How do you like them pineapples?!
The tropical fruit, more commonly grown in areas like Hawaii, is now sprouting in a new area: Oak Grove Farms in Gallatin, Tennessee.
“To our knowledge, these are the first commercially grown pineapples in Tennessee,” farm owner Zach Erhard, told NBC affiliate WSMV, which has requested information from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for confirmation.
Erhard and his wife Kyndle grow a variety of produce at the 71-acre farm they opened in 2012. They added their most unique — and rather low-maintenance — crop in June 2023 when they first planted sugarloaf pineapples.
“We love pineapples, and we thought if they can be grown in Hawaii, why not Tennessee?” Kyndle Erhard said.
The Erhard’s say the farm’s white flesh, coreless pineapples are “much sweeter than anything in a typical grocery store.”
“It is unlike any other pineapple that you’ve ever had,” Kyndle Erhard said. “You can eat the entire thing.”
They said they just planted another 4,000 pineapples due to increased interest, bringing the farm’s total to 8,000. Some are expected to be ready for harvest in August, and they’ll then be available on the shelves at the Erhard’s farmers’ market store.
So, Tennessee can now say “Aloha” to homegrown pineapples.
“We’ve hyped people up to say we’ve got pineapples,” Zach Erhard said. “We’re so excited for the community to try it. It’s just something different and a unique thing.”
