Hi all, will be moving this spring to a place where pomegranates grow like crazy. What do you do with them? You crack them open, they are a mess, the juice stains. What makes this a viable fruit (besides the samurai commercials on TV re: pom juice?). Please tell me. thanks!
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Great fall fruit when not much else is ripening. Purported health benefits. Slow food movement-- distract from those junk food cravings; just hand pick at a pomegranate. If you’re worried about staining, then plant the non-staining ones available from Edible Landscaping, Greensea Farms, or the Dave Wilson Nursery vendors. They are beautiful little things, and can double as a table centerpiece just sitting alone in a centrally-positioned fruit bowl.
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There are many videos showing how to open and process poms
with no mess nor stains. If you’re growing them to eat, be sure to
get varieties with soft seeds.
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yes, quite messy, but personally worth the mess and effort as they have the similar refreshing, ‘feel-good’ effect i get from eating guavas(the crunchy ones, not the over-ripe ones), semi-ripe mangoes, and jujubes. We eat pomeg’s over big dinner plates with a roll of Brawny nearby, haha And speaking of guavas, the seeds taste like guava seeds too when accidentally crunch on them. Just like guava seeds, pomeg seeds reportedly have omega.
pomegranates are also one of the few carefree trees when it comes to upkeep. Requires little water, and depending on where you grow them, may not even need irrigation. Also pesticide-free as the tree and fruits are impervious to insects. And probably the only fruit one could grow here which holds its own against many birds(at least prior to the fruits splitting).
some pomeg’s also have brightly colored flowers.
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I think they’re probably the prettiest flowers of any fruit I grow.
Ray, I’m curious about your comment about getting the soft seeded varieties for fresh eating. What are the hard seeded varieties for then? Or do you just not like the hard seeded varieties?
From what I’ve read, I’ve gotten the impression that the cold-hardiest pomegranate varieties are all or mostly the hard seeded types, and cold hardiness is definitely an issue for me, but I’ve started wondering if I could grow a soft seeded variety in a large pot. Could a pomegranate easily be kept in a large pot (but not so large that two people couldn’t easily move it around) for multiple fruiting years in a row? If so, what varieties would you all recommend for pot culture in zone 7 North Carolina? For my in-ground plantings I’ve felt as if my location is so marginal already that cold hardiness needed to trump all other considerations, so I haven’t yet considered which varieties might offer other desirable attributes.
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To me, the hard seeded varieties would be used only for juice, unless
you enjoy spitting out seeds and risking breaking your teeth and or dental
work. I just starting growing poms this year. They are all in pots, but will
be planted next spring. I’m in zone 8 and would think you could certainly grow
them in pots in zone 7, and possibly in the ground.
When I made my selections, I chose only soft seeded varieties, because I plan
to eat them, seeds included. Cold hardiness was a never a consideration for me.
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They are easy breezy trees to grow, drought tolerant, no spray, only work is occasional pruning if you want to limit size. The seeds are delicious for snacking, great in salads, for juicing, they are one of my favorite fruits I grow. I used to think they were messy to open but practice makes perfect. Although I’m still not brave enough to open Ina white shirt! Google pomegranate wooden spoon method.
I cut them in quarters and eat the seeds out kind of like corn on the cob, over a plate with a paper towel. The persians ate them before going into battle thinking they gave them extra strength. They are definately a superfood, I feel great this time of year when I get to eat one every day.
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What everyone else said 
I have about 12 different varieties, maybe more. Completely self-sufficient for me. If I remember to fertilize them one a year, I"m doing good. I LOVE the taste of pomegranates, reminds me of my childhood. I agree, get soft-seeded varieties. Love them.
Patty S.
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I plan to grow a naturally dwarfed Red Silk in pot culture at my z7 home.
Pot culture allows them to escape the occassional spring frost, which can kill them outright.
I drank the stuff at lunch today. Delicious, and aparrently loaded with potassium!
Ray and others,
What soft seeded varieties did you choose? Do you have enough experience to name favorites for fresh eating?
Wow, thank you all so much. First of all I had no idea pom’s came with soft seeds, do any of us need more dental work? don’t think so. Anyway, the soft seeded varieties make sense. Hard seeded poms would be a hard sell for me. Thanks!
I did a lot of research, before I bought the ones I have. I wanted only
soft seeded varieties that were not tart nor acidic as I don’t care for
tart or acidic fruit of any kind. The ones that I chose are:
Parfianka, Vina, Azadi, Sirenevyi, Balegal, Eversweet, and Sin Pepe(Pink Satin).
Mrs. G.,
It is a plant that has beautiful leaves, flowers, weeping tree form, etc. Picking the right kind to grow, you will have food for your eyes and stomach. Hopefully there will be several varieties for you to choose in France.
My former supervisor put pomegranate seeds mixed in her spinach salad with sections of Mandarin oranges. Her salad was beautiful, nutritious and delicious. What a clever way of using the fruit.
Trader’s Joe sells pomegranate seeds in containers. You don’t have to get your hand dirty 
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Hah! Again, what Ray said, how funny. I also do not care for tart pom’s, so researched some of the better sweet, soft-seeded varieties as well to add to my existing pom collection. The softt-seeded varieties I have are Parfianka, Sirenevyi, Eversweet, Sin Pepe (Pink Satin), Angel Red, Utah Sweet, Phil’s Sweet, and Sumbarski. And, mamuang, I also add pomegranate seeds to my salads, they are fantastic in a salad. The soft-seeded varieties really lend themselves to salads.
Ok, I am really sold! Honestly HQ I had no idea pomegranates had ‘soft’ seeds. Now I’m looking forward to at least two shrubs. They grow very large in France. I have seen varieties with red and yellow skin in the markets but never bought them. Good research!
mrsg47, even if you never eat a fruit, the tree/shrub, itself, along with the flowers are worth growing in your garden. They are lovely, lovely specimens. I adore them. I have them growing on my slope in my backyard. I will try to snap a photo through my staircase landing window and post it, or from my backyard. They have this very lovely weeping habit, and the flowers are so beautiful. They are completely carefree. Our only issue here in California are scary Leaf Footed bugs, which can ruin the fruit. Fortunately for me (knock on wood), those horrid bugs have not found my yard. They are one of my most favorite plants in total, in my yard. Adore them!
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They are wonderfully exotic and the flowers look like wax. If you are in zone 9a-b we will finally be in matching zones. Getting excited! Thanks for all of the info too!
@mrsg47, pomegranates are shrubs which can be maintained as trees with a lot of grooming effort.
Where specifically are you moving to?
Uzes, where I have seen them grown as trees, that are about ten feet tall.