Pomegranate Flower Morphology

Speaker: Abhay Kumar Gaurav

IARI, New Delhi
 Introduction
• Punica granatum L.
• Family: Punicaceae
• Native to central Asia (Iran and India)
• Grown throughout dry Mediterranean regions
• Like hot, dry summers
• Can be damaged by very cold temperatures
• Punicaceae contains
only two species:
– Punica granatum L.
and
– P. protopunica
• Pomegranate is a shrub
• When domesticated, it is
grown as a small tree that
grows up to 5m
• Most of the pomegranate
varieties are deciduous
trees
 The Flower
• Flowering occurs on one year old spurs or short branches
• Flowers can appear solitary, pairs, or clusters
• In general, the solitary flowers will appear on spurs along the
branches while the clusters are terminal
• Flowers: Odorless but colorful, large, 5-9cm in length,
campanulate or cylindrical, and generally reddish but
sometimes yellow to white
Sepals: 5-8 fused in their base,
vase shape
Petals: 5-8, separated. Petals,
alternate with the sepals, and
have a pink-orange to orange-
red color, slightly wrinkled
Stamens: Approx 300, long,
orange-red filaments, yellow
anther
Carpels: Approx eight
superimposed in two whorls.
Syncarpus
 Types of flower
Pomegranate flowers develop into one of three types
of flowers:
1) Hermaphrodite flowers (‘‘vase shape’’)
2) Male flowers (‘‘bell shape’’) and
3) Intermediate flower
All types have several hundred stamens
Male flower
• The bell-shape flower has a poorly developed or no
pistil and atrophied ovaries containing few ovules
and is infertile.
• Hence, they are referred as a male flower
• These flowers drop without fruit set
Hermaphrodite flower
• The vase-shape flower is
fertile with a normal ovary
capable of developing fruit
• The stigma is at the anthers
height or emerging above
them
• This position allows for self-
pollination as well as
pollination by insects
• Cultivars with higher vase-
shape to bell-shape ratio will
have a higher fruit yield
potential
• The percentage of the vase-
shape flowers in Indian
cultivar is 53% to 80%
Intermediate Flower
• A third type of flower is also found
• They have long style or short style and a developed
ovary which is sometimes fertile
• Fruit set is not 100%

Mode of Pollination
• Often cross pollination
 Pomegranate flower drop

Reason:
 Pollination: Male pomegranate flowers
fall off naturally as do un-fertilized female
blooms while fertilized flower set fruit
 Pests: Insect infestation such
as whitefly, scale or mealybugs
 Disease: Another possible reason may be
due to a fungal disease or root rot
 Environmental: Flowers may be drop due
to cold temp as well
 Water stress: Too less water