Amritha
A hybrid of Kew and Ripley Queen from Kerala Agricultural University, with a cylindrical fruit, a small crown and firm, non-fibrous, pale-yellow flesh (KAU). In a West Bengal trial it was the smallest-fruited of eight varieties.
Quick facts
- Type
- Sucker / slip (hybrid cultivar)
- Season
- All seasons
- Maturity period
- 13–15 months (KAU description)
- Expected yield
- No KAU yield figure found; 33.74 t/ha without crown in one West Bengal trial
- Suitable soil
- Well-drained sandy loam or laterite, strongly acidic (pH 5.0–6.0)
- Disease resistance
- No disease score or resistance claim found for Amritha
- Release
- Kerala Agricultural University; release year not found
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Amritha is a pineapple hybrid from Kerala Agricultural University. KAU's variety page gives its parents as Kew and Ripley Queen. It has spiny leaves and a crop duration of 13 to 15 months. The fruit is cylindrical, tapering slightly from near the base, 1.5 to 2.0 kg, with a small crown of 80 to 100 g, green when unripe and uniformly yellow when ripe, with no fissures or eye corking and a skin 6 mm thick. The flesh is firm, non-fibrous, crisp and pale yellow with a rich aroma. KAU's Pineapple Research Station at Vazhakulam worked on tissue culture of Amritha along with MD-2 and Mauritius in 2011-12, using cultures it obtained from KAU's Regional Agricultural Research Station at Pattambi. We found no release year.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Amritha only after you have seen fruit from the mother field. Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) describes a cylindrical fruit of 1.5 to 2.0 kg with a small crown of 80 to 100 g, firm non-fibrous pale-yellow flesh with a rich aroma, good taste, high TSS and low acidity, ripening in 13 to 15 months. The Cooch Behar trial of 2014-16 measured something smaller: 871 g a fruit, the smallest of eight varieties, and 33.74 t/ha without crown, against 57.54 for Mauritius and 89.70 for Kew. Only 76.12% of its plants flowered. If you want size and volume, Mauritius or Kew is the safer plan; if you want a compact plant and a small crown, grow a trial block of Amritha beside your main variety for one crop.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- A small crown, 80 to 100 g by KAU's description and 178.64 g in the Cooch Behar trial, the smallest of eight varieties, which suits fresh sale and processing.
- A compact plant: 69.41 cm tall in the trial, the shortest of the eight, with the smallest leaf area and canopy.
- Firm, non-fibrous, crisp flesh with a rich aroma, as KAU describes it.
Things to consider
- Lowest yield of the three released varieties in the Cooch Behar trial: 33.74 t/ha, and a fruit of 871 g, against 1.5 to 2.0 kg in the KAU description.
- Only 76.12% of plants flowered in the trial, and TSS was 13.93 degrees Brix, against 18.10 for Mauritius.
- No release year, disease score or yield figure from KAU was found; ask KAU's Pineapple Research Station where certified material is available.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Kerala
- West Bengal
Two descriptions of Amritha, side by side
KAU says Amritha fruit weighs 1.5 to 2.0 kg. The Cooch Behar trial weighed 871.39 g a fruit, the smallest of the eight varieties and below Mauritius (1,109.45 g), Queen (1,196.56 g) and Kew (1,877.10 g). The paper also cites an earlier Kerala study (Joy and Anjana, 2016) that found Amritha fruits smaller than those of Mauritius and MD-2. Fruit weight depends on the planting material, the density, the feeding and whether the weight includes the crown, and the trial paper does not say which spacing it used. So the two numbers are not a contradiction, but they are a warning.
The same trial gives the plant a clear shape: 69.41 cm tall, 259.49 litres of canopy against 812.35 for Kew, 84.53 eyes against 115.80, and a crown of 178.64 g against 337.64 for Kew. It flowered 342.85 days after planting and needed 126.58 days from flowering to harvest, about 15.4 months in all, and yield was 33.74 t/ha without crown. No trial we found tests whether a plant this compact can be planted closer, so do not raise the density on your own; follow KAU's spacing for Mauritius until you have your own results.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This crop is raised from suckers taken off the mother plant, so you can multiply it yourself. Pick sturdy suckers of even size from healthy, well-yielding clumps, and never from one that looked diseased or stunted — the new plant inherits whatever the mother had. For a clean start, take planting material from a registered nursery or a government farm.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Pineapple (Ananas) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amrithathis page | Kerala farmers who want a compact plant with a small crown; test a small block first | 13–15 months (KAU description) | No KAU yield figure found; 33.74 t/ha without crown in one West Bengal trial | Kerala, West Bengal |
| Jaldhup | Local markets that know its flavour; a small trial block beside Queen or Kew | Not published for Jaldhup | No variety figure published | Assam |
| Kew (Giant Kew) | Canning, juice and large fresh fruit; Assam, West Bengal, Kerala | About 15–24 months from planting to harvest | 89.70 t/ha without crown in one West Bengal trial; TNAU puts a well-kept orchard at 50 t/ha | Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu |
| Lakhat | Local markets that sell it by name; verify the planting material before you buy | Not published for Lakhat | No variety figure published | Assam |
| Mauritius (Vazhakulam) | Sweet table fruit for distant markets; Kerala, Meghalaya, trial success in West Bengal | Flowers 7–8 months after planting; first harvest in about a year with ethephon (KAU) | 50–60 t/ha a year at 43,300–50,000 plants/ha, falling year by year (KAU) | Kerala, Meghalaya, West Bengal |
| MD-2 (Super Sweet) | Premium and export fruit where long shelf life is paid for; plant a trial block first | About 15 months from planting to harvest in one West Bengal trial; KAU says it can be picked by the 12th month | 36.45 t/ha without crown in one West Bengal trial; no Indian commercial yield figure found | Kerala, West Bengal |
| Queen | Sweet, aromatic fresh fruit in small sizes; Assam, West Bengal, Kerala | About 15–16 months from planting to harvest in one West Bengal trial | 54.96 t/ha without crown in one West Bengal trial | Assam, West Bengal, Kerala |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Pineapple (Ananas) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Pineapple (Ananas) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Pineapple (Ananas) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Pineapple (Ananas) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Pineapple (Ananas) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Pineapple (Ananas) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Who bred Amritha, and what are its parents?
Amritha comes from Kerala Agricultural University (KAU). KAU's Pineapple Research Station lists it as a hybrid between Kew and Ripley Queen, and the West Bengal trial paper repeats this. We found no release year or notification. KAU's 2011-12 report says the station obtained its Amritha tissue-culture cultures from KAU's Regional Agricultural Research Station at Pattambi, so ask both centres before you buy planting material.
Is Amritha bigger than Mauritius?
KAU's description of 1.5 to 2.0 kg would make it about as large as Mauritius, whose fruit KAU puts at 1.36 to 2.25 kg. But the Cooch Behar trial weighed 871.39 g for Amritha against 1,109.45 g for Mauritius, and the paper cites a Kerala study that also found Amritha fruits smaller. Do not buy on the claim that it is larger. Ask the nursery for fruit from the mother plants, weigh it, and decide on what you see.
What yield and flowering should I plan for?
KAU gives no yield figure for Amritha. The one trial we found measured 33.74 t/ha without crown in northern West Bengal, with 76.12% of plants flowering and 342.85 days from planting to 50% flowering, then 126.58 days to harvest. KAU's own crop duration is 13 to 15 months. Plan your cash flow on the lower yield and the longer duration, and do not assume the 50 to 60 t/ha KAU quotes for Mauritius at high density applies to Amritha.
Why does a small crown matter?
The trial paper calls a smaller crown an important desirable trait for marketing, processing and fruit quality. Amritha's crown weighed 178.64 g against 337.64 g for Kew, and KAU describes it as 80 to 100 g. A big crown adds weight you cannot sell as pulp and makes packing harder. KAU warns against cutting the crown off, because it spoils the look, invites infection and makes handling difficult, and advises only partial pinching of the inner leaves about one and a half months after fruit set, which it says can increase fruit size.
Sourced from: Pineapple varieties (Amritha, MD-2, Mauritius) — Pineapple Research Station, Kerala Agricultural University, Morphological characterization and performance of pineapple varieties in northern West Bengal — Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences 92(5), 2022 (Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya), Research and Development Report 2011-12 — Pineapple Research Station, Kerala Agricultural University (tissue culture of MD-2, Mauritius and Amritha), Production technology for Vazhakulam Pineapple (Mauritius) — Pineapple Research Station, Kerala Agricultural University (Joy, 2010). editorial policy.