You see this is all my fault, when I made the list of “cool” things to add to the farm in terms of gardening, I put “Hardy Kiwi” on the list but the prices of this plant in the garden catalogs always keep me from ordering it, it gets put on the list each year but it always gets bumped down for something else that we could use more.. However that means that Dh see’s it on the list..
So about two years ago, he said.. we really should get those Kiwi for our zone, after all, you know what they say, plant now for food for tomorrow line.. and I just kinda did the ugh ok.. and they didn’t get ordered..
But for the first time ever, guess what was at one of our favorite garden centers, yup, really great priced looking lovely big pots of hardy kiwi, now its is of the “self-fertile kind” but I will still be ordering a male shortly and keeping him very pruned and small but if we are going to put the effort into the girls, I want the most bang for my buck, and the boy will make sure that we get lots of fruit, and that the fruit will be fertile, if we just have the self-fruitful females, we will get less of a crop and the fruit will be sterile.
This is not my own photo, it’s a stock one-off the net.
Now once I got home and had time to look up this hardy kiwi in my books and on the computer.. O-va.. what a project, each vine will require at least 15 feet or more of very heavy-duty support, and each one can with care and time produce upwards of 100 pds of small large green grape non-fuzzy kiwi fruit.. now that means I could get upwards of 400 pds of kiwi fruit per year.. now sure what I would do with it.. but first lets work on the support structure and getting them off to a good start and worry about what to do with the fruit afterwards.
So the big question is do we build a solid wood structure to hold it, or do we build a huge heavy-duty 6 foot high 3 wire overhead structure.. so any of you grow Hardy Kiwi, and if so, what structure did you decide on? Are you happy with it? What would you keep the same, what would you change? How long did it take you to get fruit? on the plants after planting them out? What is your favorite way to use the fruit?
Just another Day on the Farm 
I’ve never grown Kiwi vine as it’s always been too expensive…..but now?…. Apparently the leaves are a beautiful varigated red,green, white. Maybe you (a.k.a. DH) could build an arbour out of 4x4s with 2x4s on top and 2x3s horizontally along the sides: that should support them (one M and F on each side. Don’t forget to sink the 4x4s (12 footers) about 4 feet in the ground because with the kiwi in leaf, it’ll be heavy and you don’t want a big wind to blow it all down……
just a suggestion
BTW, where did you get the plant from?
At our local canadian Tire for 9.99 a plant, and it was a gallon pot, about 2 feet or more big, it is the Issai type, I have never seen them there before and they had limited stock on them in the fruit section, we have had very good luck with them if you get there early on their fruit tree stock over the years. They will sell you lots of things that won’t make the winter if you are not careful at looking at the tags but if you watch, they have some really good ones as well.
I was kinda thinking the same thing in regards to 4 by 4’s with the 2 by 4 on the top.. Its going to cost alot more to build the structure then it did to get the plants and it sounds like I will need to have a steady pruning hand on these plants if I want them to be productive.
Kiwi is one of the most delicious fruits I have known and I feel bad that I have an allergic reaction to it… 🙂
I’m sorry to hear that you can’t eat them, they are so tasty, I figure I can dry alot them and maybe if I get really luck, they will ripen over a few weeks, so we can have at least a month of fresh eating on them before needing to process etc.
Wow, I’m jealous 🙂 hehehe I will just enjoy looking at them and savoring its taste in my thoughts 🙂 Thanks!
We have three of them in our greenhouse at work and one is currently flowering so I am excited to see if it fruits. I’ll try to remember to take my camera to work so I can get some photosof them.
That’s awesome Callie, Would love to hear how often pruned, and to see photos, as well as any info or advice you might get about them, I understand that they are really hardy but that once they break dormancy, you might have to use frost covers when they are still young and small..any and all first hand knowledge is always a good thing!.
I believe that is what Auntie Joyce has in her backyard. Cynthia got them when she worked at the greenhouse a few years back. I will ask her next time I talk to her. talk to you later,mom