Raising Pineapples

Pineapples are one of my favorite fruit. Sweet, juicy, and absolutely delicious! These golden gems are easy to buy, but have you ever thought about growing them yourself? Growing a pineapple is a labor of love and test of patience. Unless you have a pineapple farm, growing a pineapple is years of commitment. I will not say I am an expert at growing pineapples because I have killed my plants in the past, but I do love the challenge.

How to start

You can use any type of pineapple, but Maui Gold is my absolute favorite. The Maui Gold pineapple is less acidic than other types of pineapple. If your tongue has ever gone tingling and numb when eating a pineapple, that is from the acidity in the fruit. You will not experience that with Maui Gold pineapples, and the core is so tender and sweet that you can eat the core. Super yummy!

Here is how I started my pineapple plant:

1. Twisted off the crown from the pineapple and removed the lower leaves.
2. Placed the crown in a mason jar of water where only the bottom of the crown touches the water.
3. As soon as roots developed to a few inches, pot the crown into moist potting mix. You may have some dead leaves, which can be removed before planting.
4. As the plant grows bigger, put them into a new pot to continue their growth.
5. Mist a couple times a week. Water well once a week and fertilize two to three times a year.

What’s next?

The plant will grow indoors, but keep the temperature above 60 degrees (more tropical 75 – 90 degrees is best, but nighttime temps should not go below 60), and have lots of sunlight. I do put the plants outdoors in the Summer months, and then bring them back inside in the Fall, since I do live in an area where seasonal temperatures drop below 60. The pineapple plants do grow to about 3 to 5 feet wide as well as tall, so moving them in an out of the house is always a fun challenge without breaking them. Expect fruit to develop in about 2 to 3 years. They say the average is 18 months, but my plants have not matured until 2 1/2 years. This may be due to soil conditions and lack of fertilizer, but the important thing is my plants continued to grow and bounced back extremely well after planting them into a deep rolling planter with great soil.

Continue the cycle

The pineapple plant will grow a pineapple. Be patient and enjoy the journey. To continue the cycle, either twist off the crown like before, or plant the sucker from the plant. You can continue year after year to grow pineapples. I only grow one or two plants at one time, so I do not have pineapples readily available. For me, I enjoy raising my pineapple crown babies into giant pineapple plants. The pineapple fruit is the cherry on top, so to speak.

Right now, I do have two other crowns rooting – one Maui Gold and one Del Monte Honeyglow. Definitely give it a try. This is a fun experiment to do with the kids, and a great way to learn about growing plants indoors and gardening as a family. They will love it!