Garden officials said that if the fruit is auctioned, each pineapple could fetch up to Rs 10 lakh.
Pineapple is a rich source of vitamin C, antioxidants and minerals like manganese and potassium. Especially in the winter season, it is a great fruit for health. But do you know that there is also a variety of this fruit which is not possible for everyone to buy. According to a BBC report, Heligan pineapples, named after the orchard where they are grown in Cornwall, England, cost around 1,000 pounds sterling (Rs 1 lakh) each. It takes about two to three years to prepare one crop.
According to a website dedicated to the high-profile fruit , it was brought to Britain in the year 1819. Soon the planters realized that the country’s climate was not good for pineapple cultivation. So, they came up with an idea by designing special wooden pit-shaped pots and adding a fresh supply of rotted manure and a backup heater to nourish it. The heat heats the air which enters the pits through vents in the wall.
A Heligan spokesperson told the BBC, “Pineapples are a very labor-intensive fruit to grow. With the time it takes to look after pineapples, the transport costs of compost, the maintenance of pineapple pits and other little bits and pieces, It probably cost us more than £1,000 to buy each pineapple.”
The spokesperson added: “Now that we have learned the correct Victorian techniques, it is a truly rewarding process for our gardeners and visitors.”
The Heligan website further states that Queen Elizabeth II was gifted a second pineapple grown in a Victorian greenhouse.
It further said that these pineapples are an eclectic mix of plants gifted to Heligan from Kew Gardens and rare individuals sourced from the Caribbean.
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Garden officials said that if the fruit is auctioned, each pineapple could fetch up to Rs 10 lakh.
