Cold Weather Fruit — Pineapple?

Bug BitesThe colder it gets, the better fresh pineapple looks to me. Puts me in mind of the sunny tropics, I suppose.

The pineapple has been called the king of fruits and the queen of fruits because, says Père du Tertre, it wears a crown. If my grandbaby said that, it would be just too precious for words, but this was a grown man.

The pineapple has been cultivated in the Americas for so long it lost its seeding function back in pre-history. Had to have help to … you know.

The pineapple was found in Guadeloupe by Columbus and his crew in 1493. Rich in vitamin C, pineapples were taken aboard ships leaving the Americas. The crowns were dumped or planted wherever the ships made landfall, spreading the plant when the climate was favorable.

Carib Indians hung pineapples or pineapple crowns outside their huts as a sign of hospitality; they also planted hedges of the spiky fruit to discourage intrusion. This explains the symbolism of stone pineapples decorating boundary walls.

Pretty cool, eh? I mean warm.

A WRITING PROMPT FOR YOU: How does your main character know he or she is welcome?

MA

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About

I was born in Louisville, Kentucky, but now live in the woods in southern Indiana. Though I only write fiction, I love to read non-fiction. The more I learn about this world, the more fantastic I see it is.

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One thought on “Cold Weather Fruit — Pineapple?

  1. John Holton

    October 5, 2016 at 2:44pm

    Dole runs its pineapple plantations in Hawai’i. The first time I went, the bus from the rental car company drove past a processing facility, and the air was heavy with the smell. One of my favorite fruits, loaded with bromelain, which might help with arthritis.

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      Marian Allen

      October 5, 2016 at 2:52pm

      Oh, I think I’m glad I never had really fresh pineapple — I would long for more, the rest of my life!

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