Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2008

How to plant a pineapple plant

Pineapples belong to the bromeliad (bro-MEH-lee-ad) family. Like many bromeliads, a pineapple's long arching leaves grow in a rosette shape, forming a cup-like center. The flower or fruit grows on a long stalk from the center of the rosette. Pineapples are the best known bromeliads, but a number of others that produce beautiful tall flowering stalks are sold by garden centers and florists.

Pineapples plants and blooming bromeliads are typically expensive to buy, but, fortunately, easy to grow. During winter keep your plant in a window that provides high light. After the last frost, set your plant outside in bright filtered light. Fill the cup-like part of your bromeliad with water regularly. Water the soil only when dry. Never let the pot stand in water. Although bromeliads prefer our summer heat and outside humidity, they tolerate the dry winter heat in our homes. Inside they benefit from occasional misting. Feed them periodically with a diluted foliar spray fertilizer-tomato fertilizer works well.

After a bromeliad finishes blooming it produces offsets (new rosettes) at its base. The 'mother' rosette will not rebloom, but its offsets bloom in time. Wait until an offset is at least two months old, then, remove it along with some roots from the 'mother' plant. Plant the offset in good potting soil and care for it as you did for the mother. It will take two years for the new plant to bloom, but it is worth the wait. The new plants are free of charge, easy to care for and blooms last for months.

You can get a pineapple plant for nothing by cutting the green leafy top off a pineapple you buy at the grocery store. Twist the leafy crown off the fruit. Remove and discard the lower leaves to expose the base of the central stem. Allow the stem to 'cure' for a few days so the surface of the stem hardens over. Then plant it in good well drained potting soil. Care for it as you would any other bromeliad. After two years, if the pineapple does not bloom on its own, you may need to encourage it to bloom and bear fruit. Do this by putting your well established plant in a bag with a ripe banana or apple for a week. The ethylene gas from the ripe fruit will trigger the pineapple to bloom.

Keep in mind that bromeliads grow slowly. Because of that, you may find the propagation process particularly gratifying as you grow offsets to bloom or fruit.