2630 



PINEAPPLE 



PINEAPPLE 



of the fruit as found in the market. Just below the 

 fruit small plants form, which are left in the field when 

 the fruit is gathered; these are known as slips. In the 

 axils of the leaves buds occur; those that develop near 

 the ground make strong plants in a few months and are 

 known as suckers. (Fig. 2952, after Wester.) A strong 

 plant will mature an "apple" in June and produce two 

 to five suckers by the middle of September. Buds that 



2953. The Queen pineapple. 



develop from an underground part and form a root- 

 system independent of the parent plant are known as 

 rattopns. Crowns are not planted extensively, as they 

 remain on the fruit when marketed. Good strong 

 suckers are usually employed for planting out. Rat- 

 toons are left in the field to replace the plants which 

 have borne a crop, but they are not sufficiently numer- 

 ous to make a full stand; hence some of the suckers must 

 be left also. Slips require a year longer than suckers to 

 mature a crop. According to Webber, it requires ten to 

 twelve years to mature a plant from seed. Plants are 

 raised from seed only for breeding purposes. 



If spruce-pine land is prepared it is cleared of all 

 stumps, wood, roots, and any other organic material, 

 and is plowed deep and leveled off smooth. The fields 

 are then laid off in beds of six or eight rows wide, 

 depending on the variety. The beds should be narrow 

 enough to permit fertilizing and working with a scuffle- 

 hoe without entering the beds, as breaking the leaves 

 is very detrimental. For Red Spanish the rows are 

 made 18 to 20 inches.apart; for Queens, 20 to 22 inches; 

 for Porto Ricos, 30 to 36 inches. They are usually placed 

 in checks of about the same distances. 



The methods employed on the Keys are quite differ- 

 ent. The land is cleared by cutting off the trees, shrubs, 

 and the like, which are allowed to dry and are then 

 burned. The plants are then set out with a grubbing- 

 hoe; they must be set out irregularly, as the rocky soil 

 does not furnish root-hold everywhere. Such fields 

 become exhausted in a few years and have to be 

 abandoned. 



Cultivation consists in running over the ground with 

 a scuffle-hoe. When the plantation is set out in 

 beds the handle of the hoe is long enough to permit 

 cultivating to the middle without the laborer entering 

 the bed. Only about an inch of the surface soil is 

 agitated, usually immediately after the fertilizer has 

 been applied. Weeds are not troublesome, excepting in 

 fields that have been cultivated a long time. Under 

 sheds tillage is more frequent and appears to be more 

 necessary. On the Keys no tillage is possible, but tall- 

 growing weeds and such ligneous plants as may spring 

 up are cut off. In all of the work among pineapple 



plants the greatest care should be exercised to avoid 

 breaking the leaves, which are very brittle. 



The fruit is picked a week before it would mature. It 

 is packed at once into barrel (12 by 20 by 36 inches) and 

 half-barrel (12 by 10 by 36 inches) crates, usually in the 

 latter, the different sizes being packed in separate 

 crates and designated as 18's, 24's, 30's, 36's, 42's, 48's, 

 and 54's, according to the number required for a half- 

 barrel crate. The fruit must be handled without being 

 bruised and packed firmly to prevent its abrasion in 

 transit. To protect the fruit each one is wrapped 

 separately in brown paper. 



Since the propagation is accomplished by means of 

 offsets, the varieties are fairly stable and rather definitely 

 marked. The variety most extensively grown is called 

 Red Spanish, Spanish, or Reds. It has a medium-sized 

 apple, and is a hardy plant. Abachi (Abakka), Blood, 

 Queen (Fig. 2953), Sugar Loaf , Enville (Fig. 2954), and 

 White Antigua are varieties that produce medium-sized 

 apples of excellent quality. Black Jamaica, Black Prince, 

 and Prince Albert produce large fruits or apples of 

 excellent quality. Smooth Cayenne and Porto Rico 

 produce large apples of good quality, those of the latter 

 being of greater size. Other varieties are grown more 

 or less extensively, and there are different names for 

 these varieties, but the foregoing have been officially 

 recognized by the Florida State Horticultural Society. 



It has been found very advantageous to build a 

 shelter for "pines;" in the winter a shed protects the 

 plants from too great radiation of heat, and in the sum- 

 mer it reduces the intensity of the sun. The original 

 object of the shelter was to protect the plants from 

 frosts and freezes. Pineapple plants freeze at 32 F. 

 This degree of cold does not kill the heart of the plant, 

 but only the larger part of the leaves. Pines under 

 sheds have passed through a temperature of 25 F. 

 without serious injury. The roof of a shed is usually 

 flat, or undulating with the surface of the land. The 

 height varies with the desires of the individual, but is 

 usually about 8 feet above the ground. 



In Fig. 2955 the roof is slightly less than 7 feet from 

 the ground. The stringers running crosswise in the fig- 

 ure are 1%" by 3" by 21'; those running lengthwise are 

 1^* by \ 1 A" by 15'. The material for the roof is cypress 

 plastering lath of usual length and width. The stringers 

 running lengthwise are 46 inches apart. The openings 

 between the lath are just the width of a lath. The 

 amount of lumber needed (to the acre) is about as 

 follows: 



424 posts (352 for roof, 72 for sides) 4" x 4* x 8'. 

 160 pieces 1 Vi" x 3" x 20'. 



960 pieces (840 for roof, 120 for sides) 1 Vz" x 1 W x 15'. 

 80,000 lath (75,000 for roof, 5,000 for sides) %" x 1" x 4'. 



It requires about 9,000 feet of lumber for the above 

 material exclusive of the lath. All lumber must be first- 

 class and free from 

 knots. This can 

 still be reduced by 

 about 2,500 feet by 

 using wire in place 

 of the 1^'by IY 2 " 

 by 15' and weav- 

 ing the lath in this. 

 Under the most 

 favorable circum- 

 stances such a shed 

 can be erected for 

 $450 an acre, but 

 this is about the 

 cheapest and light- 

 est form that will 

 withstand the ele- 

 ments. 



The following 

 diseases and insects 

 attack pineapples: 2954. The Enville pineapple. 



