Shrubs - Pomegranate
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  (July) I have two pomegranate bushes here in Malvern that are growing close enough together that their outer limbs touch. They are in well drained sandy clay/loamy soil. They have about 50% full sun and about 50% "mottled" sun. They bloom profusely from about mid May to about mid June. A blossom will stay on for about a week then fall off without wilting. There is never any fruit. What's the problem please?

  Different pomegranate varieties produce different yields of fruit. Many that we grow in Arkansas are used for their flowering ability with a bonus of fruit if it forms. Rarely will you find large pomegranate fruits on locally grown plants. Many of the flowers are double and not as fruit prolific as flower prolific. I love the plant with its showy orange blossoms. They are self-fruitful-meaning you don't need two for cross pollination, so you may simply have a flowering form versus a fruiting form.

  I live in DeWitt, Arkansas and get several catalogs and we have several nurseries in the area. None of them seem to know what a pomegranate is. I had one when we moved, and tried to start a cutting in a large bucket, but it didn’t make it. I want another one. Can you tell me where and if it can be ordered in my area.

  Pomegranate, or Punica, is not a common plant at many nurseries. It is an old-fashioned plant, that may be making a comeback. It has brilliant reddish-orange flowers in the summer, followed by a red fruit which ripens in the fall. While it may get winter damaged further north than Little Rock, it is worth trying. See if your local nurseries can order it for you. I have seen it at several nurseries around the state, primarily in the spring to early summer. Park Seed Company, Cokesbury Road, Greenwood, SC 29647 does carry the plants.

  What in the world do I have here? Enclosed are some leaves and blossoms from an unidentified plant in some rental property. The owner, and probably planter, is dead. There is no one to ask. The bush or small tree is about nine feet tall, but very sparsely limbed -- this could be due to overcrowding. I don’t know if it is deciduous, but I would guess so, by the size of the leaf. The leaves seem small in proportion to the rest of the plant. I would presume it is winter hardy, since it is growing with relatively little care. Hope you can identify it for me. Thanks.

  The plant in question is a pomegranate, Punica granatum. It is a wonderful, deciduous shrub or small tree, growing to 15 feet or more in height. It begins blooming in late May or early June and can bloom for well over a month. The flowers are typically a bright reddish orange, although different cultivars have different colored flowers. A red two inch berry will ripen in the fall. I think it is an under used plant in the landscape which has few pest problems. The main limiting factor is winter hardiness. It is listed as a zone 8 plant, but there are many fine specimens in central Arkansas. It does best in full sun, and is tolerant of dry soils, but will really shine in soils high in organic matter.

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