I have tried for many years to get my male fuzzy kiwi vines to a place of stability for my females but they have always struggled. I am not sure if it’s the environment, the amount of sun exposure or other varying factors but nothing I have tried works. The first heat wave of the summer always punches them in the face not matter what I do. I will try grafting this winter but it will be my last hail mary approach.
Meanwhile, my females have been flowering like mad and I can’t source any male kiwi pollen online because I do not own a 100acre farm and they don’t have the time for me over at Antles. It breaks my heart. Obviously this year is a loss but want to do everything in my power to get ahead for next year.
Does anyone have male fuzzy kiwi pollen in the freezer or a healthy plant you’d be willing to make a trade or other comparable compensation next spring/summer?
I need help and willing to put the work in if someone is willing to work with me?
Any recommendations or pointing me in the right direction would also be highly appreciated.
Did you check with this place? I’m not sure what their minimal order is now, but they show pictures of some small containers. You have to contact them for pricing. I ordered some from them many years ago. It worked well and lasted about 4 years.
Edit: Nevermind, this is in New Zealand. The place I ordered from was in California, but I thought it had the same name. Maybe they also have operations in California. I seriously doubt pollen from outside the USA is permitted due to PSA.
I appreciate the response. NZ pollen is no longer allowed to be shipped out of country. Antles Pollen is the only stateside company I can find but they do not seem very eager to return my calls as I made the mistake of admitting I dont have a large farm.
Hopefully they return my email some day as this is the only option I seem to have.
Are they not blooming at the same time or not blooming at all? or are they dying?
It’s my first year with kiwi plants and mine are experiments and I’m not sure they’ll grow where I am at all - so I’m sorry I can’t help with the pollen. Maybe we can try to figure out what’s wrong with your male plants?
@PhilP, my experience with male fuzzy kiwis is that they bloom well only if they receive enough sunshine. Mine, growing on the south-facing side of our house, have always bloomed well for over 30 years.
What do you mean by “punches them in the face”? I can’t imagine excessive heat in western Washington. My kiwis grow right against the south face of our house and are never bothered by heat.
I appreciate the response, ty. I don’t have any spots on my property that have full sun, it breaks my heart. I have them in the best spot available and the females thrive but it doesnt seem to be enough for the males.
I agree the heat should not be an issue in most cases but may be a different scenario for plants already struggling which seem to be the case in my situation.
Hopefully if I graft a male branch onto the female this winter I can bypass this portion but I do not have a lot of confidence in this approach as I have never done it before and learning from youtube.
I am trying to get my bases covered so my females can fruit next year.
Any help would be highly appreciated.
They take many years to get established before flowering. My females are at this point but I can’t get the males to develop this far along. I hope you have more success than I do.
From what I’ve observed the males need more sun exposure. This is experience based and may not be true but at my property it is.
Thanks! I’m lucky. I can get full sun for my kiwis, so I’ll be sure to do that. Now, I just have to hope they can live through zone 6b.
I don’t know when exactly kiwis bloom where you are. Are you looking to figure this out for next year?
There are definitely people on this site growing male fuzzy kiwis- but not everyone checks every day or reads every thread. It’s also a busy time of year. You might want to look through other kiwi posts and PM to ask for a trade in the winter when things are less busy for many fruit growers.