Pineapple

Description:

The pineapple is a herbaceous perennial which grows to 1.0 to 1.5 meters (3.3 to 4.9 ft) tall, although sometimes it can be taller. In appearance, the plant itself has a short, stocky stem with tough, waxy leaves. When creating its fruit, it usually produces up to 200 flowers, although some large-fruited cultivars can exceed this. Once it flowers, the individual fruits of the flowers join together to create what is commonly referred to as a pineapple. After the first fruit is produced, side shoots (called 'suckers' by commercial growers) are produced in the leaf axils of the main stem.

Habitat:

Pineapple (Ananas comosus), a tropical plant with edible multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries,named for resemblance to the pine cone,is the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae family. Pineapples may be cultivated from a crown cutting of the fruit, possibly flowering in 20–24 months and fruiting in the following six months.

Notes:

Southeast Asia dominates world production: in 2001, Thailand produced 1.979 million tons and the Philippines 1.618 million tons, while in the Americas Brazil produced 1.43 million tons.