Pineapple comosus, the cultivated pineapple
Ananas comosus
- Exposures
- Sun, Half-shade
- Hardiness (USDA)
- 11a (4.4°C ≤ T° < 7.2°C)
- Lifecycle
- Perennial
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Family
- Bromeliads Bromeliaceae
- Genus
- Pineapple Ananas
- Species
- Pineapple comosus Ananas comosus
Other name:Bromelia comosa
Decried on pizza, sung by Pikotaro and inhabited by SpongeBob SquarePants, is it worth introducing pineapple? Named Ananas comosus in Latin, this variety of the Bromeliaceae family comes to us from South America. In our latitudes, it is grown as a houseplant.
How to recognize Pineapple comosus?
Pineapple comosus is an herbaceous perennial. It grows up to 1.5 meters in all directions. Your apartment's too small for it, but you're dreaming of a tropical plant? Treat yourself to the miniature version, pineapple comosus var. Microstachys. This cultivar doesn't exceed 60 centimetres in height.
The rosette of leaves conceals a short green stem. Thick and rigid, they are lanceolate. The largest are over a metre long. The botanical variety has dark green foliage. But there are also plants with colorful leaves, such as pineapple comosus bracteatus.
Pineapples flower after six years of cultivation. The inflorescence is made up of a multitude of spikes of blue flowers. Flowering occurs in late summer or early autumn.
The fruit is a cylinder 20 to 30 centimetres high. It is covered by a hard bark with hexagonal patterns. Brown, yellow or green, it protects the sweet, fibrous yellow flesh. The fruit, also known as pineapple, is topped by a crown of green leaves. Smaller than those surrounding the stem, they measure between ten and fifteen centimetres in length.
The fruit is edible, and the rest of the plant is non-toxic if touched or ingested. Pineapple comosus poses no danger to humans or animals.
Our care tips
Pineapple comosus the plants sold in garden centers, with their fruit, are already mature. So you won't need to repot your plant. However, place the pot on a dish filled with moist clay balls to increase humidity.
Watering
Water when the soil is dry, for about three centimeters. Use room-temperature, non-calcareous water, preferably rainwater. When watering, avoid wetting the leaves.
Thirty minutes after watering, drain off any stagnant water in the saucer. It may rot the roots.
To improve humidity, place your Ananas comosus with your other plants or place its pot on a dish of moist clay balls.
Misting
Spray foliage with non-calcareous water at room temperature. In addition to increasing humidity, misting prevents the appearance of undesirable insects.
Repotting
Every year in the spring, repot your Ananas comosus to give it more space.
Your Pineapple comosus likes to be cramped. Repot it in a pierced pot barely larger than the root ball.
Line the bottom of the pot with a well-drained substrate. You can use potting soil for Bromeliads or for cacti and succulents. You can also make your own growing medium by mixing equal parts :
- potting soil for green plants ;
- bark ;
- coconut fiber ;
- perlite ;
- sphagnum moss.
Plant your Pineapple comosus in the center and add substrate. Tamp and water to encourage rooting.
Place your pot on a dish of moist clay balls to improve humidity.
Fertilization
To promote the growth of your Ananas comosus, apply fertilizer in spring and summer.
Dilute green plant fertilizer with water.
Cleaning
Clean the leaves with a clean wet sponge. This removes dust and improves photosynthesis. It's also a way of preventing mite infestations.
Prune
To encourage the growth of your Pineapple comosus, prune regularly.
Remove yellowed leaves. They will not regain their color and are no longer useful to the plant. You can remove them by hand or with clean pruning shears.
Taking cuttings
The best time to take cuttings is after your Ananas comosus has bloomed.
Wait until the shoots are at least a third of the size of the main plant before removing them. Separate them with your hands or a clean, sharp instrument (pruning shears or scissors). Be sure to keep some roots for each cutting.
Prepare a pierced pot adapted to the size of your cutting.
Pour a layer of potting soil for cacti and succulents or for bromeliads into the bottom. You can also make your own growing medium by mixing equal parts of potting soil for green plants, bark, sphagnum moss, perlite and coconut fibre.
Plant your Pineapple comosus and add substrate. Tamp to remove air bubbles and water to encourage rooting.
Your plant appreciates humidity. Place the pot on a saucer filled with moist clay balls to increase humidity.
Diseases / Threats
Information
- Lifecycle
- Perennial
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Exposures
- SunHalf-shade
- Substrates
- Humus soilSandy soil
- Planting method
- In pots
- Categories
- Fruit treeIndoorHerbaceous
- Tag
- Edible fruit
- Origin
- South America
- Hardiness (USDA)
- 11a (4.4°C ≤ T° < 7.2°C)
- Leaf color
- Dark green
- Flower color
- Blue
- Fruit colors
- YellowBrown
Discover plants from the same family
Pineapple comosus bracteatus
Ananas comosus var. bracteatus
Pineapple comosus var. microstachys
Ananas comosus var. microstachys
Tillandsia racket
Tillandsia cyanea
Jellyfish head
Tillandsia caput-medusae
Find all our tips in the Monstera application
