The red-seeded fruits of the pomegranate (Punica granatum) are not only beautiful, but they are packed with nutrients. Pomegranates live a long time and thrive in U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zones 8 through 12. They enjoy full sun, well-drained soil and regular watering, though older plants tolerate drought very well. What’s more, with proper pruning in the developing stage, pomegranates can be trained into either a bush or a tree. After they reach maturity, the pomegranate plants still need annual trimming to maintain their overall health and productivity.
Put on heavy-duty gloves, long sleeves and any other clothing necessary to protect your skin from puncture wounds when you come into contact with the pomegranate’s thorns.
Assess the shape of the mature pomegranate. It is either a bush or a tree. If the pomegranate has been trimmed properly during development, it will have a single trunk, or, more likely, three to five main trunks. The branches curve outward naturally from the center. Keep the overall shape in mind when trimming the tree or bush.
Cut off new suckers growing from the lower trunks and the ground around the base of the pomegranate with sharp pruning shears. Do this frequently throughout the growing season to keep the trunk or trunks of the tree or bush in check.
Prune the pomegranate moderately each year in late winter before the weather warms and new growth appears. Cut off dead or damaged woody branches with a sharp pair of loppers. Perform other minor pruning to keep the overall shape intact, but major pruning should not be necessary. Remove side branches that cross over other main stems.
Trim frost- or freeze-damaged main stems in the winter following the damage. Leave a new sucker at the base to grow in its place.
Things You Will Need
- Protective clothing
- Pruning shears
- Train pomegranate plants during the first two years to make trimming mature plants easier. Choose one to five of the sturdiest stems of a young plant to be the main branches. Prune them to about 2 feet high at the time of planting. Remove suckers and sprouts as they appear from the crown of the root ball around the base by cutting them with pruning shears or by pinching them off. Pinch off new shoots that appear on the main stems less than 10 inches above ground as they appear. Prune the main branches to three-fifths of their entire height late in their first winter.
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