Kiwi can be a fun and tasty plant to grow but it isn’t easy which makes it very rewarding. There are a lot of misconceptions on how to grow kiwi plants to get fruit so before we look at the growing and care information let’s learn some facts about kiwi plants themselves. Firstly kiwis only come in four colors green, yellow, red, and pink, but the pink ones are only pink on the outside and are green on the inside. You can grow kiwi from seed but it will not be true to seed and takes a 7 years to grow. The best way to grow kiwi is from grafting and you will get fruit sooner and they will be kiwis. In order to get fruit from your kiwi plants you wil need two at least one male and one female. There is only one known self fertile kiwi plant and it is called Issai and is a hardy plant. Issai kiwi plants grow to a massive 12-20 feet/3-6m tall, and produce small kiwi fruit that you can eat the skin of.

 

Sun – Kiwi plants need a minimum of 6 hours of full sunlight a and need partial shade in order to produce fruit. Hardy verities can tolerate shade and well fruit in it as well.

 

Soil – They need well draining soil and do not like wet conditions but the do like moist conditions. A well draining soil will stay moist but not soaking wet.

 

Spacing – Plant them 8-15feet/2.4-4.57m apart. Plant 1 male for every 6 to 7 females. 

 

Water – Kiwi plants need 1 inch of water a week, more or less if there’s drought or heavy rains.

 

Food – Fertilize kiwi plants once a year in the spring starting on the second year of its life. Start with small amounts of fertilizer on the 2^nd year and increase every year until it’s fully mature.

 

Annual or Perennial – Kiwi plants are perennial plants that can live up to 50 years.

 

Climate/Hardiness – There are verities of kiwi that are very cold hardy, if you live in a cold and snowy climate make sure to get a cold hardy variety. They can withstand temperatures as low as -10°F/-23°C

 

Harvest – You can harvest kiwi fruit from your kiwi vine in about 3-7 years depending on when and how you planted it. After maturity kiwi plants can fruit 2 to 3 times a years.