Pineapple plants

[Harold Slater]

George Theodoris (ez003450 at bullwinkle.ucdavis.edu) wrote:
: I have a pineapple plant started from the top of a pineapple about 5 
: years ago. The plant has grown enormous(probably about 3 or 4 feet tall) 
: and takes up a large corner of my apartment now that I brought it in for 
: the winter. My question is: How can I get it to flower? I have been 
: waiting and waiting but no pineapple yet. A friend of mine told me that 
: ethylene induces pineapple plants to flower, and that placing an apple 
: in the center of the plant might work. I tried this but to no avail. 
: Does anyone out there now anything about pineapple plant biology? How can 
: I get it to flower?

Yes the eythylene gas does work. Pineapples also need plenty of sun to
really flower well and set fruit. A good blossom booster fertilzer
at 1/4 dilution is helpful too. I usually cheat, however. There is a
product called Etherel that is a hormonal blossom inducer. It works
very well with no ill effects. Remember that if you use the apple
trick or any hormones it could take 4-7 weeks before a terminal flower
spike begins to develop.

Good luck with your plant.

Harold Slater  
  Botanika Bromeliads