Scientific cultivation of pineapple or Ananas comosus
The scientific cultivation of pineapple covers following topics:
- Botanical description
- Distribution
- Soil and climatic requirements
- Propagation
- Choice of varieties
- Planting
- Irrigation
- Insect-pests
- Harvesting
- Post harvest technology
- Other important topics
| Common name | Pineapple |
| Botanical name | Ananas comosus L. |
| Family | Bromeliaceae |
| Chromosome number | X = 25, 2n = 50, 75, 100 |
| Origin | Brazil |
| Introduced in India | 1548 |
| Type of fruit | Sorosis |
| Edible portion | Bracts and Perianth |
| Good source of | Vitamin A, B and C |
| Enzyme | Bromelin (it is digestive) |
| Composition | 1. Average sugar % in pineapple: 10-12 % 2. Acid content in pineapple: 0.6-0.8 % |
Also read: Banana Cultivation One Liner
Distribution
It is cultivated in high rainfall and humid coastal region in peninsular India and hilly areas.
Also read: Grape Cultivation: Varieties, propagation, and diseases
Climate
- Optimum temperature for cultivation: 22-32 °C.
- Ideal temperature for the growth and development of leaves: 32 °C.
- Best temperature for the growth and development of roots: 29 °C.
- A difference of at least 4 °C between night and day temperatures is desirable.
- It can be grown up to 11000 m above MSL.
- Average annual rainfall for commercial cultivation is 100-150 cm or 1000-1500 mm.
Soil
• Sandy loam soil is ideal.
• Ideal soil pH ranges form 5-6.
Propagation
- Propagation is done by suckers and slips.
- Weight of slips should be 350 gm for higher yield and better produce.
- Weight of suckers should be 450 gm.
- For coorg honey dew, weight of suckers should be 50-750 gm and the weight of slips should be 300-400 gm.
- For Assam: Same as Karnataka.
- For Kerala: Weight of sucker should be 500-1000 gm.
Planting
- Time of planting varies from place to place depending upon the onset of monsoon and intensity of rainfall.
- Planting time in Assam: August to October.
- Kerala and Karnataka: April to June.
- Peak flowering period: Jan to March.
- Planting for West Bengal : Oct to November. Peak flowering period is 12-15 month after planting.
Planting system
- Flat bed and furrow, and for hilly areas: contour and trench methods.
- Ideal plant density for subtropical condition: 63400 plant/ha.
- For hot and humid condition: 5300 plant/ha.
Spacing
- Plant × Plant: 25 cm
- Row × Row: 60 cm
- Trench to trench: 90 cm
Also read: Mango Plantation: Cultivation Practice and Orchard Management
Manure and fertilizer
- Pineapple is a shallow feeder crop.
- For Kew pineapple variety: 12 gm N/plant.
- NPK dose for Assam region is 12:4:12 gm/plant /year.
- Application of 4 gm P2O5 per plant in ratoon crop increases fruit weight and yield.
Interculture
Earthing up
- It is done to provide anchorage to the plants.
- It prevents lodging in heavy rainfall area.
Weed control
Application of Diuron (3 kg/ha) or combination of bromocil + Diuron @ 2kg/ha as pre emergence spray are effective.
Mulching
- It is done for conserve soil moisture.
- Mulching with black polythene and saw dust are good.
Removal of suckers and slips
- A sucker grows with the emergence of inflorescence.
- Slips grow with the developing fruits.
- Increase number of slips delay fruit maturity.
- Removal of suckers is known as denevalling.
Irrigation
- Mostly grown under rainfed condition.
- Supplementary irrigation produce good size fruits in area having optimum rain fall.
- During hot weather irrigation are given in 20-25 days interval.
Use of growth regulators
- For inducing flowering: NAA and NAA based compound (Planofix and celemone) at 10 -20 days interval.
- Flowering in pineapple could also be induced by application of ethapon or ethereal (100 ppm).
- Flower induction should be done when plant attains 35 to 40 functional leaves.
- Application of NAA (200-300 ppm) 2- 3 month after fruit set increases 15- 20% fruit size.
Varieties
Kew
- • Leading commercial variety.
- Suitable for canning.
- Fruit weight: 1.5-2.5 kg.
- Giant kew is mostly cultivated in West Bengal.
Queen
- Widely grown in Tripura
- Fruit weight: 0.9-1.3 kg.
Mauritious
- Mid season variety of queen group.
- Suitable for table purposes.
Triploid variety
• Cayenne: Cultivated in Philippines
• Sugar leaf: Sweetest and best flavored fruit.
| Early season variety | Queen |
| Mid season variety | Mauritious |
| Late season variety | Kew, Jaint Kew |
Harvesting
- Flowering time from the date of planting: 10-12 months.
- Fruit mature period: 15-18 months.
- Pineapple comes to harvest: May-August.
- Fruit that mature in winter are acidic.
- Slight clour change at the base of developing fruits is suitable for canning purpose.
- Suitable harvesting stage for table purposes is Golden yellow colour stage.
- Fruits with crown can be kept from 10-15 days after harvest without any damage.
- Average fruit weight in 1st ratooning in HDP: 88 % and 79 % in the 2nd rationing.
Important points
- Most of the pineapple cultivar are diploid.
- Pineapple is a monocotyledonous, monocarpic, CAM plant and herbaceous plant.
- It is a non-climatric fruit crop.
- Serious pest of pineapple is mealy bug
- Pseudococcus brevipes is transmitted through virus.
Multiple colours are important
physiological disorder occurs due to genetical or nutritional imbalance.
Heart rot, Phytopthora parasitica, is a fungal disease. It mostly occurs in alkaline.