Do you have any advice on what I should do to try to start a kiwi plant from the seeds of a store bought kiwi fruit?
I accidentally germinated kiwi seed just leaving them in a bowl of water. I was actually just trying to clean them but forgot about them for a week - maybe 2, and a lot had sprouted.
thanks...I have saved some seeds which are now dried, I'll plop a bunch into some water and see what develops.
From this study it appears that they like prechilling and temperature fluctuations: The gibberellin treatments may be over the top for the average gardener, but the temperture variation is worth a try. Jasminegardeners, do you have a place to grow a kiwi plant or is this just a germination experiment?
Eric, thanks for your information. It is a little more technical than I can handle, but I will try the temperature variation using my kitchen fridge and room temperature for 16hrs/8hours. How many repetitions or cycles of this should I do? I live in zone 5, Oshawa Ontario Canada and do not anticipate being able to grow this kiwi plant outside but thought that it might be an interesting specimen to try growing in our sunroom. From what I have read on this site there seems to be another variety of this plant that could possibly be hardy in my area. Do you have recommendations about that??
Jasminegardeners, Those are very techical instructions used in a scientific study; I would distill it to something like, prechill in fridge for a few months (3) then germinate at day temperatures of 21° and night temps of 10°C. So it could be put someplace warm in the day and outdoors or in a cool room overnight. I know there is a hardy, self-pollinating, fruiting variety, Actinidia arguta 'Issai'. There are other hardy varieties grown mostly as ornamentals.
If you search for hardy kiwi on the web you will find an abundance of information. The link below is good and informative and well worth looking at. I have 'Issai' and another Actinidia arguta cultivar in my garden and can recommend them because the fruit is better than the fuzzy kind, I think. They are small and can be eaten like grapes. You would have to check hardiness ratings against yours in Ontario to see which of the hardy kiwis you could grow. Years ago I grew the supermarket kiwi from seed and I think fresh seed germinated quickly so you might try both ways, fresh and chilled. I grew one of the resulting plants indoors but it did not do well. It is now outdoors and is a bit of a monster but the flowers are pretty and very fragrant. http://berrygrape.oregonstate.edu/fruitgrowing/berrycrops/kiwi/kiwicult.htm
thanks for the suggestions re Kiwi... I'll probably try germinating a few store bought kiwi seeds, unless we see some interesting seeds tomorrow at the 'Canada Blooms' show in toronto...last time we attended, 4-5 years ago it was pretty amazing, and this year we are planning to put in a backyard water garden/pond, so looking for ideas. I did successfully plant Lemon trees from store-bought organic lemons last year, and the plants are doing great! Any suggestions for other interesting plants??
Hi DandyLioness, I'm looking to grow pomelo for a longest time so please, if you have couple of pomelo seeds to spare, I would love to have them. thanks.
I have two kiwis in my backyard. Unfortunately, we did not do any research before planting them. I would advise having a very sturdy trellis for them to grow on as they definatley have a mind of thier own. Also, you need male and female plants for fruit.
...it also seems that by sowing you will end up a big procentage of female plants... and you must have also male for those selicious fruits...
Hello, Can you please tell me if your supermarket kiwi from seed has given you fruit. You say it is now outdoors, and flowering. This was several years ago. I am just wondering how long it will take for a kiwi seed to turn into a fruit bearing vine. assuming both male and female vines present. Mine grew quickly from seed.
