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Ananas comosus

Authority	Merr.
Family	Liliopsida:Zingiberidae:Bromeliales:Bromeliaceae
Synonyms	Ananas sativus Schult. f., Ananassa sativa Lindl., Bromelia ananas L., Bromelia comosa L.
Common names	abacaxi, ananas, andras, ara painapa (Cooks), balawa, faina, fala papalagi, fala'aiga, hukifa, painapolo (Tuvalu), pina, pineapple, po lo mah, sub-pah-rohd, vadra, vainaviu
Editor
Ecocrop code	402

Notes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION A herb reaching 75-125 cm in height, with a short and thick stem, rosette leaves, and a terminal in florescence and fruit. The fruit is a multiple fruit formed by the almost complete fusion of 100-200 berry-like fruitlets. It may weigh between 0.5 and 2.5 kg. USES The fruit contain about 14% sugar, vitamins A, B, and C, and bromelin, it is eaten fresh or canned as dessert, cooked in dishes, and used for juice. Sugar-syrup is obtained from the mill juice. It is a good source of alcohol and citric acid. The leaves yield a strong, silky fiber. Mentioned as a useful agroforestry species. KILLING T Damaged or killed at 5°C for prologed time, 0°C for a short time. GROWING PERIOD Perennial, requireing 11-36 months to fruiting. The period from flowering to fruit ripening is 180-210 days, and the growth cycle is 330-365 days. Economical life usually 2-3 years, though the plant may continue to live and fruit for over 50 years. COMMON NAMES Pinapple, Ananas, Nenas, O abacaxi. FURTHER INF Scientific synonyms: A. sativus, Bromelia comosa. Pinapple originated in tropical America. The cultivation is largely limited to latitudes between 25°S and N, but it can be found to 33°S. In Kenya it is grown between 1400-1800 m in elevation, at lower altitudes the fruit is to sweet. In Hawaii it can be grown between sea level and 600 m, and in the Philippines between 500-800 m. Fruit tends to be smaller and less sweet at higher altitudes and most pinapple are grown near the sea in areas with a high atmospheric humidity often on hill slopes. It requires a high relative humidity. In subtropical regions it can only be grown in frost-free areas. The optimum yield is 60-80 t/ha for the first harvest, first ratoon crop yields approximately 10% less, the second ratoon crop 30% less.
Sources
SOURCES (A. comosus (L) Merr.) Sims D (pers. comm.) Roecklein J 1987 pp 232 [USE] Rice R 1990 pp 101-106 [KTMP, TEXT, DRA, PH] Landon J 1984 pp 280 285 [TEXT, DRA, DEP, PH, FER, SAL, TEMP] Maas E 1990 pp 281 Rhem S 1991 pp 186-190 [RAIN, TEMP, LIG, DRA, TEXT, PH] Doorenbos J 1979 pp 118 Samson J 1986 pp 191-215 [KTMP, TEMP, LIG, RAIN, SAL, PH] Eswaran H 1986 Kozlowski T 1977 pp 113 Williams C 1979 pp 38-49 [TEMP, RAIN, TEXT, PH, FER, DRA] Bartholomew D 1987 [RAIN, TEMP, LIG, DEP, DRA, PH, SAL, TEXT, FER] Hackett C 1982 pp 30 [FER, PHO, DEP, PH, TEXT, TEMP] Nair P 1980 pp 149-154 [RAIN, TEMP, TEXT, FER, DRA, USE] Duke J 1982 pp 14 Van Waveren E 1993 pp 31 Singh R 1969 pp 117-120 [FER, TEXT, DRA, LIG] Purseglove J 1972 pp 76-91 [KTMP, TEMP, RAIN, TEXT, DRA, PH, PHO, USE] Verheij E 1991 pp 66-71 [USE, TEMP, KTMP, LIG, PHO, DRA, RAIN, TEXT, FER, PH]