KIWI FRUIT

Perhaps no exotic fruit in recent years has seen such a meteoric rise in popularity as the kiwi--a fruit that thrives in most Southern California gardens. The kiwi is marvelous for the kitchen garden because it produces delicious fresh fruit in the late fall--a time when homegrown fruit is scarce. The kiwi’s fruit is brown, fuzzy and lemon-shaped, with emerald-green flesh and a sweet-tart flavor. It grows in grape-like clusters on large vines that have considerable landscaping appeal. Each kiwi fruit contains twice as much Vitamin C as a lemon.

The kiwi is indigenous to China’s Yangtze River Valley, where its vines climb high into forest trees. Also known as the Chinese gooseberry vine, it was introduced into New Zealand in 1906. There, innovative marketers decided that it lacked consumer appeal for the export market and renamed the fruit kiwi , after the New Zealand national bird. In the 1960s, it was aggressively promoted as an exotic export fruit.

The first kiwi plant was brought into California in 1936, and that original plant, in Chico, still produces an incredible 600 pounds of fruit a year. In recent years, there have been large commercial plantings in the Central Valley.

In the home garden, the kiwi should be planted in a sunny area. The vines need the support of a trellis, arbor or fence strong enough to hold the considerable weight of the fully grown vines. A kiwi plant makes a marvelous patio cover. It has large, roundish leaves that are dark green on top and lighter underneath. The spectacular blossoms are large and cream-colored with yellow interiors. The plant will provide cool shade during the warm months, yet allow the sun to shine through during the cool months when it loses its leaves.

You’ll need to plant a variety suited to your particular climatic zone. For the milder Southland regions, that probably would be ‘Vincent’ or ‘Monty’--varieties with low chilling requirements. Of the two, ‘Vincent’ is the most popular. In the colder inland valleys, where 600 or more chilling hours (45 to 32 degrees Fahrenheit) occur, plant either ‘Chico’ or ‘Hayward.’

To get fruit, you need a male plant along with a fruit-bearing female plant. Any male kiwi variety will pollinate as many as nine female plants. Kiwis are sometimes carried by local nurseries, but the following are sure bets: Pacific Tree Farms in Chula Vista, (619) 422-2400, Exotica Rare Fruit Nursery in Vista, (619) 724-9093, and Tomlinson Nursery in Whittier, (213) 698-5221.

Space kiwi vines 15 to 20 feet apart in soil that drains well. Plant them as deep as they were in their nursery containers, adding time-release fertilizer tablets. Water twice a week for the first six weeks, then weekly during the growing season. Irrigation should be deep and encompass a wide area, because the roots spread horizontally.

In the fall and spring, give the vines a general-purpose fruit-tree fertilizer. Pests and diseases are usually not a problem with the kiwi. The vines must be pruned in January or February, while the plants are dormant. In 8 to 10 years, they should be in full production, each one bearing perhaps 200 pounds a year.

Determining when to harvest the fruit takes some experience. In late fall, when the fruit is brown but not soft, pick some samples and let them soften for a few days. If they shrivel or taste too tart, allow more time on the tree and continue to test the fruit in this way.