Plant of the Month – October

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Pomegranate
Punica granatum

  • Plant Form: Deciduous Shrub, Tree
  • Water Use: Low, Moderate
  • Mature Size: 12-15 ft. tall and wide
  • Exposure: Full Sun, Part Sun
  • Bloom Time: Late Spring (April-May), Early Summer (June-July)
  • Native to: Himalayas, India, Iran
  • Hardiness: Cold hardy to 10°F
Pomegranate serves as a durable “edible landscape” plant, producing juicy seeds that can be eaten right off the tree, or juiced, made into jelly or jam, or added to recipes. Pomegranate can be grown as a tree, shrub, or espalier, and tolerates alkaline soils that would kill most plants.

Pomegranate gives back so much and asks for so little in return. Even in very hot gardens with difficult soils, this fast-growing, deciduous shrub or tree produces beautiful fruits filled with juicy, sweet seeds to eat right from the plant or to make into juice, jellies, or wine. Its sharp-tipped, slender, upright branches will gracefully bend downward if left un-pruned. Showy flowers with ruffled red petals bloom at the branch tips, so severe shearing may result in fewer flowers and less fruit. Prune in late winter both for shape and to thin out interior twiggy growth. Pomegranate is drought-tolerant after established, but increased water during flowering and fruit development yields higher quality fruit. Overwatering as fruit matures increases its tendency to split open (which birds love). Use as a hedge, screen, attractive shrub or small tree, or as an accent. A dwarf variety (3 feet tall) is available which is great in pots and planters.

Check out our “Garden Tasks” for October

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