PINE APPLE. 



333 



As the plant, while it yields its fruit, also pro- 

 duces living progeny, these are to be nursed up with 

 every care, and forced into their utmost amplitude 

 in the shortest possible time. They are called crowns 

 and suckers. The crowns are produced on the top 

 of the fruit ; and these, when nursed up, form the 

 largest plants, and yield the largest fruit : but they 

 require a longer period to bring it to perfection. 

 The suckers are produced from among the lower 

 leaves; and which, when separated from the mother 

 plant, make the most convenient and soonest fruited 

 plants. 



In all that has been written by Kennedy, Speech- 

 ley, and others, on the culture of this fine fruit, and 

 from the long experience of the writer, there is one 

 obvious rule of practice established, which should 

 never be lost sight of or neglected, — namely, that, 

 from the moment the crown or sucker is rooted up 

 to the time its fruit begins to ripen, the plant should 

 sustain no kind of check whatever. The growth 

 should be, from first to last, a uniform progression, 

 without pause or hindrance, in order that the plant 

 may attain its utmost volume, and produce full-sized 

 fruit in the shortest time. 



As there are, during the process of raising the 

 plants, different grades of them as to age and for- 

 wardness, different places are required for their cul- 

 ture : hence the stock of plants has been separated 

 into two grand divisions ; viz, fruiting and succes- 

 sion plants. For the first, houses are purposely 



