I bought really nice big bare root ones and small potted ones years ago. All of the really nice big ones died while all the small potted ones did great.
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I definitely think there is something to be said for a tree or vine to establish small and let its own in-situ development determine its above ground growth. If top-heavy trees/vines donāt catch up root wise, they canāt support whatās already grown.
Often smaller plantings catch up or even pass the larger tree/vine planted at the same time.
Of course the whole nursery industry is built on curb appeal and we generally buy into it.
Mine were a bit smaller.
My kiwis got frozen out a few days ago and I picked them all. Interestingly none were ripe yet, usually Soreli is ripe by frost but not this year. Iāll stash them all until January and they should start getting good. The crop was not very big, its another thing the deer seem to have found that tastes good. But the vines go every which way so they missed a bunch.
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Is anyone growing Saanichton with Matua (FK4PL) as the pollinator?
Iāve settled on Saanichton as my female. Fruitwood nursery has both in plugs, but they havenāt replied to my inquiry about the best pollinator.
Their other fuzzy male choice is FK5.
I assume these abbreviations stand for a variety.
Edible Landscaping says to use the Matua with Saanichton.
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I ordered them.
Iām assuming I need to keep these in pots till spring. Even though we rarely see below 20 degrees here and even more rarely do we stay below freezing during the day, I would think an unacclimated vine would have some cold sensitivity.
I would assume plugs are not dormant. Non-dormant vines will be easily killed to the ground by temps <28F. I tried to go to Fruitwood to look, but my work network blocks it as āalcohol-tobaccoā. Weird. I guess fruit is a no-no since it can be fermented (or smoked, lol).
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Thatās hilarious! Hell anything with sugar can be made into alcoholā¦including candy canes!
Yes Iāll just pot them up and bring them in for the freezes.
I actually had a few Issai for a few years, but I neglected them badly. Removed them this summer. Iāll prepare a better bed/planting area this time.
The fuzzy kiwi stems and leaves are so much more attractive and bigger than the hardy kinds. Iād be happy just with the fuzzy for an attractive vine, even if it didnāt fruit.
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AA vineyards is also blocked, which is a little easier to understand, but still ridiculous. Most other nurseries are not blocked.
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@scottfsmith Ready to go another round with fuzzy kiwi. What fuzzy male are you using? Iām having problems getting the males to survive the winters. Probably going to get some plugs from Fruitwood. Not looking for tiny rooted cuttings though, do you know what size pots they come in?
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Any male is fine for meā¦ I have a bunch of seedlings plus a California male which if memory serves is the same as Chico. No dieback ever on my malesā¦
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Question: Hayward ripens 1-2 weeks after Saanichton. From your experience do you think that would fit in the window of our area. I like their size and I found a sweet deal on them.
My guess is it would not get as sweet but should be edible. I had some other late varieties and most were edible in February after cold storage. I personally would prefer to grow earlier ripening varieties that will taste betterā¦ that is one reason I never tried Hayward.
Scott I picked up some potted kiwi. Do you think it would be better to go ahead and plant them or hold them inside till spring time. Check out these I got from Park Seed. Really satisfied.
I usually plant things sooner rather than later. They are hardy enough to survive outside.
For those into the gold kiwi wondering what to graft to. Planting Justice has it.
āThe New Zealand kiwifruit industry uses Bruno widely as a rootstock for both green and gold fruit and has proved resistant to the kiwifruit vine disease PSA-v, first found in New Zealand in 2010.ā
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Can you recommend any early varieties that have done well for you? My recent purchase was about replacing my dead males. Already had Saanichton, but the new ones were too cheap to pass up.
Was considering Jenny as they are pretty hardy, but in the Jenny thread you can see they are about the size of quarters.
HongYang is a good one for example.
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Where would that be available?