Pomegranate (Punica granatum) NIKITSKI RANNI

High-yielding pomegranate variety, selected in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden in Crimea. The variety gained popularity due to its low growth, early ripening, high productivity and high-quality fruits with excellent taste.

Vigour: weak, grows to a height of 1.8 - 2 meters. Forms an upright, densely branched deciduous shrub. The shrub needs regular thinning. Lives to old age, even several centuries. In wine-growing regions, we recommend planting the pomegranate tree in open ground. Can also be grown as a container plant in a large pot.
Site requirements: the ideal site for pomegranates is a sheltered sunny spot in the garden or patio. Pomegranate is undemanding to soil, but grows and produces better in deep, loamy soils rich in organic matter with a light, permeable subsoil.
Blossom: bright orange flowers bloom gradually from May throughout the summer. The variety is self-pollinating.
Fruits: medium to large, weight 180 - 300 g, round. Skin medium thick, deep red. The fruit contains a large number of small soft seeds.
Juice: thick, dark cherry red. Tastes sweet with a pleasant acidity.
Harvest season: depending on the location and climatic conditions, the fruits ripen gradually from early September to October. They can be stored for 4 - 5 months.
Yield: very high. A mature tree can produce up to 50 kg of fruit under optimal conditions. Yield onset in the 3rd - 4th year after planting.
Disease resistance: pomegranate shrubs are one of the easier fruits to work with since they are not usually affected by pests or diseases. Suitable for organic or no-spray culture.
Frost resistance: it can withstand frosts down to -23°C without damage. We recommend providing winter protection to young plants, for example an 8-10 cm layer of mulch, which will help protect the roots during winter.
Usage: juicy pomegranate seeds are consumed fresh, used to press the juice as well as to make the wine called Grenada. Pomegranate concentrate is used as an ingredient in salad dressings. Boiling pomegranate juice with sugar creates grenadine syrup, which is used as an ingredient in cocktails. In terms of taste, the pomegranate combines sweetness and acidity in an exotic way. That's why pomegranate seeds are ideal for refining desserts, meat and vegetarian dishes.

Pomegranates are not grafted onto a rootstock, but are grown on their own roots, so if the above-ground part of the plant is damaged during the winter, the roots remain undamaged and in the spring the pomegranate sprouts new shoots.