March 24th, 2007 | admin

Pineapple is delicate fruit cultivated in Kerala. Pine apple fruit is quite unique in the sense that there is a plant on either ends of the fruit, that is a plant starting growing from top of a fruit, well before the fruit starts maturing.

Pineapple (called kaithachakka, puruthichakka, pirithichakka) has rough, thorny skin and pleasantly smelling, delicious inner part, which is taken fresh, made jams, prepared squashes, fresh juice, etc.

Europeans give it the name pine apple because they thought the fruit resembled pine cones. People in Kerala thought it resembles jackfruit (Chakka) grown on ground (earth – prithvi) and hence named it prithichakka, the pronunciation of which is evolved over many years. Kaitha is a large plant that grows high and has long sword like leaves quite similar to that of a pineapple plant, but with three rows of thorns. This plant too bears fruit. Probably the term kaithachakka has connections with this plant.

The fruit is a compound fruit. It appears as two interlocking spirals of fruits (fruit-lets). The fruit contains vitamin B1 and C. This fruit is good in promoting digestion, because of the presence of certain enzymes.

The pineapple plant appears as a cluster of long sword-like leaves with thorny edges. These thorns probably protect the fruit from attacks of smaller animals. However, crows relish on pineapples.

Ananas comosus belongs to the family Bromeliaceae.