Q. I have a query regarding pomeg­ranates growing in my garden. The tree is fruiting every year and the seeds inside also taste good but their size is very small. What can I do to increase their size?

A. Pomegranates thrive if fed with seaweed-based, preferably organic, fertiliser. The amount given depends on the brand, so please follow instructions given on the bottle/packet. Seaweed fertiliser has high iron content which pomegranates really appreciate. Regular irrigation, from when the first blossom begins to form right through to harvesting of the fruit, is also important. Unfortunately, you haven’t provided your location so it is not possible to be more specific. With regular feeding and watering, the fruit on your tree may increase in size. However, you must also keep in mind that some varieties of pomegranate only produce small fruit and, if this happens to be the case, nothing you can do will make the fruit bigger. In addition, if you reside in Karachi, irrespective of the variety, pomegranates rarely reach a large size. Be thankful that the tree does fruit and that the fruit tastes good.

Q. Do you think purple wisteria will grow in Karachi?

A. Much depends on the area of Karachi in which you live. One of the most beautiful, purple flowered, wisteria sinensis I have ever seen is in a private garden in DHA. But, according to information received, the vine totally refuses to grow in Gulshan-i-Iqbal.

Q. I planted four young rose plants about one-and-a-half years ago. They bloomed for a short time but now they rarely flower. Please help.

A. Like so many readers, you have failed to name the area in which you live. Pakistan is a huge, soil and climatically diverse country and location plays a major role in providing appropriate gardening advice. Roses, which you are having a problem with, have different growing and flowering habits in different parts of the country. All I can say, on a general basis, is that correct pruning of your rose bushes may help. If you would like more information please resend your question and give your location too.

All your gardening queries answered here

Q. My orange tree is dying. It is shedding its leaves and the branches are turning into black, solid wood. I think it has a dieback problem. How can I cure it? Is it a problem with soil pH level? I reside in district Gujranwala.

A. This sounds like a combination of two problems: sooty canker and sooty mould. Sooty canker causes twigs and branches to shed their bark and, beneath the bark, the wood is smothered in black growth. The only method of dealing with this is to cut out all infected branches, cutting back to clean wood about 12 inches below where the infection begins. All infected material should be taken away and burnt.

Sooty mould is a fungus that grows on the honeydew deposited by aphids and leafhoppers. This fungus blackens leaves and causes them to fall off. This is easily treated by spraying the entire tree with soapy water, ensuring that you spray underneath the leaves as well as on top of them. Use two tablespoons full of pure, un-perfumed, liquid soap to 3.5 litres warm water and spray with this. This spray will kill any remaining aphids/leafhoppers, washing off the mould in the process. Spray, towards sunset, after every three days until the mould has been washed away.

Q. Is the Sialkot region suitable for growing olive trees?

A. It is not a prime olive-growing location but — with correct care and attention — olive trees can grow in your location.

Q. Is there a reliable source of high-quality olive trees or olive tree seeds here in Pakistan?

A. Please ask your local agriculture department to recommend an olive variety suitable for your specific locality. They should be able to provide you with a source of saplings too.

Q. I have tried several times to grow a new celery plant from the stump of an old one. I start off by placing the stump in water where it flourishes and produces new shoots and leaves but, as soon as I plant it in the soil it withers away. What am I doing wrong? I keep my herb pots indoors next to a window. Does the celery plant need to be kept outdoors to survive or can I keep it permanently in water instead of planting it in the soil?

A. I strongly suspect that you have been following internet video advice on growing new vegetables from the bases of salad ingredients. While such videos do have their uses, they rarely include full information. The relevant information in this case is that you cannot grow a brand-new celery plant from the cut off base of an old one. What you can do — and what you are already doing successfully — is to encourage a previously used celery stump to send up some succulent new stems and leaves by placing it in water. This is all it will do and for a short period of time only. It does not turn into a new plant. It is simply a second crop of edible greens from the original plant. If you are very lucky it may even extend to giving a small third crop of leaves before it dies off.g Z.N

Please continue sending your gardening queries to zahrahnasir@hotmail.com. Remember to include your location. The writer does not respond directly by email. Emails with attachments will not be opened.

Published in Dawn, EOS, February 23rd, 2020