How to Grow Pineapple at Home

Pineapple plants are fun to grow and can easily be propagated from fruit, which bought from a supermarket. It makes exotic and surprising houseplants that can bring a touch of the tropics to any home. While it takes patience, a few months for rooting and years for fruit, the journey of growing a pineapple plant is half of the fun. The fruit is a result of the merging of 100 to 200 small florets that, once fertilized, produce individual fruits and swell. A fully ripe pineapple typically weighs around 2kg or more, although this varies by species.

How to Grow Pineapple

Choose a ripe pineapple with a healthy set of green leaves at the top. Carefully cut the rosette off about 2cm from the top of the pineapple fruit and eat the fruit. Carefully peel away individual leaves to reveal a length of the stem. Trim the base of the stem neatly, just below the leaf scars, removing all the white stem tissue of the top. Fill a pot with multi-purpose compost mixed with horticultural grit, then position the pineapple rosette in the center and firming more compost around it.

Water and allow the pot to drain well. Place the pot in a heated propagator or in a warm, bright spot indoors, until the roots have developed. Once the roots start growing from the base of the pot, transplant your pineapple into a larger container. Keep the plant in a warm conservatory or greenhouse, or on a window sill and continue feeding and watering regularly, potting on as the top required.

Care

Pineapple plants do not fare well in constantly moist or waterlogged soils. Make sure to place the plants in a sunny location to keep them happy. Fertilize in every 8 weeks with pelleted or liquid fertilizer and with seaweed emulsion for a foliar feed a few times a year.

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