Many people think that these exotic fruits grow on a palm tree. In fact, they do not grow at all on a tree or on a shrub, but on the ground. We are talking about an amazing tropical fruit, the taste of which is familiar to everyone. This is pineapple, which is one of the most common among exotic fruits. Its taste is familiar to many.
The article presents a story about how pineapple grows in nature (see photo in the article), what conditions are necessary for its growth, and what features it has.
General information
Local residents of the tropics even in the pre-Columbian era grew and used pineapples for food. In addition to edible fruits, stems and hard prickly leaves of plants were also used. A rather strong fiber was obtained from this raw material, used for the production of ropes, clothing, mats and fishing nets.
The statement that pineapples grow on palm trees is not at all true. You can learn more about this later in the article. But first, let's present a short story of the discovery of this wonderfulplants.
A Brief History
Ananas comosus is the plant closest to the modern species. It was discovered at the beginning of the last century in the Parana River Valley (South America).
Most likely, a long time ago it was from these regions that the inhabitants of local tribes, who learned to eat these juicy fruits, spread them across the territories of the South American continent to Central America and the Caribbean.
A well-known fact is that this plant was cultivated by the Mayan and Aztec tribes. The discovery of an exotic tropical fruit by Europeans occurred in 1493, during the travel of Columbus, who noticed this interesting plant on the island of Guadeloupe. It was with the light hand of the great Spanish navigator that this fruit got its name - Pina de Indes.
The Portuguese, after the discovery by the Spaniards of an unusual fruit in Hawaii, also found a similar, no less interesting plant in Brazil. And after several decades, the first plantings of pineapples began to appear in African and Indian colonies. The tropical fruit, which is rapidly gaining popularity, has retained the name it received from the indigenous people of South America. "Nanas" in translation from the language of the Indians means "magnificent fruit." And in 1555, the prefix comosus appeared in the name (translated as crested).
Where does pineapple grow?
Countries that are home to pineapple are Paraguay and Brazil (South America). This plant prefers tropical climates. It can grow even in dry periods thanks tothe ability of leaf cells to store moisture. Most pineapples are grown in Thailand, Brazil, the Philippines, the Hawaiian Islands, Mexico, Australia, India and Guinea. It is quite possible to grow pineapple in Russia, but for this it is necessary to create conditions for this plant (in greenhouses) close to natural.
Pineapples are grown on extensive plantations, and only the best varieties are planted. In nature, this plant grows singly, it can be found only in separate specimens. In addition, under natural conditions, there are wild varieties with harder fruits even in a mature state. They are small and not very sweet. Large varieties are bred by man.
Where the pineapple grows (see photo below) in the wild, it is practically a weed growing without any care. Therefore, its taste is far from human-grown pineapples.
Today, this fruit is grown in almost all countries where a tropical climate prevails - these are Australia, Ghana, Mexico, India and others. Vast fields look amazingly beautiful, where pineapples are planted in long ridges.
Description
The opinion that pineapple grows on a tree is wrong. It is a perennial herbaceous terrestrial plant that grows as a small shrub. It has hard and prickly leaves. The fruits are located on the trunk. The peculiarity of the leaves is not only that they are prickly, but also in the unusual property that they possess. They, as noted above, have special cells, the tissue of which is able to accumulate moisture in itself during rains. This isallows the plant to survive the driest periods.
The height of a pineapple depends on growing conditions and variety. It can be equal to 0.6-1.5 meters. The stem of the plant is rather short. It is densely covered with elongated, stiff foliage.
An adult plant has a rosette formed from 30 or more fleshy, pointed leaves that have a concave shape. Their length is 20-100 cm. One of the features of the plant is that on the stem thickening in the process of growth, the leaves are arranged in the form of a spiral. Some varieties and subspecies of pineapple have spines along the edge of the leaves - curved and sharp.
There are subspecies of pineapple both with uniformly colored leaves and with variegated ones. However, in all representatives of this genus, the foliage has a thick wax coating, which makes it almost gray or gray.
How do pineapples grow?
In appearance, this exotic plant is more like a shrub with elongated and dense leaves. In the very first year, the stem thickens and the green mass grows, which is narrow and fleshy juicy leaves (up to 0.7 meters long) intertwined with sharp spikes at the edges.
A year later, the pineapple begins to appear inflorescence in the form of an ear with a large number of flowers, and bisexual.
The way a pineapple grows (the photo is presented in the article) can be compared with the growth of white cabbage. Both of them are small bushes with thick leaves. Both have a fruit in the center of the rosette. There are people who mistakenly believe that pineapples withcabbage are related. In fact, pineapples belong to the bromeliad family, and they are the only edible species in this family.
Flowering
Peduncle, reaching a height of up to 60 cm, sprouts from the point of growth of the leaves. It is covered with flowers, as noted above, of both sexes. This is why this plant is self-pollinating. Flowering time is approximately 14 to 20 days.
Flowers come in reddish and purple hues, which also depends on the variety of the plant. Each of them has a berry that fills with juice.
Fruits
How do pineapples (fruits) grow? After the end of the flowering period, a very powerful seed is formed on the plant bush. From it, the fetus develops in the future. Moreover, a tuft or palm appears on the top of each fruit, in the same shape as the bush itself, but smaller. To grow a new fruit, this top is cut off and planted. However, pineapples are not always self-pollinating. There are subspecies that have only male or only female flowers. In this case, the plant is pollinated by bees and other insects, seeds are formed in the fruits.
Wild fruits are usually small in size, and almost all of them have many seeds that different animals like to feast on.
After the ripening of the first fruit, the pineapple intensively begins to grow side shoots that form from the axils of the leaves. In the future, these shoots are used for reproduction.pineapples in cultivated form. When the lateral shoots are removed, the mother plant blooms again after some time and again bears fruit. Plants are completely uprooted after the second harvest, and new ones are planted in their place.
Seeds
Where does pineapple grow? On the ground, on the trunk of a small herbaceous plant. Its seeds are located immediately under the skin of the fruit, in the places of the so-called "eyes", which are analogous to potato "eyes". Scientifically, they are called axillary buds. The seeds are similar in shape to apple seeds, only they are smaller in size. From such small seeds a new pineapple can grow. Propagation by seeds is the second method after propagation by shoots. It should be noted that self-pollinating varieties do not have seeds, so they can only reproduce in one way - with the help of a tuft.
Fruits grown by pollination do not have very good taste and the price of such fruits is lower. Therefore, when growing pineapples on an industrial scale, pollination of the plant is avoided in every possible way.
Growing at home
How do pineapples grow at home? In order to grow it, first of all, you need to purchase a well-ripened fruit (two just in case). When buying, pay attention to the leaves. They should be firm and deep green in color. The skin of the fruit should be golden.
Preparation of material for planting: the leaves collected in a bundle along with the stem are twisted. You can simply cut off the top, separating it from the pulp.
Growingpineapple is a long process, and therefore requires patience.
- The cut of the lower leaves should be done so that 3 cm remains from the cutting.
- The cut blank is placed in a well-ventilated and dry room to dry (3-4 days).
- After the top has dried, the workpiece is lowered 4-5 cm into the water in a transparent container for rooting. Be sure to protect the plant from overdrying and drafts.
- The water in the tank should be changed every two to three days.
- Keep a constant temperature regime.
- After the appearance of the first roots, pineapple can be planted in the ground. The diameter of the planting pot should match the size of the top of the seedling.
- There must be holes in the container. The bottom of the pot should be laid out with a layer of expanded clay (about 2-3 cm). After planting, the pineapple should be watered abundantly and the plant pot should be placed in a well-lit place.
- The planted plant should be watered frequently (wetting every other day is ideal).
- To ensure natural growing conditions, the seedling should be covered with a transparent container.
So how do pineapples grow at home? Great if you follow all the rules for care. After 3-4 years, tasty and fragrant fruits will appear.
Pineapple Care Tips
- It is best to water with settled water at room temperature, otherwise the development of pineapple may slow down. You can add about 3 drops of lemon juice to the water.
- It is important to remember that pineapple in growing conditions in the house should be replanted annually, and the plantingcapacity should increase. Transplantation should be carried out by transshipment of a plant with an earthen clod.
- You should feed the plant with mineral fertilizers.
Growing pineapples at home is a fun and easy process. The main thing in this case is to be patient and do everything right.
Conclusion
How pineapples grow in nature is understandable. But, as noted above, it is quite difficult to find sweet fruits in the wild.
Over the years since the discovery of pineapple, not only the value and quality of this plant have changed, but also its appearance. For comparison, the following can be noted: wild-growing pineapples in natural conditions form seedlings weighing 200-700 grams, while cultivars have fruits weighing up to 2-3 kg. With all this, the pulp of the fruit has become much sweeter.
Among the huge variety of tropical fruits, pineapples are the third largest in terms of cultivation. In many countries, the cultivation of pineapples is the most important article of agriculture.
