Our family enjoys kiwi fruit either in salads or just to eat all by itself so in 1994 we decided to plant some at our Bed & Breakfast in Tennessee . We had a cleared space and a long, wide raised planter with trellises built into it thus making it an ideal place for kiwi growing. Our grandson, Kane, especially loved these fuzzy brownish-green fruit with its small black seeds, emerald green color, and typical rayed pattern.
Plus I had discovered, at that time, that the US production of kiwi fruit was on the decline and though I was not thinking of a cash crop I did think it would be nice to grow our own. I liked the fact that they are loaded with vitamin C and that the fruit will keep well in our refrigerator for two months.
Kiwi fruit needs about 150 frost free days for growth and we were o.k. in that department. Though they will tolerate a little shade they really need sunlight and we had that need covered. They also need strong trellises to grow and cling to and they need a lot of water, plus wind protection and with all this in mind I ordered some kiwi root stock because we seemed to have the perfect place to grow them.
My research showed that we needed male and female plants and we needed to plant them apart. Both male and female needed to flower at the same time for pollination to take place.
When they arrived, we planted them according to instructions and they grew quite well though we never saw any flowering or fruit the first year. They survived our mild winter and the second year became stronger and taller and more vines, but still no flowers or fruit.
In the third season we still had hardy plants, no flowers or fruit and I then discovered it may well take up to seven years to be harvesting kiwi fruit. That meant we would not see any fruit in 1999 season and the property was sold in December of 1998 so we never did see the fruits of our labors.
However, you might try some in your organic garden providing you have the space, patience and weather that does not go below 10 F.
"Tread the Earth Lightly" and in the meantime May your day be filled with Peace, Light and Love,
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