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Your Pomegranates Are Ripe?!
Call Jerry! Jerry Temanson harvests pomegranates from around Gila County each year and makes a variety of jellies, syrups, vinaigrettes—and even wines—from pomegranates, prickly pears and other local fruits.If you don’t use yours, call Jerry at (928) 425-8252 or email him at jjaynot@gmail.com. He’ll make it worth your while! Jerry is happy to trade some of his delicious food products in exchange for good, locally-grown, fresh fruit. He even makes cactus pad pickles; we had a chance to sample ’em at the recent Prickly Pear Festival!
Boyce Thompson Arboretum Hosts Pomegranate Workshops September 15 and 28
Pomegranates are already ripe here in Globe-Miami. The most common variety is named ‘Wonderful’ for a good reason: they are loaded with antioxidants, they are delicious, and they thrive throughout Central and Southern Arizona. Learn how to harvest and prepare these hearty, healthy fruits in informal one-hour workshops Sept. 15 or 28 at the Boyce Thompson Arboretum. No pre-registration is needed, the outdoor class is included with daily admission of $10. Fresh-made pomegranate snacks will be shared at the end of each class, too! Chandler-based Tall Order Catering owners Chef Eric and Terri Naddy will share recipes and pomegranate processing techniques Sept. 15. East Valley author Jean Groen and her pomegranate pickin’ accomplice Robert Lewis will share their own pomegranate secrets Sept. 28.
Of all the fruits you can harvest in Arizona, pomegranates may have the most colorful history—some argue it was actually a pomegranate, not an apple, that was the irresistible fruit in the Garden of Eden. Packed with seeds, pomegranates cross many cultures as a symbol of fertility (particularly in Hebrew legend and ritual). Some paintings of baby Jesus prominently display a pomegranate, and Egyptians were entombed with pomegranates as a token for rebirth. Originally from Persia, the pomegranate is among the oldest fruits cultivated. Romans used the tannic skins to tan leather, and the fruit’s regal crown (calix) may have inspired the design of King Solomon’s crown. Moors imported them from the Middle East to Spain around 800 A.D. Spanish conquistadors and missionaries brought them to our continent, where they remain a popular landscape choice as a plant that provides lush flowers each spring, tangy autumn fruit, and fall color as their leaves turn from green to gold.
You can read more about Arboretum events here. You can connect with BTA annual members, staff and volunteers here.
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