Author Topic: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!  (Read 7310 times)

LivingParadise

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Wow, I am blown away by how beautiful my first homegrown fruit is turning out to be. The plant was labeled as West African Sugarloaf, and as far as I know is different from some other Sugarloafs, like those in Hawaii, due in part to its serrated edges. The pineapple is covered in purple and red flowers, and is really amazing to look at. I hope to get a bunch of seeds or pups or something out of this, so I can spread it all over my yard, not just for the taste, which is supposed to be top notch, but also for its ornamental value!







pschill444@aol.com

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2016, 01:58:14 PM »
Hi , nice photo. however if you want seeds you need to cross two species if pineapple then you can get viable seeds they are about the size of a kiwi seed             Patrick

LivingParadise

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2016, 02:05:09 PM »
Hi , nice photo. however if you want seeds you need to cross two species if pineapple then you can get viable seeds they are about the size of a kiwi seed             Patrick

Is this the case for store bought pineapples? Because I have already started seeds from store-boughts, like Dole. There are videos on youtube that show others doing it. As far as I knew, all pineapples had seeds - they are just close to the skin and hard to find if you don't know where to look. But I've never had any trouble getting them from a fully mature pineapple.

Anyway, I have several other varieties I can try to cross with, if they ever flower simultaneously, but I'd rather not have to resort to using seeds anyway, because they are so much slower than just taking a sucker.

I just think it's a gorgeous plant, and would like to grow as many as possible in the future!
« Last Edit: May 02, 2016, 02:12:01 PM by LivingParadise »

fruitlovers

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #3 on: May 03, 2016, 07:08:11 AM »
Commercial pineapples usually don't have any seeds. Seeds only form when fruits are pollinated. Pollinators are kept out of commercial orchards as the seeds form inside the fruits (not on skin) and make them less edible, similar to seedy bananas.
Oscar

LivingParadise

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2016, 11:31:17 AM »
Commercial pineapples usually don't have any seeds. Seeds only form when fruits are pollinated. Pollinators are kept out of commercial orchards as the seeds form inside the fruits (not on skin) and make them less edible, similar to seedy bananas.

Well, that is certainly not the case for many commercial pineapples bought on the mainland US. I have seeds in nearly every pineapple I buy, and so do lots of other people, hence all the videos and blogs online about growing pineapples from seeds you got from store-bought pineapples.

But this thread is not about pineapple seeds. It's about how beautiful the pineapple is itself to grow! This West African Sugarloaf variety is particularly stunning, I think!

Does anyone else have photos of their fruiting pineapples with flowers like this to share, or would say that another variety is more beautiful?

Let's see photos, please, or other votes as to what is the most ornamental fruiting variety.

fyliu

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2016, 02:53:15 PM »
I just cleaned my phone so no more pineapple photos. This looks pretty much like other pineapple flowers, but with serrated leaves and fewer flowers. I only grew one pineapple fruit before, which is a store bought one, probably that MD-2 that most commercial growers grow. It was leaking some sweet juice when I picked it, still a little unripe on one side, but it was good.

I think the common cultivar is really good already if home grown. The difference people taste between home grown special variety and store bought fruit has a lot to do with ripeness when picked rather than cultivar I think. It's like how Wonderful pomegranate is a really good home grown fruit but is really tart from the store.

Even so, I can't resist growing more varieties. I grow some white jade and I'm trying to force one of them to flower now. It'll probably be on the smaller side like your sugarloaf.

cmichael258

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2016, 04:16:07 PM »
Commercial pineapples usually don't have any seeds. Seeds only form when fruits are pollinated. Pollinators are kept out of commercial orchards as the seeds form inside the fruits (not on skin) and make them less edible, similar to seedy bananas.

Well, that is certainly not the case for many commercial pineapples bought on the mainland US. I have seeds in nearly every pineapple I buy, and so do lots of other people, hence all the videos and blogs online about growing pineapples from seeds you got from store-bought pineapples.

But this thread is not about pineapple seeds. It's about how beautiful the pineapple is itself to grow! This West African Sugarloaf variety is particularly stunning, I think!

Does anyone else have photos of their fruiting pineapples with flowers like this to share, or would say that another variety is more beautiful?

Let's see photos, please, or other votes as to what is the most ornamental fruiting variety.


Here's one of my white jades that I purchased from Adam:



Michael

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2016, 05:58:15 PM »
Commercial pineapples usually don't have any seeds. Seeds only form when fruits are pollinated. Pollinators are kept out of commercial orchards as the seeds form inside the fruits (not on skin) and make them less edible, similar to seedy bananas.

Well, that is certainly not the case for many commercial pineapples bought on the mainland US. I have seeds in nearly every pineapple I buy, and so do lots of other people, hence all the videos and blogs online about growing pineapples from seeds you got from store-bought pineapples.

But this thread is not about pineapple seeds. It's about how beautiful the pineapple is itself to grow! This West African Sugarloaf variety is particularly stunning, I think!

Does anyone else have photos of their fruiting pineapples with flowers like this to share, or would say that another variety is more beautiful?

Let's see photos, please, or other votes as to what is the most ornamental fruiting variety.

None of US grown Hawaii pineapples have seeds. Most pineapples in USA supermarkets now are being grown in Phillippines and Thailand. They might have pollinators there that cause seeds inside the pineapples (not in skin). All pineapples have stunning blue flowers. Nothing unusual about the flower photo you posted. Will try to post a photo later.
Oscar

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #8 on: May 03, 2016, 08:28:36 PM »

Oscar haven't encountered a seeded pineapple in the Phils ever :) pineapples in the stores (locally) come from Lapanday (Aloha and Estrella) or Del Monte and DOLE Phils. Smaller pineapple farms grow the old Spanish Red I think as the plants have very spiny red leaves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BK2bfkjqJw

Camp Phillips - Del Monte Bukidnon Pineapple Farm - wonder what sort of pineapple they're growing
« Last Edit: May 03, 2016, 08:33:27 PM by DimplesLee »
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fruitlovers

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #9 on: May 04, 2016, 01:08:18 AM »

Oscar haven't encountered a seeded pineapple in the Phils ever :) pineapples in the stores (locally) come from Lapanday (Aloha and Estrella) or Del Monte and DOLE Phils. Smaller pineapple farms grow the old Spanish Red I think as the plants have very spiny red leaves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BK2bfkjqJw

Camp Phillips - Del Monte Bukidnon Pineapple Farm - wonder what sort of pineapple they're growing

OK, thanks for the info. Wonder where these seeded pineapples are coming from. Or maybe this poster is getting confused about what really are not seeds?
Oscar

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #10 on: May 04, 2016, 09:21:27 AM »

Oscar haven't encountered a seeded pineapple in the Phils ever :) pineapples in the stores (locally) come from Lapanday (Aloha and Estrella) or Del Monte and DOLE Phils. Smaller pineapple farms grow the old Spanish Red I think as the plants have very spiny red leaves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BK2bfkjqJw

Camp Phillips - Del Monte Bukidnon Pineapple Farm - wonder what sort of pineapple they're growing

OK, thanks for the info. Wonder where these seeded pineapples are coming from. Or maybe this poster is getting confused about what really are not seeds?

Most of the pineapples I see here in FL (in the grocery stores) are from Costa Rica IIRC
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bsbullie

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #11 on: May 04, 2016, 09:32:32 AM »

Oscar haven't encountered a seeded pineapple in the Phils ever :) pineapples in the stores (locally) come from Lapanday (Aloha and Estrella) or Del Monte and DOLE Phils. Smaller pineapple farms grow the old Spanish Red I think as the plants have very spiny red leaves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BK2bfkjqJw

Camp Phillips - Del Monte Bukidnon Pineapple Farm - wonder what sort of pineapple they're growing

OK, thanks for the info. Wonder where these seeded pineapples are coming from. Or maybe this poster is getting confused about what really are not seeds?

Most of the pineapples I see here in FL (in the grocery stores) are from Costa Rica IIRC

I believe that is correct.
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LivingParadise

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #12 on: May 04, 2016, 04:15:05 PM »
Wonder where these seeded pineapples are coming from. Or maybe this poster is getting confused about what really are not seeds?

LOL, thanks, but I know what a seed is. Especially when it grows into a plant! :) Seriously, just look online for people posting plenty of videos and photos of people growing baby pineapples from their store-bought pineapples - it's not like it's hard to find them. I don't know why people feel a need to argue absolutely everything on this forum, even when it's got nothing to do with the point of the thread, just so they can be right. You don't need to question the intelligence of other posters just to feel good about yourself, especially when a 2-second google search would prove you wrong. Obviously, I am not the only one who has brought home many a pineapple with seeds. Here is just one example of many: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-KF6rpaemY  You'll see plenty of comments beneath it from other people who found a ton of seeds in their pineapples.  Here is another video, one in a series that follows a girl who planted pineapple seeds from a fruit she bought: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsw8ylcg9zE   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXuqCSimYXg   Again, you'll see plenty of comments from others who have bought pineapples in stores that have seeds in them, and many of whom were able to grow their own little plantlets successfully.

I wish I could help you out by telling you where the pineapples came from that I purchased in the past with seeds, but I really don't remember. It has happened in pineapples I bought in stores in NY, as well as stores in FL, in various locations in each state. Nearly every pineapple I've bought had seeds, and because I was used to seeing it, I never thought anything of it. They are small and brown and pointy, near the surface of the skin. and very easily recognizable as seeds. Many are viable. But I don't buy pineapples often because they are expensive, so I don't have any recent examples to share photos of.

-----------

Thanks for sharing the photo, cmichael258! Beautiful pineapple! And also thanks to others for sharing some experiences.

I find it puzzling though that some are suggesting all pineapples look the same. Clearly my photo, and cmichael258's photo, look very different. I am having white jades shipped to me as we speak from an online supplier, but I don't have any growing in my yard as yet. My West African Sugarloaf and my Royal Hawaiian look very different, and they both look different from my store-bought tops. Red pineapples certainly look very different, and I could see people who like the color arguing that their pineapple when flowering is the most beautiful... but I personally prefer the blue-green tone of my pineapple's leaves, and the large flowers it produces. I would also disagree that pineapple varieties have the same flavor except for freshness (unless I misunderstood that comment) - I have had made fresh pineapples, in different countries, and they have a wide variety of characteristics. They have different flesh colors and textures, and very different tastes. White Costa Rican pineapples are so far the best variety I have ever tasted, by a long shot! But certainly, a fresh ripe pineapple is going to tend to be better than any store-bought fruit, as is true for any produce of any species.

I hope more people will post photos, especially of flowering pineapples! They are all pretty stunning to look at.

Galka

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #13 on: May 04, 2016, 05:07:17 PM »
 :D Here's my WJ.



...and one of the store bought tops  :)



I also have one with red flowers but don't have a picture of it.
Another one is weird looking with no top.  :o





fyliu

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #14 on: May 04, 2016, 07:27:44 PM »
LP, don't take it too personally. Oscar wasn't sure if you knew how to identify the seeds because he doesn't get pineapple seeds where he lives and this is unusual for him. He did put that question last, after asking where the seeded ones come from.

I wasn't saying the flavors are the same. I meant to say that the difference between store bought and home grown pineapples is greater than the flavor differences between varieties. Of course that's just from where I am, where the store fruits are all underripe and could have stayed on the plant for up to another month.
The point of my statement was that growing special varieties isn't as big a deal as just growing it yourself. Even the most common variety will be excellent. Then I drew the parallel with the wonderful pomegranate vs. growing it at home.

I too feel that saying things in text form tend to make them sound hostile, maybe passive-aggressive, like sticky notes saying "please clean out the fridge by 3:00pm today". It takes many more words to make it sound less aggressive, so I just assume others are trying to save me the effort of reading extra words.

DimplesLee

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #15 on: May 05, 2016, 06:22:26 AM »
Ordinary bound for the grocery pineapple - distant cousin to another TFF's member hydra pineapple - forgot which thread I saw that multi-headed pineapple.
http://tourism-philippines.com/images/bukidnon7.jpg
Pix not mine, found on Google search for what pineapple the Farms in Mindanao grow... So credit to blog owner...
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Cassio

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #16 on: May 05, 2016, 07:37:09 AM »

I never saw a pinneaplle with seeds here in Brasil, but it isn´t a problem:
You can have new pinneaples just planting the "crown" of the fruit. In my case I got a new fruit from the planted "crown" after two years. ;)

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #17 on: May 07, 2016, 01:06:05 PM »
Once I knew how to look for them I've found seeds in all the pineapples store bought (Dole etc) here and in the US.

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #18 on: May 17, 2016, 02:07:47 PM »
pineapples - like all flowering plants - only set viable seed if the flowers are pollinated.  in nature, pineapples are usually pollinated by hummingbirds.  some areas (hawaii) have no hummingbirds, and pineapples there are seedless.   pineapples are often self-sterile, and flowers pollinated by their own pollen will develop nonviable seed or, more often, no seed at all.
if your pineapple has seeds, it was raised where there are hummingbirds or (rarely), other pollinating vectors. 
hope this helps.
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LivingParadise

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #19 on: May 18, 2016, 06:34:58 PM »

I too feel that saying things in text form tend to make them sound hostile, maybe passive-aggressive, like sticky notes saying "please clean out the fridge by 3:00pm today". It takes many more words to make it sound less aggressive, so I just assume others are trying to save me the effort of reading extra words.

Lol, I'm late replying, but I guess that's why I often write so much! :)

----

Beautiful pineapple photos, Galka!

----

My little West African Sugarloaf is not looking as pretty now as it did since the flowers died off, but at least it is a little bigger.

I now have 4 White Jade planted, so that makes 8 pineapples total, for now. I suspect I will eventually have something closer to numbers in the 50s, since they are so easy to grow here in the Keys, and can be very attractive for borders and out of the way places between plants. They don't seem to take up much with a root system to take away from other plants, and I can't imagine ever having too many pineapples, if I'm lucky enough to get them all to fruit!

So I may become a bit of a pineapple collector in time. I will tell you, fyliu, I get your point about the difference between home grown and store bought fruit - but wow, is there a difference between some pineapple varieties! I have not had the pleasure to taste too many different kinds, but I have traveled to many countries around the world, and any time I am in a place that has pineapples, I am sure to taste some. I don't know what the name for it is, but if I can figure out how to get a hold of that white pineapple they grow in Costa Rica, I can tell you it is nothing like the yellow pineapples I have had in the states, even the fresh one I grew from my Royal Hawaiian plant (which was extremely good, by the way - a lot of sweet strawberry flavor mixed in with the pineapple taste). The Costa Rica white one, is extremely acidic so much that it eroded some of my gums and the roof of my mouth after eating so many, and it is stark white like bleached paper. The core is only slightly tough compared with the rest, so it is easily edible without cooking it, but not what I would call coreless. Aside from the extreme acidity, the taste was better than any yellow pineapple I have ever had, very sugary, and almost like it was a totally different fruit from the yellow pineapples if you were to go by taste alone. Let's say it was like comparing apricots to peaches, if that taste comparison means anything to you - similar, but you wouldn't necessarily know it was the same fruit if you couldn't see what it looked like. The Costa Rican one is like pineapple crack, really. It was bad for me and destroyed my mouth, but I could not stop eating more of them! It was kind of like... well, this might not be a clear explanation but there is a kind of pineapple candy that comes from another country (I forgot which one now) that is tart, white, pineapple-flavored sugar in a straw like a US Pixie Stick candy. The taste is very strong, very sweet, and shockingly addictive. The white pineapples I had in Costa Rica tasted like that.

I feel like maybe somebody told me the name of that pineapple, but now I don't remember if it was on this forum or somewhere else, and I don't remember at all what they said.

Anyway, my point is, I have not had any Sugarloaf varieties (at least that I knew by name) to compare to. But in my own limited experience of pineapple sampling in different regions of the world, I have found that that different varieties can have strikingly different tastes, so much so that they almost seem like they are not the same species, but a related species of fruit. Like comparing different kinds of annonas, would be a good example. Like how sugar apple and custard apple and guanabana/soursop are similar, but not the same fruit or same flavor profile.

This is why I was so excited to see what it looks like to grow a pineapple in person, because they are prettier than I expected. And here, they are pretty easy to grow in ground (hence why there was once a major commercial pineapple industry in the Keys, although most of the good soil they used is gone now due to development). I imagined that they would look very different too. I have never seen a plant that had both red and purple flowers at the same time. And I am wondering if this is the case for all varieties of pineapple, if they have different colors of flowers. I like that their leaves can vary so much which is definitely a plus, given that generally speaking, I am not much into bromeliads for looks. I guess that changes when they provide food for me, though! :)

So I will be looking now for all the varieties that I might want to collect, based primarily on flavor. I suspect there are more than are commonly discussed, given how many countries around the world grown them. We hear usually about commercial varieties, or particularly ornamental varieties, but it seems there are a lot of small regional varieties that may have a lot of worth in taste, although they don't ship well. I have heard of a number of varieties, some unnamed, from here in Florida that people swear are worth being very excited about, if you can manage to find one. But again, all that development wiped out not only the fields, but many people's personal home collections of deliciousness.

Anybody who has varieties from any part of the globe to recommend for taste or unusual features, even unnamed, please do so here! And also, keep those beautiful pineapple photos coming!

fyliu

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #20 on: May 18, 2016, 07:43:15 PM »
I'm happy to see that you're so excited about this. My own experience with growing pineapples is only one I grew from a store fruit crown and the few white jades I'm trying to force right now. The white jade doesn't seem to be putting out suckers or maybe I'm not feeding them enough.

The thing that eats away your gums is not only acid, but enzymes that digests proteins, as in those in the skin and muscles. That's why it's a very good meat tenderizer as long as you don't overdo it. One time I ended up with meat paste after forgetting about it overnight. The muscle fibers were there but all the connective tissues holding the overall shape were gone. The enzymes are present in different levels for different types. The woody core ones might have more.

I actually don't remember if there's red in the yellow pineapple's flowers. I know there's purple.

Well, I'm looking forward to getting some white jade fruits later this year. I don't know if there are others I should get. I guess I'll see what you guys recommend and if I have room for more.

treefrog

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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #21 on: May 19, 2016, 12:38:21 AM »
living paradise,

you have mail.
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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #22 on: May 19, 2016, 11:46:21 PM »
Here is a post I made on gardenweb a few years ago that has a pic with some pineapple seedlings I grew. Pineapples from Central America tend to have seeds due to natural pollinators IIRC. The seeds are just under the skin and seem to germinate easily.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/2191339/my-new-pineapples


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Re: West African Sugarloaf pineapples - what a stunning fruit!
« Reply #23 on: May 23, 2016, 05:09:12 PM »
Here is a post I made on gardenweb a few years ago that has a pic with some pineapple seedlings I grew. Pineapples from Central America tend to have seeds due to natural pollinators IIRC. The seeds are just under the skin and seem to germinate easily.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/2191339/my-new-pineapples

What is the one in the middle?