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Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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Posted by
homey_bird (
My Page) on
Thu, Sep 20, 12 at 14:07
Hi all,
Hope everyone's Fall garden is coming along well! This summer I decided to try out growing pineapple from its crown. I have four of them growing now with roots formed well.
Winter is approaching and I thought I'd check how to deal with the plants in winter. My plants are sitting in a large planter under the eaves of my house. They will not get direct frost but might still get lots of cold air. The temperatures around here rarely go below freezing, but cold rain water during storms could fall on the plants.
So I thought, I'd check with folks here, have you grown one in/around the peninsula? Did your pineapple hibernate and wake up outside or did you have to actually bring it indoors? Were you able to get it to fruit?
Checked some online resources : Sunset magazine has an article but seems to be aimed at SoCal gardeners. CRFG site makes a brief mention that pineapple "will usually tolerate brief exposures to 28� F. Prolonged cold above freezing retards growth, delays maturity and causes the fruit to be more acid. " Can someone share their experience with Pineapple in winter?
Thanks in advance! |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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- Posted by hoovb z9 Southern CA (My Page) on
Thu, Sep 20, 12 at 16:11
| They are really and truly a sun-loving bromeliad. They like warm in winter and warmer in summer. If you've grown other bromeliads, treat pineapple the same. |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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| Thanks for the post. I am aware that they are a sun-loving bromeliad. I have had some experience growing bromeliads, such as Tilandsia and Guzmanias and they've survived just fine in my weather outdoors. Does that mean that pineapple will too? My questions are not regarding general care but regarding winter tolerance if left outdoors. Moving indoors is possible but I typically do not like to do that for most of my plants due to space availability. Thanks in advance. |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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| I had no problem growing them outdoors with no protection in Watsonville. The plants did well but never fruited. The summer just never was warm enough.I think. Al |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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| Hi Al, good to hear. Did you try to fruit them using Apple technique? I see other bloom inducers in the nurseries for Broms but frankly I would not want to use them on something I am planning to feed my kids. May be it's a question for Bromeliad forum but does anyone around here have experience getting a Brom to bloom by organic /non-toxic, non-chemical methods? Thanks for responses so far and hope to hear more. |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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| I grow several Broms here in containers, because I need to move them under protection in the winter. They always bloom, but on their own schedule. I have not tried any bloom stimulus, only normal container fertilizer 9-3-6 with minors. Each plant only blooms once, but produces pups that will bloom. When the containers get TOO crowded, I divide into new pots, discarding the bloomed out plants. It will then take a couple of years for the new pots to bloom. Al |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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- Posted by hoovb z9 Southern CA (My Page) on
Sat, Sep 22, 12 at 12:08
| I had mine out all winter, and they would look somewhat unhappy as the winter wore on, but sprang back come warmer weather. I think it set them back quite a bit, I think you would have a greater chance of getting a sweet fruit and a more attractive plant if you gave them a warm place for the winter. I'm in Sunset 23. I grew them for several years and got several fruits, one was particularly memorable for being super sweet and super tender melt-in-your-mouth. Yum. If you have a south-facing light colored stucco wall, they may be very happy with that for the winter, but in the summer the reflected heat seemed to be too much, though that may have been because they didn't get a lot of water. They were fun to experiment with. I grew all of them from the tops of pineapples we bought at the grocery store. |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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- Posted by bahia SF Bay Area (My Page) on
Mon, Sep 24, 12 at 5:32
| I think you'll find they may endure a northern California winter if well protected from worst cold and winter rains, but they won't like it. Also, our local summers near the bay aren't really hot enough to promote good fruiting. A greenhouse in winter and a spot next to a south/west facing wall best for summer. They are more certain to fruit in southern California. |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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| Thank you all for the posts! I will move them to a hot spot and see how it goes. Next couple of years will be interesting! |
RE: Pineapples in Bay Area (mid-peninsula)
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| Bahia, how hot do they need to be? In Walnut Creek, where summers are among the hottest in the Bay Area, I imagine we'd have some luck? We have a great covered porch next to the house that is basically frost-free that might be worth trying this on. Intrigued! |
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