Do you love pineapples? I do. I love them so much that I jumped on the pineapple trend years ago buying everything from earrings, to planners and a collection of tank tops. These days I have switched my fashion choices to feature lemons, but my garden still features pineapples.
Pineapples are so easy to grow. The hard part, is being patient enough to wait them out until they produce, which can take anywhere from a year and a half to three years. If you are like me, you have probably spent many years trying to grow pineapples only to be disappointed when they do produce fruit because it is so small. There is a simple way to get these plants to produce larger fruit. It is inexpensive and takes very little time. I came across these tips from a pineapple historian.
Believe it or not, south Florida used to have acres and acres of pineapple plantations. The house I grew up in was built in an old field. We even have a yearly pineapple festival. If you are lucky enough to go to the south Florida fair, the history of the pineapple can be found in Yesteryear Village. This is where I got the best tips to get my pineapples growing.
Tip 1: Keep your pineapples hydrated. Pineapples like water…..from the top. Wet soil leads to rot. Dry soil will slow the growth of the plant. Water often in the dry season and look out for signs of drought stress such as leaves turning pale green to red. During the rainy season, supplemental water should not be necessary.
Tip 2: Once the flower begins to form, fertilizer the pineapple with 1-2 tbsps of Epsom salt. Sprinkle it around the soil, being careful not to get it in the center of the plant. This provides the plant with magnesium and sulfate, two essential elements necessary for plant growth. Both help with chlorophyll formation and magnesium aids in sugar synthesis within the plant. If you want to save your Epsom salt for the bathtub, you can easily find a fertilizer with magnesium and sulfur at your local hardware store. While you are at the hardware store…..
Tip 3: Continue fertilizing your pineapple every 2 months with a 10-10-10 product or less. 10-10-10 means that the product has 10% nitrogen, 10% phosphorus, and 10% potassium. These three are the most important nutrients that plants are often deficient in. For pineapples, 10% is plenty. There are products that are 6-6-6 and those are about as low as you should go in order to produce bigger pineapples. Nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) are all crucial to fruit and seed production and growth. This process should be continued until you have a yellow, ripe pineapple, ready to eat. And don’t forget to save the top and add it to your garden.
For the record, I did not just research this information. I actually experimented with it over the last few years. It absolutely works. My pineapples doubled in size. They were almost as big as store bought ones. I will keep you posted on the success of this year’s crop.
If you are looking for more detailed information, check out UF’s pineapple resources here.
https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/plants/edibles/fruits/pineapples.html
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/mg055
If you are wanting to learn how to protect your precious pineapple harvest from Jack Frost, check out my post on protecting plants from frost damage.