The pineapple, Ananas comosus, a member of the Bromeliaceae family, originated in South America. Cultivated pineapple still has several traits of this parentage: - its root system is extremely fragile and the plant prefers light, well-tilled soil; - it tolerates very dry spells by strongly reducing growth but still surviving; - the base of the leaves is the most efficient zone for uptake of nutrients and it responds well to foliar fertilisation; - flowering is induced by low temperatures and short days and is erratic under natural conditions. This gives rise to the most remarkable feature of cultivation-flowering induced artificially by a cultural operation.