Pineapple, also known as “queen of fruits” is important fruit crop of India. Its origin lies in Brazil. It is rich in vitamins C, calcium, magnesium, potassium and iron. It is also a good source of vitamins A and B. Pineapple having excellent flavor, taste and shape. In Philippines and Taiwan, from leaves, silky fiber is extracted which is used for making fine fabric i.e. Pina cloth. Plant and fruits residues are used for cattle feeding. India is the fifth largest producer of pineapple. In India, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, West Bengal, Kerala, Karnataka and Goa are major pineapple growing states. It is cultivated on small scale in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. 

It can grow well in any type of soil except heavy clay soils. But it gives best result when grown on sandy loam soils. Avoid soils having hard pan or stones below soil layer at depth of 45-60cm. Ideal pH range of soil should be 5-6. When it is grown on heavy soils, it gives fruits of larger size but flavor of fruits is excellent when grown on lighter soils.

Kew: Commercial variety excellent for canning purpose. Fruits are big-sized i.e. 1.5–2.5kg and oblong. Fruits flesh is juicy, light yellow and almost fibreless.

Giant Kew: Its properties are similar to kew variety except fruit size is larger than kew.

Queen: Its fruits are rich yellow in color with deep golden-yellow flesh, less juicy compared to Kew with crisp textured and flavor. Its eyes are small and deep.
 
Mauritious: A mid-season variety having Medium size fruits. Its fruits have deep yellow and red color. Yellow fruits are medium, oblong, fibrous and sweet compared to red ones.

Jaldhup and Lakhat: They are name after place. Fruits are smaller than Queen.

Lakhat variety fruits are sour in taste whereas Jaldhup variety fruits are sweeter than lakhat variety with good blend of acidity.

Prepared land by ploughing or digging followed by leveling. Depending on the nature of land, trenches should be prepared of convenient length having width of 90cm and depth of 15-30cm.

Time of sowing
Optimum time for cultivation of pineapple is in kharif season with onset of monsoon. Planting time of pineapple varies from place-to-place. Planting should be done 12-15months before the peak flowering season, which varies from December to March in different regions.
 
Spacing
For sub-tropical and mild humid regions, use spacing of 22.5cm (plant to plant) x 60cm (row to row) x 75cm (trench to trench). Whereas for hot and humid conditions use spacing of (25 x 60 x 90 cm). In rainfed and hilly areas, use lower spacing for planting.

Sowing Depth
Plant suckers or slips in 10-15cm deep holes.

Method of sowing
Transplanting of suckers or slips should be done in main field.

Planting Method
According to land and rainfall pattern, use different method of planting i.e. flat-bed, furrow, contour and trench for planting suckers in main field. In the slopes, to keep check on soil erosion, terracing or contour method of planting is used.
 

Seed Rate:
When spacing of 22.5 x 60 x 75 cm is used, near about 25,360 plants are accommodated per acre whereas 21,320 plants accommodate with spacing of 22.5x60x90cm. In rainfed and hilly areas with lower density near about of 17,400 plants/acre are accommodates.

Seed Treatment
Before planting, dipped suckers or slips in solution of Dithane M-45@ 2 gram per Litre of water. It will protect the plants against bud rot. Or dip in solution of Mancozeb@ 3 gram per Litre of water or Carbendazim@1 gram per Litre of water.
 

Mulching is the best way to keep check on Weeds effectively. Research finding shows that Mulching with black polythene + saw-dust results in better growth of plants compared to white polythene and paddy-straw. To controlled weed chemically, take spray of Diuron@1.2kg/acre or combination of Bromacil + Diuron @ 0.8kg/acre as pre-emergence herbicides. Apply second dose of herbicide, five month after first application. At time of second application reduced herbicide dose to half.

Earthing up: This is an essential operation in pineapple cultivation, it will prevent crop from lodging. Due to lodging especially in heavy rainfall areas under flat-bed planting, result in uneven development and ripening of fruits.
 

Nutrient Requirement (gm/plant)

Apply Nitrogen and Potash@12gm per plant. If necessary, apply phosphorus@4gm per plant. Apply Nitrogen in six split doses.
 
Give first dose of Nitrogen, two months after planting. Afterward apply nitrogen dose with interval of two month. Apply full dose of Phosphorus and half dose of Potash at time of planting. Apply remaining dose of Potash, six month after planting. In rain fed condition, apply fertilizer only when sufficient moisture is available in soil.

As flowering is not uniform in pineapple, apply NAA@100-200ppm i.e. pour 50 ml of solution in the center (heart) of plant to induce good and uniform flowering. Also, Ethrel@25ppm combining with Urea@20gm/plant (2%) and sodium carbonate@0.4gm is used to induce good flowering. Apply this solution when the plants have 35-40 functional leaves and in clear sunny days.

Apply NAA@200–300ppm, two–three months after fruit set. It will increase 15–20% fruit size.

Iron, zinc and copper deficiency are common in pineapple. To correct this deficiency, take foliar spray of ferrous sulphate@3% i.e. 30 gram/Litre, Zinc sulphate@1% i.e. 10 gram/Litre.

To correct Copper deficiency, do drenching of Copper Sulphate@1.5-2.0 % i.e. 30-50 ml per plant.
 

Pineapple generally not required irrigation as it is a rainfed crop. If necessary, apply 4-6 irrigations during dry season with interval of 20-25 days.

• Pest and their control:

No major pest is observed except mealy bugs and scale insects.

As a preventive measure, use resistant cultivars and species. Before planting, dipped basal portion of suckers in solution of Malathion@ 2 gram per Litre of water or take spray of Dimethoate@ 2 ml/ litre of water or Methyl demeton @ 1.5 ml/litre of water.
 

• Disease and their control:
  

Heart Rot: Use healthy and diseased free suckers for planting. Provide good drainage and avoid water logging situation in field.
 

Leaf and Fruit rot: Before sowing, dipped suckers in solution of Dithane Z-78@3 gram/Litre of water. If infestation is observed in field, take spray of it. Avoid use of copper based fungicide.
 

Thielaviopsis rot: Skin darkening start from stem and advances through flesh. Flesh get soften and easily break under pressure. Before sowing dipped suckers in Bordeaux mixture@10 gram/Litre of water or Copper oxychloride@ 2.5 gram per Litre of water. Or drench soil with these solutions. 

 

It takes 10–12 months after planting for Flowering in pineapple plants. After flowering, fruits become ready to harvest in 15–18 months after planting. For canning purpose, harvest when slight change in color is observed at the base of developing fruits whereas for table purpose, harvest fruits when they develop golden yellow color. After harvesting placed fruit in crates and then left then in shade. The plant after harvest can be raised as ratoon crop for three to four year.

Fruit can be stored for 20days at temperature of 10-13^oC. Never store pineapple at less than 8^oC as it results in browning of pulp.