Have you checked out R.C.'s post above yours titled "batten down the hatches"????

That's impressive! I hope they ripen for you. The pomegranate can be iffy most years here on the north side of San Antonio which is significantly south of Amarillo.

Hope you enjoyed your lunch in Amarillo - we do have some really good locally owned places as well as the chain resturants in which to eat. Glad your trip was made safely. I can empathize with the "cedar tree pollinating" problems - also have to add the elm trees for me.

"Maybe one of the CA native live oaks?" Quite unlikely for various reasons. Almost all southern CA flora is known for its aversion to non-dry summer conditions; the issue w/Texas is even in areas where the dry line predominates, there's always the possibility of excessive summer moisture from something like a hurricane. I quote from the wiki: ". In 2002, from June 30 to July 7, 35 inches of rain fell in the San Antonio area, resulting in widespread flooding and 12 fatalities.[24]" However, go far enough west and you'll get into the so-called summer monsoon area. A climate where what little rain there is falls in summer, also not to the liking of Quercus agrifolia. They also aren't very hardy...I suspect their sometimes zn 7 rating is wishful thinking. I remember about 90 minutes west of Austin was a part of TX on I-10 that reminded me amazingly of parts of southern France I'd visited. Dry, white limestone soils, sclerophyllous trees (probably Q. fusiformis) . etc. Maybe around there. Austin & San Antonio are too lush looking.