How to Grow a Pineapple Plant from Fruit Purchased at the Grocery Store

I will boast that for a guy, I have a pretty green thumb. No doubt this is because I was raised by my great-grandmother who loved her many flower gardens, hanging plants, fruit trees, well kept lawn, etc.

One of my favorite plants to grow is a pineapple plant. Before I started growing pineapples, I thought they grew on large, tall trees like a coconut. Not so.
Other people I have spoken to thought that they grew under ground like a potato. Actually, A plant only two feet tall can produce edible fruit!

So, how do you grow your own pineapple plant?

For starters, the next time you buy a whole pineapple at the grocery store and slice it up for a nice dessert, do not throw away the top!

I used to take the tops and let them dry for a few days then root them in water for a few weeks. This will work but often the fleshy fruit that remains on the green top will rot and attract bugs. Yuck. I have since learned you need to remove all of the lost flesh before trying to root your plant. Firmly grasp the green top of the plant and twist it out of the fruit. Then let the green part dry for a day or two before submerging it in water to root. It may take up to a few months to root. I have left the plants in water all winter before and planted them when summer came.

Instead of going straight from the water to the ground, I like to further nurse my plant by putting it in a medium sized flower pot. Once the white roots start showing and are about two to three inches long, take the plant and put it in a pot of good planting soil. You can leave the plant here indefinitely and keep the plant indoors or out. However, if you leave your plant indoors it is very unlikely to ever produce fruit. The plant itself makes for good greenery in a home office or living room, though.

I usually keep most of my plants in pots, transplanting them to larger pots about once a year until the plant is about two to three feet tall. It takes about two years for the plant to reach this height. Two years is also about the time you should see fruit being produced. There are methods of forcing the plant to produce fruit but I have never personally used them.

I love pineapple plants. I keep one large one in my office at work. My coworkers are amazed when they find out all the neat facts about the plant. I have had to give several plants as gifts. :) It's great fun though!