So here is my first project. About a year ago, a friend of mine gave me a tiny pomegranate plant that was just about a foot tall. I managed to keep it alive and eventually plant it in the ground. I struggled for a while to keep it alive, as it didn't seem to appreciate being transferred out of the nice soggy pot it had been in previously. But eventually I prevailed and had myself a thriving pomegranate tree. He grew to be about five feet tall, and then started growing branches that spread a couple feet from the trunk (albeit the skinny trunk). It was then that I started wondering about the size of the tree, and realized that if I allowed it to continue in it's current spot, it would overgrow a healthy portion of my porch and possibly block the entrance to the rest of the yard. Something had to be done.
Sad little pom. Now, I'm not in the habit of intentionally killing things. Not even plants. And this one was a special one, one that had been a gift and I had nurtured into the seedling it currently was. So, I decided to transplant it. I've never transplanted a tree, so my first stop was Google, and the treasure trove of conflicting information that is always there. But I was determined to move this thing, so I found a step by step guide and got started.
I dug around the plant as far is I could, which was about a foot in each direction, since the rest of my garden and porch were encroaching on it pretty good. I dug as deeply as I could, hoping I wasn't severing any big roots on my way. I even dug some of it out with my hands, just to be able to feel where the roots were, and if I had dug deeply enough. I put all the dirt that was coming loose on a big tarp, and eventually was able to lift the pom out of its little hole and onto the tarp. I had hoped for a nice thick root ball, but much of the dirt fell away, so I scurried to the hole I had already dug and plopped it in. Then I filled it in with the rest of the dirt and watered the crap out of it. And by watered the crap out of it, I mean that I watered it until there was a three inch puddle around it. I pressed the dirt down to try to pack it in and give the seedling some support, and left it.
I dug around the plant as far is I could, which was about a foot in each direction, since the rest of my garden and porch were encroaching on it pretty good. I dug as deeply as I could, hoping I wasn't severing any big roots on my way. I even dug some of it out with my hands, just to be able to feel where the roots were, and if I had dug deeply enough. I put all the dirt that was coming loose on a big tarp, and eventually was able to lift the pom out of its little hole and onto the tarp. I had hoped for a nice thick root ball, but much of the dirt fell away, so I scurried to the hole I had already dug and plopped it in. Then I filled it in with the rest of the dirt and watered the crap out of it. And by watered the crap out of it, I mean that I watered it until there was a three inch puddle around it. I pressed the dirt down to try to pack it in and give the seedling some support, and left it.
The stick I've been watering. Since then, I've tried to keep little pom watered and happy, but very quickly his leaves turned brown and curled up, and in fact, all of him seemed to be curling up. However, I still water him, because I noticed a little green sprout near the base, and I have hope that he might still be alive. Then, a friend told me I could cut it back, so I did. She wasn't very descriptive as to how far I should cut him back, so he's pretty much a nub at the moment. However, I'm still watering and checking up on him, hoping against all hope that he's going to make it. We'll give him some time to recover and keep our fingers crossed. I'll keep you updated. But for now, it looks like I'm just watering a stick. If he doesn't live, I have a guava to take his place.
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