Ananas
Encyclopedia
The genus
Ananas belongs to the Bromeliad family (Bromeliaceae
). It is best known for the species Ananas comosus, the pineapple
.
This genus originated in Mesoamerica
and was brought to the Caribbean
Islands by the Carib natives. The oldest register with the representation of the fruit seems to be included in the Cascajal Block, attributed to the Olmec
civilization.
In 1493, Christopher Columbus
first saw plants of this genus in Guadeloupe
. It was brought from Brazil to Europe by the Portuguese
, and from there was distributed to the Pacific Islands by the Spanish and the English. Commercial pineapple plantations were established in Hawaii
, the Philippines
, Southeast Asia
, Florida
and Cuba
. The pineapple has become one of the world's most popular fruits.
The tough leaves
grow in large rosettes
, arising basally from a crown. These leaves are long and lanceolate with a serrate or thorny margin. The flower
s, arising from the heart of the rosette, each have their own sepal
s. They grow into a compact head on a short, robust stalk. The sepals become fleshy and juicy and develop into the well-known complex form of the pseudocarp
fruit, crowned by a rosette of leaves.
Ananas species are used as food plants by the larva
e of some Lepidoptera
species including Batrachedra comosae
, which feeds exclusively on A. comosus.
The word Ananas is derived from the Guarani
name for the pineapple, via Portuguese
. In many languages, pineapple is called "ananas".
and papain
to which it owes its meat tenderizing properties.
, proteolytic agent, and a root decoction
for diarrhea.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Ananas belongs to the Bromeliad family (Bromeliaceae
Bromeliaceae
Bromeliaceae is a family of monocot flowering plants of around 3,170 species native mainly to the tropical Americas, with a few species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa, Pitcairnia feliciana...
). It is best known for the species Ananas comosus, the pineapple
Pineapple
Pineapple is the common name for a tropical plant and its edible fruit, which is actually a multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries. It was given the name pineapple due to its resemblance to a pine cone. The pineapple is by far the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae...
.
This genus originated in Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
and was brought to the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
Islands by the Carib natives. The oldest register with the representation of the fruit seems to be included in the Cascajal Block, attributed to the Olmec
Olmec
The Olmec were the first major Pre-Columbian civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco....
civilization.
In 1493, Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
first saw plants of this genus in Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...
. It was brought from Brazil to Europe by the Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, and from there was distributed to the Pacific Islands by the Spanish and the English. Commercial pineapple plantations were established in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. The pineapple has become one of the world's most popular fruits.
The tough leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
grow in large rosettes
Rosette (botany)
In botany, a rosette is a circular arrangement of leaves, with all the leaves at a single height.Though rosettes usually sit near the soil, their structure is an example of a modified stem.-Function:...
, arising basally from a crown. These leaves are long and lanceolate with a serrate or thorny margin. The flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s, arising from the heart of the rosette, each have their own sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s. They grow into a compact head on a short, robust stalk. The sepals become fleshy and juicy and develop into the well-known complex form of the pseudocarp
Accessory fruit
An accessory fruit is a fruit in which some of the flesh is derived not from the ovary but from some adjacent tissue exterior to the carpel. Examples of accessory tissue are the receptacle of strawberries, figs, or mulberries, and the calyx of Gaultheria procumbens or Syzygium jambos...
fruit, crowned by a rosette of leaves.
Ananas species are used as food plants by the larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species including Batrachedra comosae
Batrachedra
Batrachedra is the largest genus in the moth family Batrachedridae.It includes the following species:*Batrachedra acrodeta*Batrachedra agaura*Batrachedra albanica*Batrachedra albicapitella*Batrachedra albistrigella...
, which feeds exclusively on A. comosus.
The word Ananas is derived from the Guarani
Guaraní language
Guaraní, specifically the primary variety known as Paraguayan Guaraní , is an indigenous language of South America that belongs to the Tupí–Guaraní subfamily of the Tupian languages. It is one of the official languages of Paraguay , where it is spoken by the majority of the population, and half of...
name for the pineapple, via Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
. In many languages, pineapple is called "ananas".
Chemistry
Pineapples contain both bromelainBromelain
Bromelain is a pineapple extract thought to be effective for reducing swelling , especially of the nose and sinuses, after surgery or injury. It may also be used for a variety of other effects that remain scientifically unconfirmed and not authorized by regulatory authorities like the Food and Drug...
and papain
Papain
Papain, also known as papaya proteinase I, is a cysteine protease enzyme present in papaya and mountain papaya .-Papain family:...
to which it owes its meat tenderizing properties.
Ethnobotanical Uses
The fruit and roots are used by some peoples as anti-inflammatoryAnti-inflammatory
Anti-inflammatory refers to the property of a substance or treatment that reduces inflammation. Anti-inflammatory drugs make up about half of analgesics, remedying pain by reducing inflammation as opposed to opioids, which affect the central nervous system....
, proteolytic agent, and a root decoction
Decoction
Decoction is a method of extraction, by boiling, of dissolved chemicals, or herbal or plant material, which may include stems, roots, bark and rhizomes. Decoction involves first mashing, and then boiling in water to extract oils, volatile organic compounds, and other chemical substances...
for diarrhea.
Species
- Ananas ananassoidesAnanas ananassoidesAnanas ananassoides is a species of the genus Ananas. This species is native to Bolivia, Brazil and Costa Rica.-Cultivars:* xAnagelia 'Norm Kretschmann'* xAnamea 'Pink Scorpion'-References:* Retrieved 21 October 2009...
(Baker) L.B. SmithLyman Bradford SmithLyman Bradford Smith was an American botanist. His formal botanical author abbreviation is L.B.Sm.... - Ananas bracteatusAnanas bracteatusAnanas bracteatus is a species of plant related to the pineapple. They are grown as ornamental plants for its decorative red fruit. They can be used as hedges for home security. In colder places they can be grown indoors as a houseplant. The leaves are long with sharp spine. It originated from...
(Lindley) Schultes f.- b. var. tricolor (Bertoni) L.B. SmithLyman Bradford SmithLyman Bradford Smith was an American botanist. His formal botanical author abbreviation is L.B.Sm....
- b. var. tricolor (Bertoni) L.B. Smith
- Ananas comosus (Linnaeus) Merrill
- b. var. variegatus (E. Lowe) Moldenke
- Ananas erectifoliusAnanas erectifoliusAnanas erectifolius is a species of plant closely related to the pineapple. The fruit is small and holds little commercial value as food. It is often grown as an ornamental plant or as a houseplant. Its leaves have spines with stripes of colors....
- Ananas fritzmuelleriAnanas fritzmuelleriAnanas fritzmuelleri is a species of the genus Ananas. This species is endemic to Brazil....
Camargo - Ananas lucidusAnanas lucidusAnanas lucidus is a species of the genus Ananas. This species is native to Venezuela and Ecuador.-Cultivars:* Ananas 'Chocolat'* Ananas 'Selvagem'-References:* retrieved 3 November 2009* Retrieved 12 October 2009...
Miller - Ananas nanusAnanas nanusAnanas nanus is a species of the genus Ananas.-Cultivars:* xAnagelia 'Firetop'* xAnagelia 'Frost Bite'* xAnagelia 'Pegasus'-References:* Retrieved 11 October 2009...
(L.B. Smith) L.B. SmithLyman Bradford SmithLyman Bradford Smith was an American botanist. His formal botanical author abbreviation is L.B.Sm.... - Ananas parguazensisAnanas parguazensisAnanas parguazensis is a species of the genus Ananas. This species is native to Venezuela.-References:* retrieved 3 November 2009...
Camargo & L.B. SmithLyman Bradford SmithLyman Bradford Smith was an American botanist. His formal botanical author abbreviation is L.B.Sm....