Pineapples are classified into three main groups: the Queen group, the Cayen group (Cayenne), and the Spanish pineapple group (Spanish).
Queen Pineapple
Pineapples of this group have an average weight and magnitude of 500 – 900 grams, narrow, hard leaves, many spines on the edge of the leaves. Moreover, the inside surface of the leaf blade has white veins running parallel to the leaf.
The flowers are pink-green in color, and The fruit eyes are convex. The inside of the fruit is dark yellow, characteristic aroma and sweet taste. This group of pineapple has the highest quality and more popular in our country.
Cayenne Pineapple (Smooth Cayenne)
The average weight of the pineapple is around 1.5 – 2.0 kg per fruit. Leaves are dark green, long, thick, without spines or very little at the base or tip of the leaves.
The flowers are pinkish, slightly reddish. The fruit is cylindrical (egg-shaped), and the fruit eyes are large. When ripe, the yellow color gradually changes from the stalk to the tip of the fruit.
This type, though not very high in quality, is grown a lot for processing because the big fruit is easy to mechanize, giving economic efficiency. Based on the characteristics of each pineapple group, we see that the Cayenne pineapple group is the most suitable for the industrial production of pineapples such as canned food, pineapple juice, and pineapple syrup.
The Cayenne variety is sensitive to many harmful insects (fruit borer, red spider …) and diseases (nematodes, fruit rot, core rot, stem rot …). However, it is considered to be resistant to the fungus Phytophthora sp. and resistant to fruit damage caused by Erwinia chrysanthemi Burkbolder.
Spanish Pineapple (Red Spanish or Spanish)
This pineapple group has an average weight of 700 – 1000 grams. The leaves are soft, curved and inclined to the back. The density of thorns is unevenly distributed on the leaves.
The flowers are light red in color. When ripe, the pods are dark red, the inside is yellow, sun-tanned, sour and fibrous. This pineapple group is the lowest quality.
In Vietnam, pineapples are grown from North to South, on an area of about 40,000 hectares, with an output of over 500,000 tons / year, of which 90% of the area is concentrated in the South.
Provinces with large pineapple planting areas include Tien Giang (14,8000 ha), Kien Giang (10,000 ha), Hau Giang (nearly 1,600 ha), Long An (1,000 ha), Thanh Hoa (from 3,779 ha (2005) to 1,910 ha. (2011)), Ninh Binh (3000ha) …
