284 HORTICULTURE, FORESTRY, FLORICULTURE 



carry this forward to the ripening of the first crop about $20 more 

 should be added, making an outlay of $70 to produce the first crop 

 on an acre. In the pineapple-growing section of Florida there is suf- 

 ficient demand for labor to more than keep a man while he is grow- 

 ing his first crop. Another plan adopted is for two persons to form 

 a partnership, one working to supply the needed cash while the other 

 grows the crop of pineapples. After the first crop has been produced 

 the increase in the number of plants will permit the extension of the 

 area as rapidly as financial conditions will allow. The one great 

 drawback to the average man's succeeding in pineapple growing is 

 that the returns come in at one time and during a short period. So 

 it is a case of labor and wait for about eleven months in the year for 

 the returns during the twelfth month. The character of the pine- 

 apple land does not permit many other crops to be grown upon it 

 successfully; consequently the greater number of pineapple growers 

 have to depend on this crop alone. (F. B. 140.) 



The Pineapple Family. This plant belongs to a very peculiar 

 family, the Bromeliaceae, and is the most important species in the 

 genus Ananas. In its original distribution the family was confined 

 to the Western Hemisphere, mainly to South America, though the 

 genus Tillandsia is represented by a number of species in the South- 

 ern States. As a whole, the family is either tropical or subtropical. 

 The long moss, or Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides L.), is a pecu- 

 liar plant common along the eastern Gulf and south Atlantic coast. 

 This species of the pineapple family grows abundantly in the moister 

 localities of the above region and is largely employed in that section 

 for making mattresses and stuffing furniture. 



This family is characterized by plants of an epiphytic nature; 

 that is, those that grow on other plants but do not derive nourishment 

 from them ; but many of the species are terrestrial in their habits. In 

 Florida they are frequently spoken of as orchids; doubtless due to 

 the popular belief that all epiphytes are orchids, which is incorrect. 

 The pineapple plant is terrestrial but might be looked upon as half 

 epiphyte in that it will remain alive for months without being in 

 contact with the soil. In contact with moist, loamy soil it soon sick- 

 ens and dies. 



It takes about four months from the time of blossoming to the 

 ripening of the pineapple. The main season of blooming is during 

 January and February, though occasionally plants bloom through 

 the entire year, the least number occurring in November and De- 

 cember. 



Immediately preceding the bloom a number of bright-colored 

 leaves are produced as if to announce its advent. The blossoms proper 

 occur in a head springing from the center of the plant. Their color 

 is usually a purplish blue, though there is some variation even in 

 the same variety. The blossoms though crowded into a head are 

 quite distinct, each having its own insertion on the central axis. 

 Each blossom is protected by a bract. The crown does not develop 

 until later and its development does not depend upon the bearing of 

 fruit. 



