Pineapple farmers

On our trip to Hawaii, we drove past a pineapple farm. Hubby Doc thought that was one of the coolest things. We also ate tons of Maui Gold pineapple.

Oh. My. Goodness.

Pineapple in Hawaii is not the same as pineapple in Indiana. Hawaii does not export any pineapple, except for what people like me bring back on the plane or personally order to be shipped to the mainland. None of the pineapple in the grocery stores comes from Hawaii. If you were looking for a reason to go to Hawaii, go to try the pineapple. You don’t need another reason.

The “breed” of pineapple they grow over there is called Maui Gold. It has this phenomenal golden color, is much sweeter, and has less acid content than the pineapple you can get your hands on here. It’s amazing.

Hubby Doc decided that since we are already farmers, we can be pineapple farmers, too.

So when we cut the tops off the pineapples that we brought home to eat, we planted them.

That’s how you grow a pineapple – you cut off the leafy top and stick it in the ground. The super-secret is that it takes two years to get a pineapple from one plant. Two years. One pineapple. Then you have to start over.

We planted four, so if we take super-good care of them, in two years we’ll have four pineapples. Then, two years after that, we’ll have four more. (It almost doesn’t seem worth it.)

We planted these right after we cut them (which, frankly, was right after we got back from Hawaii).

About two weeks after planting, we can already see some new growth from the center of the plant.

This one sat out on the counter for a few days before we got it planted, so we weren’t sure how it would do.

So far, so good, new little pointy leaves coming up through the middle of the sad-looking plant.

The plants will put on new leaves working from the inside out. Then, when it’s good and ready, it will send up a little stalk in the middle, and the new baby pineapples grow from the stalk in the middle of the plant.

They’re a tropical plant, so they need to be kept inside during our silly Indiana winters. We’re hoping to be able to put them outside this summer (maybe on our new porches). For now, the challenge is keeping the cats out of them. Especially Pretzel.