Pomegranate Tree

The Pomegranate is a fruit bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, that grows between 5-10 meters tall.

The Pomegranate tree has multiple spiny branches and is extremely long-lived, with some specimens in France surviving for 200 years.  The flowers are bright red and 3cm in diameter, with three to seven petals.  Some fruitless varieties are grown for the flowers alone.

The Red-purple pomegranate fruit has two parts, and outer, hard pericarp, and an inner, spongy mesocarp, which comprises the fruit inner wall where seeds attach.  The seeds, known as sarcotestas, contains juice, in a thin membrane derived from the epidermal cells of the seeds.  The number of seeds in a pomegranate can vary from 200-1400.