Actinidia arguta "Issai"

[dandelion]

Saw this in Woolworths yesterday. I understand it's some sort of Kiwi and self fertile. Has anyone grown this? Is it a shrub or a climber?

[dandelion]

[Amazin]

I've got one in a pot. Here's the info I have:

Kiwi Fruit ‘Issai’ (Actinidia arguta), aka Chinese Gooseberry or Russian Kiwi is a smooth-skinned hardy kiwi closely related to the traditional kiwi fruit, but it has the advantage of a hairless skin so does not need peeling.

A very hardy kiwi (to about -15°F) suitable for a south facing garden trained along a wall/frame where the vines will grow vigorously but can be damaged at higher temperatures. A self-pollinating variety, it often bears fruit the year after planting. It is capable of pollinating other Kiwi types

Fruit is about 1.5” (4cm) long and is extremely high in vitamin C, delicious and very sweet. hardy and makes a beautiful vine, with very attractive clusters of extremely fragrant white flowers, followed by loads of small fruit with a very sweet taste.

[manicscousers]

hiya, dandelion, me being cheeky, how much was it ?  :)

[Amazin]

If I recall correctly from last year,  it'll be the same size as the pomegranates, and marked at £5.99 but sold for £2.99

[dandelion]

Yes, £2.99. And I'm off to buy one. Thanks for the info Amazin!

[Amazin]

My Woolies today had the 'normal' Kiwi 'Jenny' as well, another self-fertile one. This is a lovely climber - the young stems are hairy and a stunning red.

[DeeBee]

Thanks for the heads up, pootled down to Woolies and got me a Hairfree Kiwi........and a cranberry (apparently like marsh, which given recent weather shouldn't be too tricky) and popped into Wilkos whilst there, may have bought too many onion sets, and can you have too many currant bushes/propagator lids/balls of twine/labels/  pairs of wellies/baby wipes/ hose spray gun/assorted reduced veg seed........I houldn't be allowed out until I can learn restraint! ;D

PS any idea what I can do with the baby wipes? No baby to use them on! Hope theycan be composted. ???

[dandelion]

Baby wipes are briiliant to clean things with, especially to clean anything greasy. I use them to clean my house and also to clean my hands when I've finished an oil pastel illustration.

[DeeBee]

Cheers Dandelion! Everything will smell nice, wonder if you can clean plant pots with them? Dont know til you try I guess ;)

[Amazin]

I always take a pack of them to the lottie to clean the muck off my hands and wipe down the handles of the tools before loading them back into the car.

[carolinej]

My friend uses them to clean her leather 3 piece suite. Dont know if it is recomended, but it hasnt caused any problem with hers. I havent tried it, as mine has that black over varnish stuff on it to age it (Hope you know what I mean ::))

cj :)

[springbok]

baby wipes also take red wine out of carpets, I clean my leather sofa with them too.... then buff with a duster.

They also good for cleaning little bums lol... any takers on my sons next nappy!! :)

[Kea]

No thanks! Been there, done that! (the Nappy)

[GrannieAnnie]

Well how about that- I must have stumbled into a group of flamin' Brits! Hi to all across the big pond! ;)

I'm in Florida and was paging through seed catalogues trying to find out info on Issai but little was given about the height. I actually thought this was a tree!  What is the vine like- does the stem wrap around other plants tightly or is it more like a clematis? Would it grow up light weight wood lattice or does it need a metal arbor? I'm tempted to buy one but need more info before taking the plunge. Also, has anyone tasted the berries?

(Two yrs ago I planted elderberries and this yr made 4 gal. of elderberry wine thinking I could buy some somewhere to know what it is supposed to taste like.  Imagine my surprise when I learned nobody sells it. so I've got 4 gallon of the stuff which is by the way, beautiful red-purple but berry berry strong!) All this an aside from issai:

One scientific article said Issai flowers produce only 30 % by itself but more than 60% if there is another vine.

[Lauren S]

Hello Grannie Annie and Welcome to A4A.
We have lots of Nationalities on this forum from all over the World.
Glad you found us and joined up  ;D
Lauren  :)

[GrannieAnnie]

Hello Grannie Annie and Welcome to A4A.
We have lots of Nationalities on this forum from all over the World.
Glad you found us and joined up  ;D
Lauren  :)

thank you kindly :)

[Amazin]

Hi Granny Annie and welcome. My info says the Issai grows 'vigorously', though mine is a mere baby by comparison at present. It's a twiner, like honeysuckle or wisteria, but I'm sure with a little control and pruning it would manage on a trellis - or you could train it along wires. I understand the fruit is sweeter than the usual Kiwi. One thing I'd flag up - if you're in Florida, where I imagine it gets quite warm  ;D you might want to give it some shade.

[digger46]

HI   EVERY  ONE    JUST LOOKED  AT THE COVER  OF THE PLANT   AND  ON IT   GOT PLANT  NOVEMBER TO MAY   POSITION   FULL SUN  SOIL TYPE    ANY NORMAL   GARDEN  SOIL  HARVEST    AUGUST /  OCTOBER SIZE IN 5YEARS    3 M  HIGH  - 5M   WIDE        FROM   DIGGER46.                                                                 

[Baccy Man]

The fruit is sweeter & more aromatic than a regular kiwi. The average fruit is only 1"-1.5" but you get thousands of them (up to 100lb per year). If you leave the fruit on the vine it will dry by November & the flavour changes so it tastes more like a fig. Flowers in June fruit ripens in September/October. It is self pollinating but you get a lot more fruit setting if you plant another one in the area, it will not pollinate regular kiwis only other mini hardy varieties ie: Anna, Dunbarton Oaks, Fortyniner, Ken's Red, Meyers Cordifolia.