Hello,
I own a self fertile jenny kiwi plant and have brought a Ken red hardy female.
Does anyone know if Jenny will pollinate it? If not, what variety should I get please?
Welcome to the forum!
Jenny will not pollinate Ken’s Red for two reasons: 1. Self-fertile kiwis are essentially just a female kiwi that produces fruit regardless of being pollinated. They do not produce any male pollen that can pollinate other plants. 2. Your two kiwi plants are different species. Jenny is Actinidia deliciosa, while Ken’s Red is Actinidia arguta. So even if Jenny did release male pollen, it would do nothing for the Ken’s Red.
You will need to buy a male hardy kiwi plant of the species Actinidia arguta for pollination. They aren’t always labelled with a cultivar, but you do need to make sure the species is right because there is another species referred to as hardy kiwi, Actinidia kolomikta, which again will not pollinate Ken’s Red. The main way to tell the difference if the species is not listed is that kolomikta usually has white or pink blotches on the leaves, while arguta only has green leaves.
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