🍅 Pomegranate

• Botanical Name: Punica grananun
• Family: Punicaceae
• Origin: Iran
• It is highly drought tolerant among fruit crops.
• Pigment responsible for the red colour in pomegranate fruits is Anthocyanin.
• India has first position in the world with respect to pomegranate area and production.
• In India Maharashtra is the leading state in area and production followed by KR, AP, GJ, TN and RAJ.
• Juice of pomegranate is useful for patient suffering from leprosy.
• July-August is ideal time of planting in tropics.
• Wild type Anar is known is Daru.
• Presently Bhagawa is the leading variety of pomegranate cultivation in India especially in Maharashtra.
• Propagated by stem cutting (Hardwood Cutting) and air layering (Gootee).
• Wood younger than 6 months and older than 18 months is unsuitable for cutting.
• Multi stem training system is followed in India.
• Anti-transpirants such as 10% kaolin, 10-5 m phenyl mercuric acetate, 1.5% power oil, 1% liquid paraffin is beneficial for increasing its productivity.
• Summer crop maximum demand.
• Root treatment with 3000 ppm IBA gives maximum survival.
• Bahar treatment is followed in pomegranate.
• Ambe bahar is most commonly preferred by the growers because of high yield as compared to other flowering season.
• More incidence of fruit cracking (Internal break down) takes place in mrig bahar season.

Varieties

• Solapur Lal
• Muskati red
• Paper shelled
• Alandi
• Karadi
• Madhugiri
• Bassein seedless
• Chawla
• Country large red
• Spanish Ruby
• Muskat
• Nabha
• G-137: Clonal selection from Ganesh.
• P-26: Seedling selection from muscat.
• Jyoli: Bassein seedless x Dholka

Hybrid

• Ruby: Ganesh x Kabul x Yercaud
• Soft seeded var: 1. Jyothi 2. Ganesh 3. Bassein seedless 4. Paper shell
• Hard seeded var: 1. Khandhari 2. Alandi

Insects

• Anar butterfly: Virachola isocrates

• Serious pest of pomegranate
• Pencil size bored holes can be seen on fruits from which larval excreta comes out continuously.
• It is managed by Covering of fruits with butter paper.
• Spray Carbaryl 50 WP @ 2-4 g/liter or Methomyl 40 SP @ 1.0 ml/l or Monocrotophos 36 SL @ 1 ml/liter spray on plants.
• Fruit fly:
  • Bactrocera zonata
  • Minor pest of pomegranate

• Fruit sucking moth:
  • Othreis spp.

Disease

• Bacterial blight:
  • Caused by Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. punicae

• Also known as nodal blight or black spot
• In Maharashtra commonly known as oily spot or Telya.

Physiological disorder

• Fruit cracking:
  • Due to B deficiency.

• More in Rajasthan (dry areas).
• Managed by spray of Borax @ 0.5 %.

Internal breakdown

• Disintegration of arils in matured pomegranate.
• Arils become brown and blackening.
• The incidence is more in ambe bahar (Jan - June)