Brent Wilson · Gardenality Administrator · Zone 8A · 10° to 15° F · Comment About Feeding
After planting a Pomegranate, and new growth begins in Spring, and rain or irrigation settles the soil, apply a granulated organic fertilizer or ammonium sulphate. Generally, two cups of fertilizer a year split into 3 to 4 applications should be sufficient, or follow rates recommended on label. Spread the fertilizer evenly over a circle 18" in diameter with the pomegranate plant in the center. Repeat this same fertilization process in March and July of the second year spreading twice as much fertilizer as the year before over a circle 24" in diameter with the pomegranate plant in the center. Continue to increase the amount of fertilizer applied yearly until the bushes are 8-10 feet tall. Spread the fertilizer evenly under and around the bushes. Water the plants throughout the growing season when rainfall is not adequate. Irrigation of young plants is especially important during the first season or two. Always keep a sufficient layer of much around your pomegranate to control competition from weeds.

Brent Wilson · Gardenality Administrator · Zone 8A · 10° to 15° F · Comment About Pruning
Pomegrantes can be grown naturally as a large bush or limbed up into a small tree.

Because pomegranate suckers profusely from the crown, frequent sucker removal will be necessary to train the plant into a tree form, as is popularly done.

To develop a single or 2 to 3-stem trunk, the process must be started soon after planting. Choose 1 to 3 trunks you would like to keep and remove the rest. If you're lucky, you might find a 1 to 3-trunk already established at a local nursery and garden center.

Annual pruning of bearing pomegranates is not really necessary - but dead or damaged portions should be removed as time permits, and some thinning of suckers or branches may be necessary from time to time. As your pomegranate plant matures, continue with the same care as practiced during establishment, whether tree-form or natural shrub.