Just like homemade meals always taste better than going out to the restaurant, growing your own food will always be more satisfying to eat than what you buy at the supermarket.
The secret is all in the amount of time and love you put into what you do: be it cooking or gardening.
If you’re going to start a little garden of your own, you might as well add a little colorful addition into the mix, so why not grow some pineapples?
If you live in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 10 through 11, you can even grow the fruit outside (1). If not, they just need a large well-draining pot and a nice sunny windowsill.
Pineapples grow into little bromeliad shrubs that are incredibly easy to care for, they just take a little time to bear fruit, so stay patient and you’ll be rewarded tenfold!
How To Grow Pineapples
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0mhwAJM12U
1. Buy A Pineapple
You’ll need a mature pineapple to grow a new plant, so make sure to buy a fresh organic fruit for best results.
2. Chop Off The Crown
Chop off the top of the pineapple, keeping a good inch or so of fruit under the green leaves. Keep the rest of the pineapple aside to enjoy.
Clean any yellow flesh from the crown to avoid mold and pluck away any dead leaves.
If you want, place the stripped-down pineapple with a glass of water to get it to root before planting.
3. Plant Away!
Make a small indentation in your 3- to 7-gallon pot of soil and placing the crown inside, vertically, making sure to firmly cover the base. The larger the container, the larger your fruit will be!
The leave will grow very large, so place the pot in a sunny location with plenty of room to accommodate your growing plant.
4. Wait (It May Take Awhile)
Pineapples grow very slowly, so it may be a while before you notice any changes in your plant. Like all bromeliads, pineapple store water in their leaves, so it’s best not to water them too much. As mentioned above, the most important factor in helping your plant thrive is to give it plenty of sunlight.
It may take up to two years for your plant to bear fruit, but every step along the way will amount to an incredibly rewarding harvest. Our personal favorite stage of growth is when the plants blooms into a beautiful array of purple flowers along the bright-red fruit.
5. Harvest
Once your plant grows up, the fruit will begin to change color to reach the same brownish-yellow hue that your see in at the grocery store. Once it gets to the right color, it’s ready to enjoy! Start the cycle all over again by cutting off its crown and planting it right back up!
If you still have a few questions about how to grow pineapple, find more extensive instructions and gardening tips here.