Pomegranate Tips

  • They like to be kept on the dry side as too much water will inhibit fruit set.
  • Check the flowers and help pollination. If the flower parts are perfect then maybe too much water and vegetative growth caused flower drop. Ants also like to eat part of the flowers so apply a band with a sticky substance to the trunk.
  • To produce big fruit, the key is to pollinate them very well. With hand pollination, adequate irrigation, right fertilization and fruit thinning, with the right variety, you can grow bigger fruits.
  • Air layering is carried out in the month of May/June. (Nov/Dec here in Australia). In this method a 1-2 year old, healthy, vigorous, mature shoot of 45-60 cm in length and pencil thickness is selected. A circular strip of bark about 3 cm wide just below a bud is completely removed from the selected shoot. Rooting hormones like IBA & NAA 50mg each in Lanoline paste are applied over this portion. Moist sphagnum moss is packed around this portion and tied with polyethylene sheet to prevent the loss of moisture. Application of such hormones promotes early rooting. Light brown roots are visible through the polythene wrap in the month of July-August. The rooted shoot is slowly detached by giving 2-3 successive cuts over a period of week before finally detaching from the parent plant. The polythene sheet is removed before planting them in pots. They are planted in pots and kept in nursery under shade. Top of the shoot is cut back to maintain a proper ratio of leaves:roots. The grafts can be transplanted in the field in the month of Sept/October (March/April in Aust).   Ref:  http://expertsystm.wixsite.com/pomegranate/propogation.

  • Disorder - Internal breakdown: Normal peel with discoloured arils
    Symptoms - The apparently healthy looking fruits when cut open reveal discoloured mushy arils. The arils become soft, light creamy-brown to dark blackish-brown and unfit for consumption.
    Causes - Boron deficiency, calcium and potash deficiency indirectly contribute in cracking. However, improper irrigation is the major cause.
    Control - Give proper irrigation to maintain proper humidity.
    The fruits should be harvested as soon as they mature.
    Management strategies used for other disorders may also help in reducing the problem.