dwarf pine-apple

[bangkok]

Here in a fruitshop they sell very nice small pine-apples which i want to grow.

Can i just grow them as the big ones, cut the head off and put it in a bowl of water to root and then plant it out in the sun?

The small ones are less sweet but very crispy and a very nice flavour.

How many fruits will those small ones give on a plant? I saw pictures of 3 on a plant but i dont know the species. How far do i need to plant them away from eachother?  I think i will grow a few of them for fun and to eat of course.

[murahilin]

The best way to grow them is to twist the top off instead of cutting off the top. Twisting will leave less fruit attached to the crown so less chances of rot. After twisting off the crown, peel off the bottom inch or so of leaves. It will leave an exposed area to plant. Let the crown dry out in the shade for a day and then plant it directly in soil. Rooting it in water is a waste of time.

One plant will give you one fruit usually. As a home gardener, you could probably plant them 1ft apart.

[mikesid]

Is that 1 foot from center?

[bangkok]

Thanks i will buy some tomorrow. This small pinapple i have only seen in Thailand but they sell them all year here. They really taste different and fresh.

So i can plant them directly in the soil, keep it in the shade for a while and then plant it in the full sun in the new flowerbed.

I can't wait. The new flowerbed is not even totally finished but i have big plans for it.

[murahilin]

Is that 1 foot from center?

Yeah. You can try planting them closer and see what happens. I think 1ft from center is a reasonable distance that will allow them to grow and fruit properly.

Thanks i will buy some tomorrow. This small pinapple i have only seen in Thailand but they sell them all year here. They really taste different and fresh.

So i can plant them directly in the soil, keep it in the shade for a while and then plant it in the full sun in the new flowerbed.

I can't wait. The new flowerbed is not even totally finished but i have big plans for it.

No need to keep the plant in the shade for a while once you plant it. Plant it directly into full sun if possible and don't move it once planted.

[bangkok]

I bought 6 of them and they are delicious. Much better then a normal big one which also are very sweet. Small ones are more crispy, very sweet and the core is also good to eat. They dont leave that burning feeling in your mouth what the big ones can do.

I want to grow many of them and will plant some more every month. So after 18 months or so i can start harvesting them. How many times can you regrow the same head of a pineapple?

[Mike T]

I got this rough leafed mini on Friday and posted the pic then.200g to 400g seems to be thei normal range.

[bangkok]

Wow that is a very big one there Mike!

Growing pineapples from tops of shop bought pineapples can seem to take forever. Tops take about 24 months to fruit (even longer in colder climates).
Suckers take about 18 months and slips can fruit within a year.

Can anybody tell me what "slips" are? I grow the tops but if they finally are ripe then i cut the fruits of and leave the rest of the plants in the soil so they can produce new crops? Or do i have to start all over again with a new head?

[Mike T]

Bangkok slips and suckers are preferred to tops as they fruit faster.Slips are plantlets coming off the central stalk and suckers are new plants that branch off the base.

[bangkok]

So if i am lucky then some plantlet or sucker will grow from out of my planted heads and fruit even before the real one does?

And also can i keep the plants in the soil for 10 years and they will fruit all the time?

Because they are mini pineapples i was thinking of planting them 20 cm away from eachother but if they make suckers and plantlets maybe then i should plant them a little bit more wider i guess? I would like to harvest after 12 months instead of 24 so then the suckers are more precious to me then the original plants.