THERE is an air of mystery to Professor Jesus Juan Rosales-Adame’s research. After all, nobody seems to have kept records on 200-year-old pineapple plantations in Western Mexico.
Professor Rosales-Adame held the audience captive at the 8th International Pineapple Symposium as part of the 29th International Horticultural Congress in Brisbane in August.
His research has looked at tree diversity and structure in the sustainable shaded pineapple agroforestry system in western Mexico, focusing on the Jalisco and Nayarit areas.
Photographs projected onto the white screen during his presentation showed hundreds of pineapples, somewhat randomly scattered, growing healthily among forest trees over varying terrain.
The growing method is known as agroforestry.
While it may seem unsystematic and lacking commercial viability, the agroforestry method could very well be one of the most sustainable fruit plantations in the world.
They are organically grown by default, growing on slopes from 25-45 degree gradients, on irregular terrain and at altitudes from 67 - 610m.
There are no fertilisers used, no pesticides- just the biology of the forest.
Professor Rosales-Adame said the system was sustainable and resilient, operating like a natural ecosystem.
According to his research, the secret appears to be in the canopy cover provided by the forest.
It was this area where Professor Rosales-Adame has invested much of his time, recording tree heights and species.
“We found 1161 woody individuals from 69 species, from which 62 are native and seven are introduced species,” Professor Rosales-Adame said.
About 50pc of the trees are considered to be essential shade providers by local growers.
The canopy height was generally between 5-18m however it was noted that in Jalisco the height of trees reached more than 28m for older trees, curiously where the pineapple densities were higher.
The rustic means for growing pineapples accounts for just 3.2 per cent of Mexico’s pineapple production
Agroforestry pineapples are considered to be the first example of commercial pineapple production in Mexico dating back to 1820.
Many of the 450 farmers involved in the crop are poor or indigenous to the region.
The extensive cropping system involves low external inputs, mainly consisting of local technology and labour.
One of the few labour chores done to the crop is manual weed clearing. Other than that, the pineapples are pretty much left alone.
Not much is known is about the plantations themselves. When asked who planted them originally, Professor Rosales-Adame could only offer hunched shoulders and a suggestion that “he wished he knew”.
Professor Rosales-Adame coined the phrase “ecointensive” as he could not find another way to describe the plantations.
Without chemical treatment, fruiting is sporadic, with most pineapples smaller than regular commercial varieties.
They are consumed fresh with no fruit going to processing.
Professor Rosales-Adame said the fruit had a brix count of 14.
“It is very sweet. I think it tastes better,” he said.
The exact variety growing remains something of a mystery as well. Professor Rosales-Adame said “Spanish Red” was how it was referred to within research circles.
“Management of this diverse shaded agroecosystem contributes to tropical biodiversity conservation and also represents pineapple sustainable management in America,” he said.