Need some gardening help: kiwis

[CDNSushi]

Hey all,

Mr. Black-thumb of gardening here. I kill all plants. Not a gardener, nor do I care to be. But sometimes gardening duties are thrust upon me against my will...

A few years ago, my wife and I thought it would be really cool to plant some kiwi vines in our yard. Really didn't need to do much to take care of them, they just took off like weeds! Last year we got our first fruit, but not very many. Didn't get a chance to try any either.

This year we got a bumper crop. I'm up to my wazoo in kiwis (and kiwi vines -- I didn't know you had to prune the suckers a LOT each year)...

Anyhoo, here's my question...

We started to see fruit a few months ago, and about a month ago now you could say that the kiwis are pretty much the size you'd expect them to be... Pretty big, and the color is nice too. They're also really super-fuzzy. But when you feel them they are hard as a rock...

When do I harvest them?

[Mipi]

Don't take my advice to seriously, while I have a kiwi plant which had only one flower after 7 years of growth. That tells a lot, but the climate is not really in favor for kiwis, too.

As I understand kiwis, the fruit is very hard and softens after you pick it and store it, right?

[Bugbear]

I don't grow them, they don't do well here, but my information says they should be slightly soft when ripe; there should be a fruity smell to them; and they will get ripe if you pick them a little soon. Fruits like this give off ethylene and they will ripen each other if they are together. but you can also make them all over-ripen. You might taste one to see if it is sweet.

Looks like the fruit grows on one-year-old wood, and they should be pruned like a grape vine; those I do grow. They also require a male and female plant, if I remember correctly, so keep that in mind if there are plants that do not produce fruits; don't get rid of all of those.

You should be able to prune them way back, leaving some one-year-old growth, in the winter when they go dormant. I suppose, if you have too many, you could cut half of them back all the way to the ground and let them grow back over the next year.

I'm still looking into fertilizer, but a balanced fertilizer in a low aplication probably wouldn't hurt. Or if a kiwi grower wants to override my advice, even better.

Hope that makes sense, and helps.

* Here you go:
http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/kiwifruit.html

This information on cultivating them looks pretty good, and not too complicated. Don't worry about the varioties etc.

[CDNSushi]

Thanks for the link... I did Google some kiwi-growing resources before I posted but all the info was too intimidating for a non-gardener like me. I was hoping that there would be someone (or someones) who would know from experience roughly how long it takes for kiwi fruit to go from blossom to full-grown fruit... I know tomatoes actually tend to take quite a long time to mature (compared to some other fruits) and thus I'm afraid of leaving the fruit on the vine for too long. Is that even possible?

I do indeed have a male and female plant... And it did take 3 years (I think) to get our first fruit.

[Bugbear]

Oh, ok. I thought you had started a whole bunch of them from seed; I misunderstood.

That article said they ripen in November, and it is from California. I'm guessing it will be somewhat similar for yours.

I'm sorry I can't help more.

Harvest: Ripening depends both on cultivar grown and local climatic conditions. Commercially, the fruit is harvested mature-ripe when its soluble sugars
reach 6.5brix on a refractometer. For the home grower it is best to wait for harvest until at least November1, but November15 would be preferable. Seed
inside should be fully black by this time. If available, a specifically designed fruit ripening bowl can be used to quickly ripen a few fruit to see if
the rest of the crop is ready to be picked. Once harvested, place the hard fruit into plastic bags and put into the refrigerator for keeping. When needed,
the fruit can be taken out of the refrigerator and ripened on the counter for a few days in a plastic bag. Well stored fruit can last for several months.

[CDNSushi]

Well, it looks like we really do have quite a bumper crop this year. According to the "seed test" the fruit should be alright to harvest any time, although the ideal sugar content is anyone's guess without a refractometer. I picked a couple fruit, sliced one open to see if the seeds were black (they were) and I'll try to ripen the other fruit for a taste test.

Thing is, I can't seem to get consistent information on how to best soften and ripen kiwi. One source says that they keep for several months in the fridge, and when you want to prepare some to eat, to put them on the counter until they are soft. Another source says that kiwi ripens much faster in a cool environment than a room-temperature one -- which is really confusing to me. Anyway, they sure LOOK good, even though they are still as hard as rocks and quite unpalatable. But hopefully I can remedy that soon.

Jim

[Pleater]

We regularly buy the 'ripen at home' kiwis.

They arrive rock hard and the same texture as yours, so we put all but one lot in the fridge. It takes some time, but eventually - after maybe a week sitting on top of the fridge the first ones will begin to soften.

Another box is removed from the fridge and put on top at intervals depending on how many fruits each box contains.

Don't squeeze too hard when testing, or they will develop fingertip sized gloopy craters.

I'd think that you could leave the fruit on the vine to ripen naturally, unless the weather turns cold and wet, when the quality would go down rather rapidly so they should be harvested and brought indoors either to cold storage or to ripen.

When sliced open a ripening kiwi will be more translucent in the centre, and gradually the alteration spreads outwards to the skin.

When fully ripe and cut in half the flesh will slide out of the skin under pressure, and can be bitten off the stalk or flower end. Useful for anyone who is slightly allergic to the skin - I can handle them, just not put the skin to my lips - unless I want to have a slightly goldfish look - of course, some people pay good money....

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Danwell]

While I have never grown my own kiwifruit, I was a produce buyer for one of Australias largest produce sellers (think national chains here). I specialised in fruit, and took a personal interest in apples and pears, and tropical fruit.

I can confirm that whenever buying a green or gold kiwifruit, the actual boxes of fruit that reached us were always, without fail, hard as rocks. If you leave them in the fridge, they will remain that way. The best way to ripen them is to follow Anne's advice, and leave them somewhere at room temperature with other fruit to ripen. They are similar to an avocado, I suppose you'd say - don't stick your fingers in, don't squeeze too hard, and don't let them get too soft or they're no good.

As far as the fur on the outside........that's normal. Like peaches, they're extrememly furry when picked off their vines/trees. Before you buy them from a supermarket or fruit shop, they are washed. This takes off most of the loose fur, and leaves the fruit you see in the shops. I'd recommend washing the outside before handling them too much - the loose fur can irritate your skin no end if you've got sensitivity issues.

[Pleater]

Ah that explains why it is the kiwis I buy, being the cheapest option, have an 'Arctic' pelt on them, and the expensive ones carefully packed in individual nests and rather riper show signs of alopecia.

Anne the Pleater :ootd: