]

What are your thoughts about using pruning sealer to seal the cuts? Especially if it's a big cut and the branch is 3 inches.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We don't use them around here as the cuts seal just fine on their own with our dry weather. However, it definitely would not hurt at all.

[@AmzBackyardOrchardandVineyard]

Hi Neighbors! We're growing several varieties pomegranates and we needed this encouragement! thank you very much!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey Aaron, glad you enjoyed this one!

[@spookyduzit]

Im anxious to see the results.i want to plant a pomegranate or two at my home too

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We'll try to get more content on the pomegranates this year. We've been neglecting that on this property!

[@cynthiaj4863]

My trees have not given me red seeds. I only get white and it's a Wonderful Pomegranate tree & should be red. Any advice? Zone 9B Queen Creek, AZ

[@lorinew-s2841]

You may be harvesting to soon? Mine are also white until the weather cools down, then they turn red

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

It looks like someone already answered, but waiting until Winter to harvest will help. We have found the Wonderful tends to not be quite as red as some of the other varieties (like Grenada).

[@hummingbirdheightsfarm]

Love your tree trimming tutorials learn so much! I have 2 almond trees too, trimmed all the waterproofs and that's it. Do you have any?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We do have 3 almond trees. We didn't get them on camera, but they're pruned very similar to other stone fruit. We keep an open center and encourage outward growth on ours. They set a few fruit last year, but they take several years before they really start producing, so right now it's still a matter of maintaining shape.

[@hummingbirdheightsfarm]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm we actually had a couple dz almonds set on first year in ground but the trees are very small, between 4 to 5 ft so we were happy to see production! However one tree is much more developed than the other...not sure why

[@krissycus]

Good to know that I don't necessarily have to prune them to get production! I'm so tired of pruning and accidentally cutting off the fruiting branches of trees b/c I don't know quite what I'm doing yet. If you have another pruing workshop I will drive the 3 hours to get to you!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

With pomegranates you can really either skip the pruning or prune to just clean up the base of the tree to keep the branches from scraping along the ground. They are one of the most forgiving trees we have around here when it comes to that!

[@aparnakumta2291]

Thanks for this video, I am definitely one of those waiting for this one :-). how far back can this cut without sacrificing all of the fruit? Would like to maintain the height to about 6-7 ft. Do they fruit on newer growth?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They fruit on new growth as well as some existing growth as the tree matures. The reality is, they just produce like crazy no matter what you do to them it seems. As for the amount of cutting, if you keep to the 30% rule you'll ensure a great harvest.

[@aparnakumta2291]

thanks@@EdgeofNowhereFarm once again for the prompt response.

[@AbidAli-bv2gl]

Excellent video. I followed you from your old orchard. During that Time I bought two of the Pomegranate Trees . Still no fruit. I have to clean up

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hey there Abid. I'm surprised you're not seeing fruit. They usually flower and fruit at a young age. Fingers crossed you see some fruit this year!

[@shakesfists]

I moved into a home with a severely neglected pomegranate tree. Thanks for sharing your pruning methods! I've got a lot of work to do on it.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Congrats on that new home and tree! They're VERY forgiving and easy to care for. The only real challenge is keeping the birds from eating all of the fruit!!

[@shakesfists]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarmThank you! That's good to know about it being forgiving! There's a lot of dead wood that is crowding out the new, it's all tangled, and very tall. I aim to take out a lot of the dead wood and trim back some of the unruliest branches this season.

[@jb4700]

Thanks for another informative video. I was wondering what is the best kind of fertilizer for Pomegranate trees and the best time to use it in North San Diego County?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Ok, first off you'll have to let us know where you are in SD. Lori and I met in San Diego and lived in North County most of the time. San Marcos was our last stop, but I also lived in Vista for a while. As for fertilizer, we use composted manure (usually pig and/or chicken) on our trees, but any good fruit tree fertilizer will do. You would be on a similar schedule to us. February, May and September should do the trick.

[@jb4700]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Thanks for your reply, I live in Fallbrook near I-15. Regards

[@jaredmccutcheon5496]

Duane you’re loving those DEWALT shears aren’t you, lol. I have a Parfianka pomegranate and another variety called Velvet something or other. Both have soft seeds and sweeter juice than Wonderful. I am not a huge fan of Wonderful because of how tart it is and the hard seeds and also the owners of Pom Wonderful are some shady characters which I know having one of their trees has no effect on them but I just don’t like them, haha . They bought Justin Vineyards here in my hometown and then cut all the oak trees down and dug a lake and proceeded to run all their neighbors wells dry before the county found out what was going on. They got nailed with huge fines and had to restore the ruined oak forest they destroyed but left a lot of people without water. They’ve done the same type of thing all over the San Joaquin Valley with Almonds and Pistachios and the Pom Wonderful pomegranate orchards. Richest couple in California and will steamroll anyone who gets in their way.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

My goodness, Jared that is horrible! It really frustrates me to hear this when most of us are out here trying to be a good steward of the land and provide for ourselves.

[@holycow92883]

This is so so sad! Why are people so evil?

[@hillaryjaska3278]

Awesome video! I have 4 wonderful Pom trees in central Texas. They love our climate here too. My dad got me interested in pomegranate trees- we like to make pomegranate jelly (highly suggest making Pom jelly if you never have!) Last year I heavily pruned mine as I like the shape a little better - didn’t get a single flower last year. Thinking I pruned all the fruiting wood off or maybe it was climate related. Year 4 and my trees are loaded with flowers so I’m hopeful for fruit this year. I didn’t prune quite as heavy this year and will keep up with the sucker growth through the season. I’m looking forward to an update video!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

It sounds like you should be back in business in no time. As long as these trees have some wood that is at least a year old they typically will fruit. Of course, they do best with hot, dry weather! Fingers crossed for you..🤞

[@danahsutton101]

Wow! I haven't seen your videos in a while. Your ranch is so much greener! I will plant a pomegranate tree today. It looked like it died over the winter.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Welcome back! Yes, it's definitely come a long way in the last few years. Pomegranate trees are a great choice and usually do well even with neglect!

[@doctorhadland6510]

Do you fertilize them at all in late winter/early spring after pruning? I currently have 15 pomegranates of 6 different varieties and have not used any fertilizer yet.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yes, we fertilize them along with all of our other fruiting trees. February, May and September, so now is the time!

[@doctorhadland6510]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Thank you. How low do the temperatures get there?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@doctorhadland6510 we get down into the low 20's on occasion, but regularly below freezing.

[@MarSchlosser]

Pomegranates are fantastic for ‘hidden gardens’. When asked, I tell people an informal hedge out front. Even HMOs can’t complain because they’re good, very ornamental. I’m glad you did this film, I have 3 and want to see them thrive. I was told by some, no mulch, but others yes, mulch. I’ll take your advice, and keep the mulch. Besides, thrashers love to drill in it for bugs. Sand cherries, a native, are great but need cooler temps than here in my area (zone 9). And, gotta get more organza bags. Last year, birds hollowed out the fruit! If you like the juice and not the seeds, use an old school orange juicer. Meanwhile, I’m trying a new tomato, a Mexican beefsteak, which is supposed to be from the desert, and an old standard, Porter tomatoes, which always do well in the summer. The fava beans are growing well and not bugged by hungry quail, but they and thrashers are into a kohlrabi. Next fall, collards will go in for the quail. Meanwhile, Mouser is STILL being lazy and not eating ground squirrels. Nah, the squirrels are deep tilling for me. No sweet potatoes for them to steal, so not a problem. Hasta nieto!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Ok, sand cherries is not something I don't remember you talking about before. We're the same zone, so no chance for us around here?

[@MarSchlosser]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Gurney's has them, 3 in a bundle, but only good to Zone 8. Fox River in WI has has 2/bundle but says they're good to Zone 10 (I sent for a bundle, now we wait a year or two to see if they're good in Zone 9 :) American Indians carried these cherries up and down the Rockies into Mexico, to the Pacific and the Atlantic. This variety is Hanson Bush sand cherries, developed by the father of Mari Sandoz, a very famous author of historical novels (real stories, not shoot-em-up crap). I strongly recommend her writing for anyone interested in 19th century homesteading on the northern plains. She teaches what she observe among American Indian peoples who were close friends; her father would treat their illnesses free of charge.

[@melbournesubtropicfruits9474]

I have a cultivar in Australia called Ben Hur - Only ever had one fruit in 8y but was better than Wonderful. Rarely flowers. Is in large pot and was away dried out defoliated but regrew and flowered like crazy but no fruit set . Do you think pruning down it's 8ft may help? Yes I use some potassium.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Pruning will always stimulate new growth on a tree. With pomegranates this can help with flowering/fruiting as both new growth and existing spurs can set fruit. That being said, regular irrigation is also important. While they are drought tolerant, a lack of moisture stresses the tree and can keep it from fruiting.

[@blueberryrl]

Pomegranates seems easy to prune more so than the stone fruit trees. Do you paint your Pomegranates for Sun protection during the summer months? And can you paint deciduous fruit trees any time of year or does it have to be winter only to do this?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Pomegranates don't need any trunk paint as they grow VERY fast to protect the trunks. As for the rest of your trees, we apply paint whenever the paint looks thin if the sun is hitting them. Usually a couple of times/year.

[@blueberryrl]

Thanks for your input now I know 🙂! Just curious by any chance do you have any sugarcane cuttings available for sale? Or do you give any away by any chance?

[@slamboy66]

Do you ever get carried away with the new electric pruner❓❓❓

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

So Lori would say yes, but I don't think so!

[@maryfreitas6484]

We live in Golden Valley, Az, and our pomegranates split every year. How can we avoid it?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

You didn't mention when you're seeing that splitting. If it's during the Fall/Winter time that's just them opening up to spill their seeds to germinate which is a natural function. If you're seeing it before they're ripe it's a moisture issue. They need very consistent irrigation, but a lot of rain can throw that off!

[@maryfreitas6484]

They split through the summer.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@maryfreitas6484 ok, that would be moisture. We always irrigate our trees at least once/week during the summer. Even with monsoon rains.

[@michaelmcgourty9535]

When I was growing up in Anaheim, CA; my neighbor had a pomegranate tree, and it was pretty tall, at least 7 or 8 feet. I wonder if that was an old tree or something else.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I (Duane) grew up in SoCal (Gardena) and we had a small pomegranate in the front yard as well. It was a dwarf variety that my grandpa and then my dad would always trim up to a hedge every year. Put on fruit, but they were very small.

[@Donna-sh7nt]

oh my goodness... I have 2 pomegranate trees (bushes). I had some great looking fruits on them but when I went to pick them off, they were hollow. Stupid Birds....!! I never got one fruit... Love your videos. thank you so much for posting. Donna

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Ugh, we know just how frustrating that is! The only thing we've found success with is putting organza bags on them for the summer. Even then we still lose many of them.

[@packmack78]

What kind of battery tool are you using? I have never used one.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

That is a DeWalt pruner. I'll link to it for you here on Amazon; amzn.to/3YYqCVI

[@brainhunter1000]

Awesome. Our house (lived there just under 2 years) came with 3 pomegranates. The fruit all split last year. Any recommendations on preventing split? Love your channel as someone in Tucson. Just a little cooler than Phoenix so probably similar to you.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Congrats on those trees! The splitting is typically from inconsistent moisture in the soil. We keep a VERY consistent irrigation schedule from Spring through Fall, especially on the pomegranate trees. The only catch is if we get a lot of monsoon moisture. If that happens you'll probably get some splitting again.

[@brainhunter1000]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm I just installed drip line at 6 gallons per hour, two hours a day, and currently twice a week. Is that reasonable? They look like they are very old (5-6 two inch trunks)

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@brainhunter1000 we water quite heavily to get the production and growth you see here. They are on 60 gallons once/week.

[@urolovsarvar4268]

Hello, I m interested if you bury them in winter? Because the trees are upright probably not buried or are they cold tolerant?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

These don't require any special treatment in our Winters as they are deciduous trees that are cold tolerant down to about 18 degrees F (-8C).

[@alwaysyouramanda]

My grandmas got left alone and it was a tower!! 50 years-!? It had quite the footprint and the fruit would weigh the branches nearly to the ground

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Wow, what an amazing testament to the ability of these trees to thrive for decades!

[@butterflyj685]

Great pruning tips! What is the yellow automatic cutting tool you're using and do you have a link?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Those are DeWalt pruning shears. I'll link to them on Amazon for you here; amzn.to/4erWrND It doesn't look like the DeWalt version is available right now, but you should be able to find them at Home Depot, etc.

[@butterflyj685]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Thank you!

[@stephenmiller8556]

Hello there I am new to trees as far as planting, etc. I have them in Florida. North east Florida to be exact. The question I have is over the years about for now since I planted it I've been very ill and haven't been able to attend to it. W hat I noticed is that it has another bush growing up inside at the base of tree. I have been tempted to remove it and start over. But what I did was prune those other branches down as far as I could without damaging the main tree and there's several six or seven ostrich like a bush would have I guess. It is now late May and I'm wondering should I do anything or just let it be and prune it when it's bare. It has fruit growing on it now very small at this point. Will it help to send it out now or should I wait and just grin and Bare it?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

You didn't mention what kind of tree this is and I want to make sure, because the advice would be different for a pomegranate vs a stone fruit or other grafted tree.

[@lovelinbranam8028]

Hi Duane, what kind of fertilizer do you use on your pomegranates? I used the ones for citrus trees last year. Should I use a different fertilizer? What do you recommend?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We use composted pig manure on ours, but any regular fruit tree fertilizer would be fine. Now, these are not evergreen trees, so their nitrogen needs are not the same as citrus, so if I were using store bought fertilizer I would look for a fertilizer for stone fruit (or just general fruit trees) as opposed to citrus.

[@lovelinbranam8028]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm thank you. 😊

[@allthingsblessed]

I need help! I purchased my home last year and I have a lemon and Pomegranate tree. The lemon tree hasn't produced any lemons and the pomegranates are brown/pale inside and don't taste good. I'm in Arizona as well.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hmm, that is really strange for the lemon to not be producing anything for you. Typically they will at least attempt to set fruit each Spring. Did it have any flowers this past Spring? As for the pomegranates, this is common when the fruit is still trying to ripen completely. Usually pomegranates are not ripe until Mid - Late December, even into January.

[@allisonbond3493]

What sort of pruning tool were you using?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I assume you're asking about the electronic tool. That's the DeWalt 20V Max pruning shear. I'll link to it for you here on Amazon; amzn.to/3TUsKMW

[@gopxrock4950]

I read 6 trunks is the max as anymore will hurt production or size. So, I intend to keep 3 - 4 trunks max. 2 trunks for insurance or 1 trunk just for look.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We've had pretty good success with keeping them as straight bushes, but honestly I wouldn't know the difference from a production standpoint. It could very well be that the production was stunted, but they produce so heavy it's hard to imagine!

[@GypsBaim]

Hello. I hope you could help me make a the right decision. I have a nice big pomegranate tree. This year 3 more trees started growing on their own. Either I dropped some seeds or the plant it self. They are 2-3 feet away from the main plant and from each other. With that said do you think that is ok or will I have to remove them? :-(. I am in Az as well

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Congrats on those volunteer trees! As for whether to keep them or not that's up to you. That's pretty close to the main tree and that may impact the production on the "mother tree" if they're not removed. I don't know whether they're new trees or coming up from the roots as it can be either one, but if you're so inclined you could try to dig them up and if they're new trees you can transplant them if you wanted more trees. That's the route that I would take.

[@fenrirgg]

I'm leaving my pomegranate tree (planted in May 2023) with one main trunk because it's next to the street, do you think it can thrive with one trunk?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

That's a great question and it should be just fine. They naturally grow with multiple trunks, so if you're able to keep them pruned back, but with multiple trunks I think that would be ideal. AT least, that's been our experience.

[@stephensauder8954]

How do you prevent pomegranates from cracking open on the tree?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

The main reason for them splitting is a change in moisture. Consistent irrigation is critical, but some unexpected rainfall during the season can throw that off quite easily. Eventually they all crack open to release the seeds.

[@taylorvanbuskirk8040]

In my neighborhood, I'd be a little nervous about my farm cats. We have so many coyote and bobcats, I'm afraid they'd end up lunch.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Yeah, we only let them out during the day for now. Once we have the guardian dogs we'll let them free range day and night.

[@taylorvanbuskirk8040]

Guardian dogs? I look forward to them...but you're going to need to bond the dogs with the cats. You know how that can end up?@@EdgeofNowhereFarm

[@ShikokuFoodForest]

Hello, I’m Canadian living in subtropical Shikoku, Japan. I have a single pomegranate about 5 years old. It’s about 2/3 the size of your trees in this video about 6 feet tall. A few years ago, I attempted to train my pomegranate as a standard, then realized this wasn’t it’s natural bush growth pattern, so let it grow back into a bush. My question: my pomegranate has never produced a single flower. Any idea why? Any recommendations? It is a location where it gets lots of sun for much of the day from April to October.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Ok, this is very odd. Even pomegranate trees in less than ideal climates usually set some flowers. What is your growing zone where you're located? I can only assume that's what you're finding.

[@ShikokuFoodForest]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Hello, I’m in Kochi city, Shikoku, Japan. The plant hardiness zone here is 9b. I grow lots of loquat, figs, Chinese date, persimmon, mandarin oranges, other oranges, lemons, Yuzu, buntan, kumquat which all flower and produce fruit. Perhaps my pomegranate is still young and needs more time to mature (?). I forget exactly how many years ago I planted it. At least 4~5 years ago. I have noticed in the last 2 years, there is a long brown [caterpillar?] that camouflages itself to the same color of the branches that likes to eat the leaves. Perhaps this weakened the tree over the past 2 years. I don’t use any chemicals, so would regularly hand pick these off the tree. The tree had a dozen or more of these caterpillars last year or 2. Otherwise is my climate too cold for pomegranate to flower and produce fruit? I have to do more research. Apparently they prefer zone 8~10, so my zone here should be perfect for them. Thanks!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@ShikokuFoodForest ah, ok. Your zone is just fine for pomegranates, but if I imagine you get a lot more moisture than we do here, so that may be part of the issue. That pest could be stressing the tree as well. We're in a similar zone, but we are VERY dry being in a desert. Either way, I would think you should still see flowers. We are growing many of the same varieties as you here in the desert.

[@ShikokuFoodForest]

@@EdgeofNowhereFarm Hello again, thanks for your reply. You are right, here in Kochi, Japan we do get a lot of rain. This spring has been especially wet, almost like a spring rainy season which is very unusual this year. We also have our main rainy season mix-June to mix-late July, then very hot and humid summer (36~42C with very high humidity. It stays hot until November or December. I read pomegranates do not like humidity, so I’m wondering if this could be also stressing the tree. I’ll pay close attention to pest management this season. It’s definitely not dry like a desert here like your part of the world.

[@dunedainmom]

What am I doing wrong? (In mesa) my fruit all split in november, December after a rain. And the Averils were pale and not sweet. (Its a wonderful) How do you protect it from splitting?

[@dunedainmom]

That is, protecting the fruit from splitting (necessitating an early harveat)

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

A couple of things with the splitting. The probable reason was the extra moisture which the tree was not accustomed to. They need very consistent irrigation, so a sudden change/increase in that can cause it. Also, they do eventually split as a natural process of fruit ripening. That's how they spread their seeds to make new trees. As for the color, that's usually a matter of fully ripening the fruit...which of course is a challenge if they're splitting! However, we have found that the ariels don't get very dark on our Wonderful Pomegranates either.

[@dunedainmom]

Thanks so much! What type of pomegranate do you recommend? The kind that gets really dark red and fruits 2x a year? Where did you get it?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

@@dunedainmom the Grenada is the darkest color fruit we've seen and we bought that from RSI Growers. They pretty much all flower twice/year.

[@dunedainmom]

Thankyou!!

[@blueridgedsia]

how cold is it there in the winter?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We get down to about 20 degrees Fahrenheit, but typically we're in the mid to upper 20's for our coldest nights.

[@IamHisEcstasy]

Great Job. You helped me out tremendously. You guys are the best. Acts 2:38 God bless you and the family. Thank you for the blessing.❤❤❤❤

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Thank you and may the Lord richly Bless you as well!

[@charlesquinlan8642]

And.... I still do not see answer as to where the pomegranates set their fruit: This year growth, last year, 2-3 or older wood. I am amazing when it comes to peaches, but pomegranates are still a mystery to me.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

I left a response on your other comment, but they fruit on both new growth/tips AND spurs that develop on older wood.

[@Yellowsunorganics]

Save the cuttings for more plants!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

They do grow well from those cuttings, that's for sure!

[@francesmoses6894]

Okay it's been 5months updates please.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

We'll need to get an update out on this one. Hang in there for that one!

[@paul.1337]

I bought a Srvennriy (I'm too lazy to look up the name and can't spell it, it means "Super Early" edit: It's "Sverkhranniy ", I looked it up.) pom. It went from 18" to almost 30" under a grow light and now in my window. Hoping it's hardy enough for zone 7 with a little sheltering. The varieties that looked most appealing were going to be a little zone pushing. If I don't kill it and it survives the Winter I'm going to let it run a little wild the first two years unless it really starts to get large. We apparently can have a blossom end fungal rot problem on the east coast because of wet weather, so there's that too, potentially. They're pretty plants and it'll be a fun experiment either way. I'm not sure if anyone does it, and it might be a bad idea, but on the third pomegranate that you're training in a traditional tree shape, gently unearthing the crown and rubbing off new buds might be an option?

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Please let us know how that tree does for you back East. It's an easy grow for us here with our cold Winters and hot summers, but we're only getting down to about 20 degrees. As for your suggestion on the crown, that's a solid plan. If we can remember to get back there when those shoots are young it would be ideal!

[@taylorvanbuskirk8040]

I think you need to calm down using, "Mr. Beast." You're going to prune those trees right down to the roots because its so fun to use. LOL!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

No doubt about that Taylor!

[@taylorvanbuskirk8040]

LOL!!!!@@EdgeofNowhereFarm

[@charlesquinlan8642]

Nice, useful, but.... What about Production???? I am still waiting for someone to show how to prune for more fruit !!!!

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Production is on new leaf tips AND fruiting spurs that develop on existing branches. If you're in the right environment (think Middle East/desert) they should put on more production than the tree can really handle, so pruning techniques are not really part of the equation.

[@slamboy66]

I have never touched my mousers. I get free feral cats from the rescue. Just leave out food/water.🐱🐱🐱🐁🐁🐁

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Now that's a good way to go about it!!

[@AncientFlorida]

Terrible for local wildlife populations

[@slamboy66]

@@AncientFlorida What is terrible❓❓❓

[@ibrahimm759]

Very wrong , you should leave grown branch minimum half of the length ... You leave minimum branches on top only it may affect maximum yield.... Pruning means not cleaning all stems/branches.

[@EdgeofNowhereFarm]

Hmm, well, we're posting an update next week and these look FANTASTIC!

[@MustAfaalik]

I agree. Looks like they are not very helpful with pruning. Thank you.