How pineapple grows on plantations, in a greenhouse and in an apartment
People who first saw the pineapple plant hardly believe that this is not a tropical shrub, accustomed to living in a lack of moisture, but a grass. Depending on the variety and variety, individual specimens can grow up to two meters in height, and the diameter of a rosette of hard leaves ranges from 1 to 2.5 meters. And yet, pineapple is a herbaceous perennial plant that has been used by humans for many centuries.
Even before the discovery of the American continent, local tribes grew pineapples to obtain sweet and sour fruits and strong fiber used to make clothes, mats, fishing nets and baskets.
And today the culture is recognized as one of the most important countries for agriculture in the tropical zone. Pineapples grow on vast plantations not only in South and Central America, but also in the Asian region, Australia and several African countries. In temperate climates, it is possible to grow pineapples in greenhouses. And on home windowsills and gardens, this culture is used as a spectacular ornamental plant.
How does pineapple grow?
Despite its rigidity and the presence of sharp thorns along the edge in many varieties, the leaves are very juicy when cut.
This is due to the fact that in the places of their original habitat, plants sometimes experience a serious lack of moisture. It is for the collection of water that the concave shape of leaf plates is intended, along which raindrops and dew roll down to the stem and down it, where in the ground near the pineapple there is a superficial fibrous root system.
Water also accumulates in the juicy pulp of the leaves, so that later, if necessary, support the whole plant and the formation of the fruit. How long does a pineapple grow before the fruit appears on it? The pineapple is ready for flowering 12-18 months after planting. The term may vary depending on the variety and variety of plant, but the process of inflorescence and fruit formation is similar in all species.
On an elongated, leafless extension of the stem, small flowers combined into a dense spike-shaped inflorescence open up. The number of corollas, not exceeding 1.5–2 cm in length and having a lilac or pink-violet color, in an inflorescence can reach two hundred. First, bisexual flowers open in the lower tiers, then flowering spreads to the upper buds.
The ovaries are berries, which practically after formation begin to merge with each other, forming a juicy pineapple familiar to everyone under a single hard peel.
It takes 3 to 6 months for the fruit to ripen, after which it is cut off. How does the pineapple grow further?
As the fruit ripens, the plant begins the rapid formation of subsidiary lateral shoots located both in the leaf axils and at the base of the rosette, as well as under the seed itself. When the succulent fruit is cut, the plant loses its main point of growth, and further development can continue with new shoots.
This happens if pineapple grows in nature.And fruits not cut by a person, inside of which in wild-growing pineapples there are small, up to 3 mm in length, seeds, and lateral shoots - these are ways of continuing life and reproduction of culture.
Seeds from fruits eaten by animals and birds, falling into the ground, give new growth, and shoots from the axils easily root.
But in pineapples sold in stores, even if you look closely, you can hardly find at least a couple of seeds. How do pineapples grow on plantations and greenhouses? And where do the seeds go?
How does pineapple grow on plantations?
Since pineapple has become extremely popular all over the world, farmers are engaged in its cultivation not only in South and Central America, where the plant was first discovered and grew from time immemorial, but also in other regions suitable for climatic conditions. The largest pineapple plantations exist in Asia, South Africa, Australia and the southern United States.
Here the culture is cultivated using intensive technology using large-fruited early ripening varieties. Pineapples fall into the ground in the form of rooted cuttings at least 20 centimeters long. Plants are planted in two rows, leaving a distance of about 1.5–2 meters between individual pineapples and making wider aisles.
The best varieties are able to bloom as early as 12 months after planting in the ground. When the crop is harvested, the plants are harvested, and in their place new ones are planted, obtained from the shoots in the leaf axils.
In the tropics using mechanized means glaze, modern drugs for pest and disease control, as well as fertilizing and fertilization, in the open field it is possible to get up to three harvests a year.
But not everything is so simple in growing pineapples on plantations. It turns out that in order to get the planned massive harvest, the plants are forced to bloom. If earlier they used ordinary fire smoke for this, today they resort to treating plantings with acetylene. Only under the influence of gas, pineapples on plantations begin to lay flower buds.
The inflorescence that appears on a long peduncle does not diminish the concerns of farmers. It turns out that the ripening of fruits in which there are no seeds or only their rudiments can be achieved by preventing cross-pollination of plants.
For this, protective measures against insects are also used, and even protective caps are put on each inflorescence. Indeed, in Hawaii, for example, plants of this species love to pollinate not bees or butterflies, but hummingbirds.
Pineapples in a greenhouse: an unusual harvest from a summer cottage
Since the 16th century in Europe, pineapples, as welcome guests from the South American tropics, have been grown in greenhouses. Today this is also possible, especially since modern technologies make it much easier to care for pineapples in the greenhouse and reduce the cost of their maintenance. Due to the surface type of the root system, the need for pineapple in the ground is limited to a layer of about 20 cm.With a well-designed schedule of watering and fertilizing, as well as when organizing additional illumination within 6-8 hours, pineapples grow, as in the photo, no worse than on a tropical plantation.
The optimum temperature for growing this crop is 23–30 ° C. A lower or higher temperature background noticeably affects the speed of plant development, which weaken and can be exposed to all kinds of diseases and pest attacks.
The soil for pineapples is prepared specially by mixing garden soil, humus, perlite, peat and adding shredded charcoal. Plants relate well to slightly increased acidity, the level of which in the soil can reach 4.0–5.0 units. To maintain it, pineapples in the greenhouse can be watered with acidified warm water. Moisture for watering and irrigating foliage should not be colder than air. It is necessary to moisten the soil carefully so as not to cause stagnation of water and rotting of the root system and stem.
Like pineapples on the plantation, the plants in the greenhouse are also treated with acetylene or fumigated several times with smoke to obtain a harvest.How long do pineapples grow in greenhouse conditions, when can we wait for the first harvest? With the use of high-quality planting material, proper care and fertilization of the plantings during their active growth, the time for obtaining ripe pineapples in the greenhouse is no longer than in the open field.
Pineapple in a pot
As a pot culture, pineapple is widely used in the USA, southern Europe and other countries with warm climates. A spectacular large plant perfectly decorates the garden and home. At the same time, plants of the species Ananas comosus var are often used for planting. comosus, familiar to everyone on the shelves of fruit shops, and its close relatives are decorative small-fruited varieties.
Plants of the subspecies Erectifolius, Ananassoides and Bracteatus with edible small fruits and sometimes variegated bright foliage are especially interesting. The fruit on top of the shoots of such plants is, of course, inferior in taste to pineapples from a greenhouse or plantation somewhere in Puerto Rico.
If you want to get a truly sweet pineapple at home, you will have to try to grow it from the top of a fruit purchased in a store.
To understand all the intricacies of the process, you can watch photos and videos about how pineapples grow, and what kind of care this culture needs. The difficulty of caring for a pineapple in a pot is to provide the necessary temperature for the plant, adhere to the rules of watering and feeding. But by watching the pineapple grow, you can learn how to respond to the requests of a green pet. And after 1–1.5 years after planting, the time will come to make the plant bloom and bear fruit.