By Bob Smith
A few years ago, when I was originally asked to write a post about something I do outside of work (I assume to prove that EPIX staff are real human beings) I decided that, as an avid gardener, I could possibly say something about the great tomato challenge I’d been participating in. However, I now find myself writing a post about pineapples.
You may be wondering why pineapples? For those of you who follow EPIX on social media perhaps you spotted a few pineapples lurking in the background of our Christmas Raffle draw video. The pineapples you spotted were indeed our Christmas decorations. The pineapple decorations spend the majority of their year locked up/carefully stored in room 14. The perils of Room 14 probably require a whole new post…
The history buffs among us know that in the 16th and 17th century pineapples were considered to be a sign of wealth and luxury that only the rich could afford. In fact people paid thousands of pounds to display a pineapple as the centrepiece of their table. So you might think EPIX was trying to mimic this. That however, is not the reason that all EPIX Christmas decorations are pineapples.
The real reason behind the pineapples is still slightly clouded in mystery. I can tell you that in the dim and distant past, EPIX didn’t do Christmas office decorations – staff members still enjoyed partaking in many of the usual office Christmas festivities, but putting Christmas decorations up was simply not a thing. Until that is, one magical day when a few tiny little pineapple decorations appeared in the office overnight. As the years went by the number of pineapples increased. Pineapples became the symbol of the Christmas season arriving at EPIX. Consequently, instead of writing about tomatoes, I’ll be undertaking and posting about the challenge of growing an EPIX pineapple
It’s not the perfect time of year to grow a pineapple – I’m typing this with snow on the ground outside. My research has also revealed that it can take up to three years for the fruit to develop on a pineapple plant. Luckily for me, I believe bromeliads (pineapple plants) look very nice even without their recognizable fruit. I plan to follow a combination of these two tutorials, and I’m going to try and grow an EPIX pineapple.
www.wikihow.com/Grow-a-Pineapple
www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-grow-pineapples/
I might even challenge the team at EPIX to grow their own pineapple. If you’d like to, I’d love you to join the challenge. It would be fabulous to see photos of the plants you’ve grown. Ian and Mike might be persuaded to organise a prize for the best pineapple plant photo to celebrate next Christmas. The challenge will properly start in May or June so there is plenty of time between now and then to gather up supplies. I hope you enjoy following along and look forward to seeing photos of your pineapple plant.
(The photo shows Pat, in the pineapple COSTUME that appeared one Christmas…who knows where this whole pineapple thing will end up!)
