How to Grow Red Silk Pomegranates
The Red Silk pomegranate is a semi-dwarf tree that you can grow as a tree or a bush, depending upon how you prune it. The fruit is bright red with sweet-tasting seeds. Red Silk is self-fruitful, so you only need to grow one to have lots of juicy pomegranates to eat fresh, use in recipes or to make juice. Red Silk pomegranate trees require 150 to 200 hours of chilling time and are hardy to U.S. Department of Agriculture Zone 7. Pick your pomegranates in October. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Mulch the soil surrounding the Red Silk pomegranate tree with an organic mulch, spread from 6 inches away from the trunk to 1 foot beyond the drip-line. Mulch helps conserve soil moisture and discourages weed growth.
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Provide the pomegranate tree with just enough water to keep it alive in the summer. Too much water causes the fruit to split. Wetting the soil to a depth of 6 inches every two to four weeks is generally sufficient. During hot periods the soil may dry out quicker, so you may have to water more often.
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Supply the Red Silk pomegranate tree with 1 pound of nitrogen fertilizer in the fall. Scatter the fertilizer under the tree, 1 foot inside the drip-line, and use a rake to spread it out to 1 foot beyond the drip-line. Water the soil to activate the fertilizer and soak it down to the roots.
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Cut off suckers that grow at the base of the tree as they appear. When they are small, you can rub them off with your hands, otherwise use sharp pruning shears to remove them. If you are growing the Red Silk as a bush, allow five or six suckers to continue to grow.
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Prune the Red Silk tree when it is dormant. Remove dead and weak wood back to a main branch. Completely remove branches that cross over others and those that are bunched together. Red Silk blooms on new wood, so cut 1 to 2 inches from the tips of branches to produce more fruit.
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References
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