Subject: Re: her lady of the virgin kiwi

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 12 Jun 1998 09:07:35 EDT

Miekal wrote>>
I think I'll sidestep the discussion into the extra dimensions of our
permaculturation, by throwing yet another question into the messageheap.

My 3 year old actinidia kolomikta has flowered & set some fruit. No
males around.  Is this immaculate conception, or is it that a male
pollinator increases fruit set? 

miekal
_____________________________________
Dreamtime Village
http://www.net22.com/dreamtime/index.shtml<<

Kiwis are incompletely gender specific so you could have either of two
situations.  The fruit could be parthenocarpic (fruiting, but without seeds
due to no pollination) or the vine may have produced a few male flowers.  Some
species change from "male" to "female" due to age (The famous example being
Cornus mas) or other circumstances.  Some mulberries, for example, can be
predominantly male or predominantly female.  I've seen squashes produce all
male or all female blossoms due to environmental circumstances.  Etc.  Since
there ARE self-fruitful kiwis, you vine probably has a few male flowers.  

Why on earth would you bother to grow just a female kiwi anyway?

For Mother Earth, Dan Hemenway, Yankee Permaculture Publications (since 1982),
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Sparr FL 32192 USA  Internships. [email-masked]  

We don't have time to rush.

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From: Miekal And <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 12 Jun 1998 09:20:28 +0000

> Why on earth would you bother to grow just a female kiwi anyway?

Because the 3 different male kiwis I have bought in the last 3 years
have not had enough vigor to make it thru a wisconsin winter.  Just read
in Pilarski's kiwi journal that the Northwoods guy claims to have
collected some male kiwis, in russia I believe, which & extremely
vigorous & bloom by the 2nd year.  Sounds like a lead to me.

thanks for the answer, is there also a possibility that even tho the
fruit has set, it will slowly drop off before it matures?

miekal