How to Grow Pineapple

Days to germination: Not started from seed
Days to harvest: Up to 2 years
Light requirements: Full sun
Water requirements: Sparingly once established
Soil: Sandy or well-drained soil
Container: Definitely

Introduction

Pineapples are a tropical plant that will only grow in zone 9 or warmer, but it can be grown indoors providing there is enough sun (see container section for more). Regions in the southern USA, Mexico around through southeast Asia are perfect for pineapple crops.

Encased in a distinctive prickly shell, the bright yellow pineapple flesh is very firm and sweet. Most people eat pineapple raw though it can be used in cooked dishes as well. Nutritionally, pineapple is a good source of vitamin C, copper, manganese and fiber. There are enzymes in the juice that can help with digestion, so much so that pieces of fruit are sometimes served between meal courses in Asia.

Starting from Seed

Pineapple plants are propagated by planting the cut-off crowns of a mature fruit (even one purchased from the grocery store). Home growers almost never use seeds.

Transplanting

To start a new pineapple plant, you first have to carefully slice the top or crown off of a mature pineapple. Cut away any actual fruit flesh (it will cause root rot), and you should see brown root buds along the surface of the cut area. If not, cut off thin slices until you do. Don’t plant your crown just yet though. Let it sit somewhere dark for a week, sitting so the cut areas are exposed to the air. This will help it dry so that it doesn’t rot once planted.

You can plant your crown directly into the garden, but most people start their plants in large pots until the root system has taken off. In a 6-inch pot, plant your crown by putting the base of it about 2 inches deep in potting soil. Give it a good watering and keep the pot in a sunny location (inside or out). After about 3 months, you can transplant it out into the garden if you are putting it outside.

Your pineapple plant will need quite a bit of room, so allow for at least 3 feet on all sides of your transplant. Leave extra space if you intend to walk between the plants because their leaves are quite sharp at the tips.

Growing Instructions

Pineapples don’t need very much water, so you should only give them light waterings when the weather has been dry. They will benefit greatly from a regular feeding with a standard fertilizer, once every 3 months. This is particularly important if you are growing your plant in sandy soil.

Be careful when tending your plants not to break any of the leaves. The sap of the pineapple is very irritating to the skin and can cause a rash.

Containers

Pineapples can be grown in containers, and they can even be grown indoors if you live in an area too cool for outdoor plantings. Your pineapples will need to get at least 6 hours of full sun each day, and the temperature can’t drop below 16C (61F) at night.

Start your plants with cut crowns in the same manner described above. You can start your plants in their final containers (at least 5 gallons in size), or transplant them from 6 inch pots after 3 months. Give them some fertilizer every few months, just as you would with a garden plant. Water your plants occasionally, but they usually get enough moisture from regular rainfall.

If you intend to keep your pineapple as an indoor plant, plan a large room for it because it will be at least 3 feet wide when mature. You could always keep your potted pineapple outdoors in the summer weather, and just bring it inside when the colder winter nights move in.

Pests and Diseases

As part of the Bromeliad family of plants, pineapples are very tough and are not bothered by that many pests.

Mealybugs are probably the biggest problem for pineapples. They are odd looking bugs, that seem to be covered in downy fur. A few of them won’t do much harm, but in numbers they can damage the fruit and leaves of your plant. Mealybugs can also transmit various wilt diseases which can cause your plant’s leaves to slowly turn yellow or brown, and it can kill the plant. Insecticides can help, but will need a higher-than-usual does because of the insects heavy covering.

For a more natural approach, you can introduce mealybug predators into your garden such as ladybugs or lacewings.

As for diseases, home gardeners should watch out for core rot once your plant has started to produce its fruit. The eyes of the fruit will start to look sunken, and it starts to rot from the inside. Mealybugs may spread this, so keep them controlled. Also, don’t use a fertilizer with a high-nitrogen content either.

Harvesting and Storage

If you’ve started your plant from a crown cutting, you will have about 20 months to wait before your first fruit will be ready to pick. You’ll first see a pinecone shaped bud form in the center of your plant. About 6 months after that first appears, you should have a pineapple ready to pick. The fruit will be uniformly yellow from top to bottom and have a very sweet smell. Slice it off the stem of the plant.

Don’t try to rush the plant by picking the pineapple early and hope it ripens faster off the plant. Once cut, pineapple fruit will not ripen any further and the taste will not improve. You just have to be patient with your plants.

After the first pineapple has been harvested, your plant may put out more shoots from the cut base. Let them keep growing and you might get a second fruit from the same plant. Also, you may see new shoots or suckers start to grow around where the fruit was attached. You can use these to start new plants much like you did with the crown.

You can store a whole pineapple in the fridge for 4 to 5 days, or cut pineapple pieces in juice for up to a week. If you freeze cut pineapple in its juice, it will soften some when thawed but still retain much of its texture. It will last 6 months frozen.

16 Responses to “How to Grow Pineapple”

richard andrews Says:
July 25th, 2011 at 11:45 pm
do you think i could plant a pineapple tree in the uk would look great on my patio
Chris Says:
August 17th, 2011 at 10:28 am
I am. It should be okay as long as it is taken indoors for the winter.
janet richmond Says:
October 25th, 2011 at 10:10 am
I have recently harvested a home grown pineapple and it was simply delicious. I am curious to know what to do about the stalk on which the pineapple grew. A slip has come out from the middle of the plant and there is competition from the stalk on which the pineapple grew. Do I need to cut this off so that the shoot will have more room to grow?
john Says:
December 13th, 2011 at 4:10 am
will pinapples grow in qld or is it 2 hot
Lilias Says:
March 26th, 2012 at 9:20 pm
Does anyone know how deep the roots are. I have a plant but want to move it to a sunnier spot. Other trees and plants are overgrowing it. It is a fews years old and at the moment has a pineapple on it. Obviously I wil not move it yet.
Lilias Says:
March 26th, 2012 at 9:21 pm
Pineapples thrive in Queensland. I grew up there
James Says:
September 15th, 2012 at 6:17 pm
We have a 3-year old plant with its first pineapple growing on it, plus about 5 new shoots that look like new plants all around it. Should we take off the new shoots and plant them, or can we leave them on the plant until next year. They look like they may all produce a pineapple in time. Thanks for your input.
Robin Says:
September 17th, 2012 at 5:43 pm
I have been growing a pineapple from a cut-off crown for about 20 months. I just noticed twp little green protuberances on the side or between the leaves on the plant. Would this be a sucker or the beginning of a bloom? I could send you a pic if you could receive it.

Do pineapple blossoms come from the center?

Thanks for your help.
Ray Says:
March 16th, 2013 at 9:02 am
I live in the desert of california zip code 92277. It gets very hot and very dry, only rains about 30 days a year, less than 2 inches a year I believe. Is it too hot and dry to raise a home grown pineapple outdoors? I have 1/2 an acre and would love to grow my husbands all time favorite food. Thank you for any consideration.
Yolanda Metott Says:
April 9th, 2013 at 5:06 am
Do you start it in water first to get the roots started or just straight to a pot after cutting off the top?
steve lecocq Says:
April 10th, 2013 at 1:34 pm
we bought our home in sept of 2012. there were 8 pots outside with what we thought were artificial plants. over the winter they turned brown.when we inspected them closer they turned out to be pineapples half buried in the soil. are they planted this way? what have i got? how do i make them pretty as last year?
Lora York Says:
June 13th, 2015 at 5:19 pm
I haven’t harvested my first pineapple yet, but it’s got five shoots coming out all over. Exactly how do I (a) cut these and (b) plant them? My plant is in a pot and I only have one location where it might be able to stay in the pot but self-propagate (& where the deer won’t eat it). Will the shoots find soil themselves, outside the pot? I don’t know what I should be doing now. I’m in Zone 11 so they should be able to grow year-round (if I water).
terri Says:
July 12th, 2015 at 10:54 am
I am going to plant top of a pine apple.I understand they sprout out about 3feet.I live in the mid west will my plant Handel the cold.
Isaac Frimpong Says:
August 12th, 2015 at 5:58 pm
i am interested to enter into the cultivation of Pineapple. I am in Ghana and how do i go about it? I need a guideline and support from all over the world.
Jonathan Griffin Says:
April 30th, 2016 at 11:46 am
Not totally true. You can grow them in zone 8. I live in a zone 8 climate, and I’m growing one outdoors just fine.
Rebecca Paquette Says:
January 17th, 2018 at 4:17 pm
I have an inground pineapple that did produce one pineapple. There are some new green shoots sprouting but the older ones are yellow and not nice looking. I have an automatic sprinkler system that comes on once a week for 15 minutes in the winter. I wonder if the plant is being overwatered? I moved it from one location to another. At the other place I rarely watered it. I was so surprised to see a pineapple and it had a beautiful color. I allowed the pineapple to grow and when I picked it the fruit was very tasty, What do I do about the bad looking shoots?