Stalking the wily Punica granatum

We’re a little late for Rosh Hashanah, but we harvested the first pomegranate this morning.

We may still be a bit early for optimum ripeness; we never know for sure until we break one apart and try it out, but most conventional wisdom says to wait until October to harvest them.

The seed pulp on this one is sweetly tart (or is it tartly sweet? I never can remember), but it wouldn’t hurt to wait a few days for the rest of the harvest. And we still have plenty to harvest. This is just a portion of what this tree is offering; our second tree also has a few, but it’s younger and not yet as prolific.

One thing we seem to forget each year is how many tiny insects hitch a ride inside the crown of the fruit. (Can you spot the one in the above photo of the fruit on the countertop?) We recommend soaking them in water outside to drive the insects out before bring them inside to “process.”