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We took a trip to Maui in 2024 and visited the Maui Pineapple farm where we got 3 pineapples. The tour also went into the pineapple's lifecycle and how new pineapples are grown.
So... We potted the top of one of our pineapples. It's been growing for just over a year. Actually, just this morning I noticed it is in need of replanting as it's used up the soil.
Thank you dirthawker0 for giving me hope that we may one day have a pineapple.
That's actually pretty quick...
Whenever you decide to eat it, definitely restart the crown.
Just be aware that "ripe" for sale and "ripe" as in eat immediately are two different things. I'm not sure about pineapples specifically, but I think they're one of the ones that ripen after being harvested. So you want to leave it longer than if it was commercially harvested.
I'm pretty sure even on the Hawaiian plantations they have to harvest differently for the overpriced "fresh" pineapple stuff. With economy of scale most is harvested much earlier. Yours still seems pretty bright, so it probably has a much larger inedible core right now than it will later.
But again, going off memory so look it up to be sure before you cut it off.
So this guy is a lovely deep color and smells like a perfect ripe pineapple, better than what I typically smell when choosing a pineapple in the grocery. Are you saying the core may be large and if I wait longer the core will shrink?
Pineapples do not ripen after being picked. They may go softer, but that is because they are beginning to rot. You need to make sure they are ripe when picked. Source, and also a family member who has been growing them.
Congratulations! Let us know how it tastes, whenever you decide to harvest it :)
I've tried growing pineapple but it's never worked. Any tips?
In terms of starting them, it's been hit and miss. This is the 3rd time I've tried and the first time I've succeeded at getting a top to root. I recall I trimmed away more flesh and peeled more leaves off the bottom than I had done before, and I think I was much more patient when it was in water to wait for roots to emerge.
My understanding is they like well draining soil and don't like it too wet. I watered it about once a week with about 6 oz water -- watering the plant itself so the water is primarily trapped in the bottom of the leaves and maybe the soil gets an incidental light sprinkle -- and a bromeliad fertilizer every other week. It was outdoors during the summer but once it dropped into the mid 50s at night I brought it indoors. (ETA I'm in zone 10a or b).
Since this is a giant sample size of 1 I'm definitely not going to claim any definitive must-dos. Just reporting on what I did.
I live in FL where you can take a pineapple top, stick it in the ground, and it will grow. There are dozens around my house just because I get a kick out of finding an occasional tiny pineapple. If you don’t live in zone 10/11 you’ll need to keep it in a pot of quite sandy soil, only leave it outside during your warm months, and it will take 3-4 years to get a fruit. After that though it may make a new cane (pineapples are bromeliads I believe) that can produce regular pineapples. It takes a long time though, they are clearly in no hurry.
You need a lot of sun and warmth. They are 10-11hardiness zone. Frost will kill them instantly. Too much moisture is not good either, moderate rainfall
Nice! Dont they need to be cut down after and started all over?
That's what I've read before, that they're one-and-done. But my cousin just told me he grew a second one from a plant he had, and that an uncle of ours in Hawaii said the 3rd generation is the sweetest -- so I'm not so sure. Maybe Hawaii's climate is more conducive?
I could also imagine that the original plant dies off after it fruites but as far as I know they produce a lot of smaller offspring at the base which will continue growth and fruiting. This way both sources would be correct.
That makes sense. Also a smaller fruit would theoretically be getting more energy from the plant and maybe develop more sugars?
Maybe. But usually the offspring would be getting as big as the mother on their own if they weren't competing with their clos by siblings for nurtientds, water and light.
I don't know wether the 'thrid generation's the sweetest' story is true... we need an expert to confirm this I guess. :D
Oh fascinating! Maybe just takes longer after each fruiting and it's not economical? Or certain strain? Please keep us updated :)
Yeah, I will. The plant has the 2 pups growing off the stalk. I was thinking I could take one off and plant it, and leave the other one on to see what it does.
Impressive!
