“Hey, let’s take this plant that looks nothing like an apple and barely like a pine and call it pineapple!” ©Some random English-speaking dude a very long time ago. Probably.
Thailand is the world’s leader in exporting pineapples, but they also grow in Paraguay, Brazil, and Southeast Asia. The plant on which it grows can survive droughts, however a lack of water will affect the taste of the fruits. It may surprise you that it doesn’t grow on a palm tree, but instead on small plants that look more like cabbage than anything else. It takes between three and sixth months for the fruit to appear, and another month for it to ripen.
7. Cocoa Beans
The chocolate tree grows in tropical regions and the beans are collected by oompa loompas to make chocolate.
No, but actually the tree does grow up in tropical regions. It grows up to around 15 meters and begins to bloom after 5 years. Trees produce fruit (and hence, beans) from anywhere between 30 and 80 years, however the peak of production is usually around the time when the tree is 12 years old. Fruits are gathered twice a year – once at the end of monsoon and rain season and once right before it begins.