Pomegranates are one of the fruit trees suggested as an alternative crop to grow in Hawaii according to Ken Love’s publication, “Twelve Fruits with Potential Value-Added and Culinary Uses.” There are pomegranate trees growing throughout the Islands including some at 400 feet in Kona.
These rather small trees (15 – 20 ft.) are long-lived; some reported to be 200 years old. The trees seem to tolerate a wide range of conditions. They do well in hot and dry conditions with high alkaline soils, as well as growing in deep, acidic loam soils. Pomegranate trees also tolerate wet, heavy (clay) soils but produce better in soils that are well-drained. Heavy rain can wreak havoc on the quality of the pomegranate fruit. Trees do not come true from seed, and therefore, good fruit trees are propagated from cuttings. Air layering is possible; grafting is seldom successful.
Pomegranates have been around for eons. Over the centuries, their depiction has appeared in artwork, literature, coinage, jewelry and coat of arms. Believed to have originated around Persia and the Himalayas in Northern India, the pomegranate has been used as a symbol for many civilizations and sometimes viewed as a symbol of fertility in Asia.
The Spanish missionaries brought pomegranates to California, Mexico and Texas. And recently, from 2006 to 2009, acreage in California almost doubled, from 15,000 to about 30,000 acres.
Pomegranate juice is rich in three types of antioxidants which are recognized in neutralizing free radicals and other unstable molecules in the body. Besides eating the fruit or making a delicious beverage, the fruits can also be dried and used in wreaths and other decorations. Pomegranate juice is being added to such products as jelly, ice cream bars, truffles and chewing gum. Ink can be made by steeping the leaves in vinegar. In Japan, an insecticide is derived from the bark.
Q: When I prune landscape trees and make some big cuts, should I apply a pruning compound? And is it safe to apply this material?
A: I presume it’s safe; however, is it necessary? And the answer is no. Many years ago, it was shown that applying a pruning compound to the wound of a tree helped very little and in some cases was actually a detriment.
When a tree is wounded, or pruned, a fungal spore, floating in the air, may land on the open wound. If conditions are right the spore germinates, penetrates the wood and infects the tree. The degree of infection — whether the decay is stopped within inches or continues to grow and decay major limbs — is a battle between the trees defense mechanisms and the fungus. Is the tree stressed? Is it growing vigorously? Does it have adequate nutrition? As far as the gardener is concerned, it is important to keep trees adequately watered and fertilized and to make the proper pruning cuts. If anything is to be applied to the tree, a copper fungicide solution painted on the wound would be the best protection.
When removing limbs from a tree, the pruning cuts should be made just outside the collar area. At the point where the branch is attached to the trunk, the tree forms a collar or ridge of swollen bark tissue. Never make a cut flush against the trunk, and never leave branch stubs which may die and allow decay to enter the rest of the tree. In addition, cuts should not be made parallel to the trunk but rather at a slight angel with the lower edge of the cut farther away from the trunk than the top edge.
Hilo resident Nick Sakovich is a professor emeritus of the University of California. Email your questions to Sakovich at askthegardenguy@earthlink.com.
