That said, two years ago when I came down here with my then 2 yr old daughter and her nanny Rita, Rita got quite excited about planting the tops of the many pineapples we ate that summer. Our gardener was not encouraging but she persisted, about a dozen pineapple tops found a home in the garden.
Now two years later, some of them have matured and produced fruit. The fruits are smaller than the pineapples in the store but perfectly formed. Very pretty, want to carve the likeness in wood and stick it on the gate post.
This morning we ate one. I was not expecting much, we had left it until the outside was golden yellow but still somehow I expected it would be sour. Not at all, this ranks amongst the best pineapples we have ever eaten. Even more useful was the size, a perfect portion for two - it could be eaten in a sitting and nothing left to attract fruit flies.
Thank you Rita and from now on I will be planting my own tops to enjoy in 2013.