There is hardly a person on Earth who is not familiar with the pomegranate. Its slightly tart taste is very pleasant. The blood-red color of the fruit contains a huge amount of nutrients necessary for human he alth. For the sake of fruits and a beautiful decorative appearance, the pomegranate tree is grown in open ground and at home. Read about it in the article.
Historical background
The pomegranate tree has been known for a long time. Even in ancient Egypt, when the pharaohs ruled, gardens with these fruits were planted everywhere, which at that time were called Carthaginian apples. They were brought here by the Phoenicians in 825 BC. But when the Romans attacked these places, everything was destroyed except for gardens with trees where pomegranates grew.
It took a long time before the plant was cultivated. This happened at the end of the 18th century on the territory of the American continent. This fruit was the main one on the royal table because of the peel, which looks like a crown. Until now, some countries believe that the pomegranate is the progenitor of the royal headheadwear.
What does a pomegranate tree look like?
It is mainly a deciduous plant. It can reach a height of five meters or grow as a shrub. The leaves are glossy, opposite, have an elongated shape and an average length of seven centimeters. It blooms for a long time and is very plentiful. This period starts in May and ends in August. The flowers are large, their diameter reaches three centimeters, and the shape resembles bells. The blooming pomegranate tree is strewn with bright red-orange buds. This is an amazing sight! Many gardeners grow the tree just for the beautiful flowers. Pomegranate is considered a long-liver. The duration of his life at home is half a century, and in the open field - three hundred years.
Fruit characteristics
Fruits have a spherical shape, their peel is dense, yellow-red or red-brown. The diameter reaches 5-12 cm, the average weight is 600 g. The fruit inside has many chambers filled with a huge number of seeds, there are up to 1400 of them. Around each grain is a juicy pulp, which is the edible shell of the seeds. It accounts for 50% of the total weight of the fetus.
The fruit of the pomegranate tree (see photo below) ripens in extended periods of time. This process begins in September and ends in February, except in the southern hemisphere. Here are other dates: March-May. Pomegranate has a high yield: 60 kg per tree.
The plant is always decorative: when it grows, it blooms andbears fruit. In warm regions, during the ripening period, fruits often crack on the branches. This process is very interesting. The halves of the fruit diverge in different directions, taking a horizontal position, but the grains do not spill out. In regions with a temperate climate, it happens that the fruits are removed later than the leaves fall.
Where does the pomegranate tree grow?
The birthplace of this plant is Persia (in the modern world - Iran). The places of distribution of the pomegranate tree in the wild are Central and Asia Minor, north-west India, Transcaucasia, Afghanistan, Iran. In a cultivated form, the territories of pomegranate growth are countries with a tropical and subtropical climate: the Middle East, Italy, Greece, Crimea.
Growing from seeds
Material for planting are large pomegranate seeds. When buying it, you need to carefully examine the skin of the fetus: it should be even, without damage. The grains are taken out of the pulp, washed well and dried. They should have a firm texture and an ivory color. If the seeds are soft and have a different color, they cannot be used to grow the plant.
Seed sowing technology
How to grow a pomegranate tree? You need to plant a seed. To do this, a pot, preferably clay, is filled with a substrate, which includes earth, sand and peat. It is important that the soil is loose. As drainage, expanded clay, fine gravel or other is poured onto the bottom of the pot.material. We should not forget that excess moisture has a detrimental effect on the root system of the pomegranate tree. The seed planting technology is as follows:
- Small indentations should be made on the surface of the soil in the pot.
- Place seeds in them: one seed in each hole.
- Sprinkle the holes with earth, but at different levels, without deepening the seeds into the ground more than a centimeter. There should be a distance of about two to three centimeters between the grains. If it is not maintained, then due to the density of planting, the seeds will not germinate well.
- Water the seedlings.
- Cover crops with foil.
How to grow seedlings?
If the planting technology is followed, and the seeds were he althy and mature, the first shoots will appear in half a month. When they grow up a little and become stronger, the polyethylene with which the plantings were covered can be removed. All sprouts in a pot must be carefully examined, the weakest removed, put the plants in a place illuminated by the sun and do not forget about watering.
When leaves appear, pomegranate seedlings are transplanted into separate containers with new soil. You can cook it yourself. To do this, you need to mix humus, leaf turf, sand, peat in a ratio of 1: 1: 0, 5: 0, 5. If planting is carried out in winter, additional lighting is used, since seedlings may stop growing due to lack of light.
The time of emergence does not matter. If this happened in winter, they will remain in pots until they get stronger. Withwith the onset of spring, they are planted in a place allotted in the garden. If the seeds sprouted in the first month of summer, they are left in a pot and grown at home for another year. Already grown bushes will be planted in open ground.
Growing pomegranate from cuttings
Through cuttings, all genetic material is transferred to a new plant. Therefore, growing a pomegranate tree in this way is the most common option. To obtain good planting material, the middle of a two-year-old branch 15 cm long with buds is selected. After that, the cutting is placed in a stimulating solution for several days, and then in a small pot with soil, the composition of which is the same as for sowing seeds.
A month later, roots form at the cutting, it is transplanted into another container, the dimensions of which are slightly larger. When the tree reaches a height of 50 cm, it is planted in open ground in a permanent place of growth or transplanted into a large pot for further cultivation indoors.
Planting a pomegranate in open ground
According to the advice of experts, it is better to do this in the fall, in the second and third months of the season. Although landing is carried out in the spring. The pomegranate comes from a warm climate, so it prefers a lot of light. If the plant is deficient in it, the fruits may not ripen.
Growing an exotic fruit begins with its planting in the ground. To do this, you need to dig a landing hole, the bottom of which is first covered with the top layer of soil, and then with rotted manure mixed with the ground. ATeach hole you need to pour a bucket of fertilizer. In temperate climatic latitudes, when planting, seedlings are placed in a seat with a slope to the south. This is necessary for the convenience of shelter for the winter.
Pomegranate pruning
Following the rules of caring for a tree, you can achieve high fruiting. Pomegranate blooms profusely, but not all flowers produce ovaries. Pruning should be done so that the crown grows less, since the tree can reach a height of six meters, growing in open ground. In order for a plant to form a low-standard form, you need to follow the following recommendations:
- Pruning a pomegranate for the first time during transplanting.
- If there are damaged and infected branches, remove them.
- Leave three branches in a circle, get rid of all emerging shoots.
- Shorten the branches planted the day before by 1/3 of their entire length.
- In subsequent years, when pruning, you need to pinch unnecessary shoots.
- According to the recommendation of experts, pruning should be carried out when sprouts no longer than five centimeters appear.
Pomegranate in the house
Every gardener dreams of decorating his house with an exotic plant. And if it is a pomegranate tree (the photo is presented for viewing) - even more so. But you should always remember that its fruits grown at home are not edible. The plant in this case will be decorative. Pomegranate is bred by cuttings and grains. Growing a tree from seeds requires a lot of labor and a lot of time. The fruits of your efforts will not appear soon. Most often at homecuttings are used for planting, which are easy to prepare on their own. Some gardeners buy ready-made seedlings for planting.
Home pomegranate care
This plant is maintenance free when grown indoors. However, there are certain rules to follow:
- The optimum indoor temperature in summer is 25°C, and in winter - 15.
- In the spring, when the return frosts end, the pot of pomegranate should be taken out into the fresh air, to the balcony or loggia.
- This plant prefers overhead watering over root watering. The soil should never be dry, so water frequently and abundantly in summer and as needed in winter.
- Despite the fact that the fruits of an indoor tree are decorative, I want them to be. To do this, the plant needs to be fed at intervals of once every half a month.
- The pomegranate, like all others, has a dormant period. At this time, the plant sheds leaves. To prevent this from happening, it is enough to move the tree to a warmer room. But you should be aware that suspending the rest period of the plant slows down its growth.
Pruning homemade pomegranate
When growing pomegranate at home, the topsoil is renewed annually and the plant is pruned. To form a stable crown, young sprouts pinch off the top when they grow to a height of 60 cm. Usually, during pruning, they form a lowa tree with up to five skeletal branches. This process is carried out until the buds have blossomed. How to prune a pomegranate tree? To do this, you need to get rid of all weak, sick, damaged branches and sprouts that prevent the fruits from growing. This contributes to the thinning of the crown. Once every five years old branches are completely cut.
