Advise for my Colorado Pineapple

12 years ago

So two years ago, I got the bright idea to plant a pineapple top and see if it would grow. Well it grew and grew. It spends winter indoors with my orange tree under 12 on, 12 off six hundred watt SH lights and then lives on my back porch in the summer time. Well a few weeks ago it would seem to be putting out a flower. I have read that the fruit won't be ripe and ready to harvest till Feb. or March. So I would love any advise that you tropical pineapple growers might have for me. Like, what should I be feeding it, should I try to transplant into a larger pot, and how many hours of light a day should I give it when I move it back inside, or should I not put in artificial light this Sept and leaving in a window where it will be on a natural light cycle? Any advise or comments would be helpful.

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Comments (7)

Colopineapple
Original Author
12 years ago
more photo
notascrename
12 years ago
That looks great! I got started w/pineapple about the same way. The container looks plenty big .Before fertigation and row covers and tanks of bubbling stuff, pineapple was fertilized by hand with granulated 8-8-8 garden fertilizer. I would work in a couple heaping Tbs. now and repeat in a month. then I would go to 3 Tbs. every three months (Yes, they are hungry little boogers). It will start to put out suckers after you start feeding it, it's up to you whether to leave them or not. suckers will grow fruit if you keep feeding it. give it a Tbs. of epsom salts now should be good. DON'T overwater, these things are semi-arid land plants, spray them down, they absorb water at the leaf axils. Let us know how it grows, Jim
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tropicbreezent
12 years ago
They like the strongest light possible, like sunlight. Normally they flower in the dry season (winter) and ripen into the hotter weather. You're doing it in reverse so you'll want to keep up that heat and light as much as possible. With fertiliser don't give it anything too strong. You're better off giving it weak doses ,more frequently. Hold back on any nitrogen. They don't need a lot of pot room and it's best not to disturb it now with a re-pot. Now that it's started, how big a fruit you get depends on how well you look after it.
Colopineapple
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you for the replies. Jim and tropicbreezent your advise will be followed. So is it true that a fruit set that starts now in July won't be ripe till March? I know it is probably silly but it is fascinating to watch this plant grow and flower here in Colorado. I will keep up with photos. 8-1-14
tropicbreezent
12 years ago
I can't remember exactly now, but normally something like 4 months. However in a colder climate it's probably longer. But I don't think it would be 8 or 9 months if you kept it warm and in bright light.
Colopineapple
Original Author
11 years ago
Well it has moved inside and seems to be doing fine. How do I know when it is ripe?
tropicbreezent
11 years ago
Certainly not now. Commercially they're picked still green so that they travel better. But the down side is that the taste is poor (the reason I don't buy pineapples from stores). I find it best to leave them until they start to colour up. And that can take a bit of patience.