Unknown Follybowlius seeds, are you interested?

I have seeds from a pomegranate variety called Unknown Follybowlius, it was named “Unknown Follybowlius” by a owner of the Folly bowl garden amphitheater in Altadena, California, he’s also a owner of the tree.

It’s believed to be a true dwarf pomegranate variety, the fruit looks a lot like a cross between the “Eight Ball” pomegranate and the “Purple Sunset” yet I doubt that it’s a hybrid of the two. It’s seeds are tiny to small in size, and the seed shells are fragile. I am guessing that this variety is not much cold hardy since the seeds are so delicate. When I opened the paper towel with the seeds inside I got a strong scent that was a lot like red wine. Since this is not a sweet pomegranate I am thinking that it may make great pomegranate molasses and great jam.

The skin of the small fruit is dark almost pitch black, yet with a strong hint of purple, the tree stays small like a shrub for years. Handy in small spaces and as accents in design. The arils are clear with not much pigment, less sweet than the usual pomegranates. The flowers are typically red.

I am looking for two people that are willing to germinate 40 seeds, each person gets 40 seeds. Those people would need to have a strong interest in spreading the variety Unknown Follybowlius around with no intentions of making a profit. Someone who thinks they can handle up to 40 plants and someone who has experience in germinating seeds, preferably someone who can care for any possibly cold sensitive plants he or she does not find a good home for.

Message me if your are interested!

PS if I do send you seeds then I can help tell you how to germinate them and take care of the plants if need be.

We have 4 seedlings of this variety that are producing, There is another 1 that I neglected for years due to not being able to buy potting soil to up-pot, that 5th seedling is still tiny.

The seedlings seem nearly identical to one and another, and the 4 non-neglected ones tried to bear the same year that they germinated, yet winter came too soon.

Last year those 4 they bared fruit that tastes like cranberries, certainly not a sweet variety. The variety seems like a late bearer so far, I feel more strongly than ever that it’s a wild variety, wild varieties are often not compatible pollen wise with modern pomegranates, yet not always.

I have another variety with a skin of dark purple almost black, it’s not a seedling and it does not appear to be wild.

Within a few years I will try hybridizing the two black varieties together, because in a lot of cases one has a weakness where the other one has a strength, and vice versa. There are very few decent black skinned pomegranates as they are called, yet each of these varieties have great traits, that is a main reason for my interest in hybridizing them together, I will explain more later. I will be asking for volunteers in helping to germinate seeds again when I am ready to start the project.

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