They are really and truly a sun-loving bromeliad. They like warm in winter and warmer in summer. If you've grown other bromeliads, treat pineapple the same.

I had no problem growing them outdoors with no protection in Watsonville. The plants did well but never fruited. The summer just never was warm enough.I think. Al

Hi Al, good to hear. Did you try to fruit them using Apple technique? I see other bloom inducers in the nurseries for Broms but frankly I would not want to use them on something I am planning to feed my kids.

May be it's a question for Bromeliad forum but does anyone around here have experience getting a Brom to bloom by organic /non-toxic, non-chemical methods?

Thanks for responses so far and hope to hear more.

I grow several Broms here in containers, because I need to move them under protection in the winter. They always bloom, but on their own schedule. I have not tried any bloom stimulus, only normal container fertilizer 9-3-6 with minors. Each plant only blooms once, but produces pups that will bloom. When the containers get TOO crowded, I divide into new pots, discarding the bloomed out plants. It will then take a couple of years for the new pots to bloom. Al

I had mine out all winter, and they would look somewhat unhappy as the winter wore on, but sprang back come warmer weather. I think it set them back quite a bit, I think you would have a greater chance of getting a sweet fruit and a more attractive plant if you gave them a warm place for the winter. I'm in Sunset 23. I grew them for several years and got several fruits, one was particularly memorable for being super sweet and super tender melt-in-your-mouth. Yum. If you have a south-facing light colored stucco wall, they may be very happy with that for the winter, but in the summer the reflected heat seemed to be too much, though that may have been because they didn't get a lot of water.

They were fun to experiment with. I grew all of them from the tops of pineapples we bought at the grocery store.

I think you'll find they may endure a northern California winter if well protected from worst cold and winter rains, but they won't like it. Also, our local summers near the bay aren't really hot enough to promote good fruiting. A greenhouse in winter and a spot next to a south/west facing wall best for summer. They are more certain to fruit in southern California.

Thank you all for the posts! I will move them to a hot spot and see how it goes. Next couple of years will be interesting!

Bahia, how hot do they need to be? In Walnut Creek, where summers are among the hottest in the Bay Area, I imagine we'd have some luck? We have a great covered porch next to the house that is basically frost-free that might be worth trying this on. Intrigued!