The Utah Sweet Pomegranate Tree is said to be a zone 6 tree https://www.willisorchards.com/product/utah-sweet-pomegranate-tree#.WGfdPeRTHIU. Is anyone in zone 6 growing these trees?
Mine died in 8b, but it was very small and we had a cold winter that year.
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I think I will skip it c5tiger if it died in 8b it definitely could not survive 6a. The cold hardiness may have been overstated on the website.
This was in the open with no protection in about 10 degrees. It may work for you but I would think you will need to provide some type of protection.
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C5tiger,
We just went through -13 the other day so itās not going to work here. Thank you for letting me know
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A lot of the time itās not the absolute low in the winter but late freezes after the buds begin to swell that do them in, but -13 I would think would be too much for them to take.
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I have several Utah Sweets in zone 8a. They have done very well for us, but we havenāt had temps lower than about 15F since they were planted. I have never heard anything about them being a ācold hardyā pomegranate like Kazake and some other Russian varieties.
To be honest, there is nothing special about the Utah Sweet so donāt feel bad if you canāt grow it. Itās the typical early ripening āsweetā pomegranate with pink arils and no tartness whatsoever.
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I spoke with http://greenseapomegranates.com today and they are cultivating an egg pomegranate this year that will be able to handle 5 degrees. They cover them with dirt or snow in Russia to be able to grow them. They will be available by next fall.
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I have been watching hardy pomegranates for the past 3-4 years. I have not found any variety that can survive zone 6. I am talking about an account from backyard gardenders, not a catalog description by nurseries.
I planted Kazake in ground about 4 years ago. Unfortunately, even protected by mulch, it was dead. However, that winter happened to be one of the harshest one in memory.
I agree. Itās the suprise spring frosts that devastate pomegranates. They survive the winter only to die in a spring-time cold snap.
Iāve resigned myself to growing them in pots for basement winter storage. Red Silk is a natural pom dwarf and well-suited for pot culture says multiple sources. My new Red Silk is sleeping in the basement right now.
I had Salavatski growing in the mountains in Zone 6b. A spring freeze killed it.
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I am growing Salavatski in zone 6b/7a depending on the year. I am in Northern Utah in Davis County. I have determined that pomegranates like the American Southwest better than more humid locations and they are more winter hardy to lower temperatures if they are in a drier climate. Winters drop to zero sometimes. I had to give the baby trees some protection for the first couple of years which I did by placing stakes around it and wrapping layers of plastic around the stakes. In addition to āSalavatskiāā¦ Iām having good results with the following cultivars and many are beginning to fruit āUtah Sweetā, āKazakeā, āSuhr Anorā, Afghanski, Anvari, Agat, Kandahar, Kaj Akik Anor, A.C. Sweet, Nikitski Ranni, Sumbar, Alk Pust Ghermex Saveh, Bala Muirsal, Reza, Sogdiana, Petrovac, Peheli, Al Sirin Nar, Texas Red (aka Russian 18) Intend to try several more.
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Zone 6b/7a. Growing and fruiting without protection. I have friends trying to grow these pomegranates in zone 7b and 8a and they complain about the trees dying in the winter where I am not having that problem. These reason Iām not having that problem is that Iām in a pocket where I never have an early warming. Snow falls in November and never melts until May. Iām up on the mountain side so I get a couple foot or three of insulative snow. The trees remain dormant in Northern Utah until spring is really here. I have two weeks of muddy spring and then summer temperatures hit end of May. Pomegranates seem to like this climate.
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Iām trying to do poms in Northern CA zone 8b or so. We can sometimes get down to the mid teens. I have a 14 year old wonderful pom that has severe dieback every couple years so itās still tiny. With my warm spells followed by late freezes, is this what I should expect out of most varieties?
I got a few from the low Sierra mountains they called āSweetā. I asked if they mean Utah Sweet and they said no. They grow tons and tons of different plums and pluots for decades but have some names they just rename so maybe they did that with this Pom too. The first one was incredible and nice balance of mostly sweet. This one pictured was a bit too sour or tart.
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In the southern Sierra Nevada mountains I saw many people grow pomegranates with little work. The trees never died back but the coldest it would ever get was 15 F. No idea on what varieties people grew.
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@Spring7 Could you give me some advice? Iām bit to the south of you in Utah county - Saratoga Springs. Zone 6b, recently upgraded to 7a. We donāt get much snow where I am - in a rain shadow plus Utah Lake is close by. We also get a lot of wind, mostly from the west but also from the south. The lake helps with mediating temperature dips and so we often avoid getting hit with late spring frosts.
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I have two places Iām considering trying some pomegranates - the first is mostly south facing against a vinyl fence which would provide a slightly warmer microclimate, the second is against east/northeast facing rock wall that provides better protection from the wind. Which do you think would be the better location? Iām not sure which is more damaging - cold winds or cold temperature. Both spots get plenty of sunlight in the summer.
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Iām considering growing as an espalier since Iām starting to run out of space. Is that advisable where thereās a chance of winter kill, or am I better off with leaving it as a shrub? Iāve also considered putting a tunnel around it to hedge my bets, especially when itās small and getting established.
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What are your top three varieties? I like a little tartness, not just sweet. I have a merchandise credit with a nursery that sells Utah Sweet, Kazake, Nikitski Ranni, and Salavatski, along with some less-hardy varieties. I donāt have to use my credit to buy one of those varieties if thereās a superior variety elsewhere, but I also wonāt complain if I can use the credit for something I can eat fresh and juice.
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