Sacramento Digs Gardening: Pomegranate time arriving early

Pomegranates are ripening earlier than normal this

year. (Photo: Debbie Arrington)

Pomegranates are ripening early this year. Instead of waiting until mid-November, they look like they’ll be ready by mid-October.

Likely, late-summer heat pushed them into speed-up mode. But if you have pomegranates on the tree, keep an eye for signs that they’re ready for harvest.

Most commercial growers pick pomegranates when they’re under-ripe to avoid splitting or other damage. When the round fruit turns blocky, the arils (the seed sacs) are at their juiciest and sweetest. That’s the best time to pick – when the fruit is at its peak.

But waiting for that blocky shape may be too late this season – if rain is in the forecast. An October storm can cause the tree to soak up too much moisture – and force the fruit to split its skin.

So, watch the forecast while also watching the tree.

Off the tree, pomegranates will keep several weeks. In the refrigerator crisper, they'll last three months or more. They'll actually produce more juice after they've sat a couple of weeks. By that time, the leathery skin can start to harden. If so, soak the whole fruit for 5 to 10 minutes in lukewarm water before deseeding.

That soaking also will remove any grit or soot the fruit may have collected during its long hang time on the tree. Fortunately, that leathery skin also protects the arils from smoke and ash.

Did your pomegranate have an off year with little or no fruit? The next question: When did you prune?
Hard pruning of a pomegranate tree can lead to a season with no fruit. Pomegranates bear fruit on second-year wood, sprouts the tree produced the previous year. If you remove all the new growth each winter, the tree will have few if any fruit.

Instead, prune lightly in January after the shrub has dropped its foliage, concentrating on opening the center of the plant for good air circulation.

GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:

gardening Sacramento backyard produce fall weather fall food orchard fruit fruit trees pomegranates fall harvests

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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3

November still offers good weather for fall planting:

* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.

* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.

* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.

* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.

* Plant garlic and onions.

* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.

* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.

* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.

* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.

* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.

* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.

* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.

* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.

* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.

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