Pineapple Orange
Type and parentage: Sweet Orange
Average diameter (inches): 2 3/4 - 3
Seeds per fruit: 15-25
Commercial harvest season: December - February
Pineapple orange has been the leading midseason variety with
good external color and internal quality. Its juice color will stand without
blending. Long term yields may be lower than those for Hamlin and Valencia.
The tree is the least cold hardy of the orange varieties. It is subject
to alternate bearing and during seasons of heavy crops is very susceptible
to freezes. Pineapple is also susceptible to citrus blight, showing rapid
collapse particularly under stress of a heavy crop. It is very susepttible
to preharvest fruit drop during heavy crop years, a condition, which may
be alleviated with 2,4-D sprays. The peel is subjuct to creasing and to
another stress-related condition known as Pineapple 'pitting'. While it
produces an excellent quality juice favored by processors, the variety is
no longer widely planted for many of the above mentioned reasons.
Selections available at the Immokalee
Foundation:
Pi-1-27-11-X-E:
This is a Ward Nursery selection from Avon Park in
Highlands County.
1-27-11 has good yields, vigorous growth, typical pineapple fruit, juice
color, seedy, average to small size fruit. The brix:acid is typical of the
pineapple group as is the tendency towards alternate bearing.
University of Florida,
Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, 1995
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services,
Division of Plant Industry,
Bureau of Citrus Budwood Registration