How to Make Larger Pomegranate Fruit

 Q. What should I do to increase the size of my pomegranate fruit next year? My soil has a red color.

Pomegranate flower

Pomegranate small fruit developing next to each other. Leave only one when they are small. Some varieties are more prone to this than others.

A. Red soil tells me you are probably not from around here and secondly, your soil has a lot of iron in it. This type of iron is not available to most plants because it is low in organics and the acidity is wrong. 

I also assume you are a backyard producer and not a farmer. My recommendations might be different if you had 50 or more pomegranate trees and were local.

Right now, since it is late Fall and it is getting colder and there are still leaves on the trees, there is nothing to do. To increase the size of fruit, focus on pruning, a fertilizer application, and don’t let the plant get droughty. You will see some smaller benefits by removing a flower for small fruit growing right next to another, some thinning and pest control.

First, don’t forget to sanitize your pruning equipment. 

Sanitizing loppers with 70% ethyl alcohol.

About a month before new growth begins in the spring, prune the pomegranate to 5 or fewer (yes, as few as one) larger stems coming from the ground. Remove all the remaining growth to the ground as well. From the remaining larger stems remove all side branches up to your knees. After this is done, spray the plant and the soil directly at its base twice with dormant oil before it begins flowering.

            When flowering first starts, apply fertilizer to the tree 12 to 18 inches from the stems and where the soil is wet. Use vegetable or rose fertilizer if you do not have a fruit tree fertilizer available. Because your soil is red and not brown, consider applying compost instead of mineral fertilizer. If you apply compost, apply one cubic foot of it in a circle 18 inches from these large stems.

Apply compost to fruit trees, not pomegranate but you get the idea.

You might see a smaller benefit by removing flowers during the first couple of months which are produced very close to each other (if your variety does this alot) and controlling pests when you spot problems. If you are an organic gardener, consider using a Dust Buster for removing larger pests instead of insecticidal sprays.