golden kiwi

Photo: Pseudopanax at English Wikipedia — Public domain · source

Survives zone 7 through 9

Harvest calendar

Best planted in early spring after your last frost, or in fall before the ground freezes, depending on your climate.

Golden kiwi — smooth, thin-skinned bronze-gold fruit, sweeter and less acidic than green kiwifruit. Current taxonomy (POWO) treats A. deliciosa as a variety within this species rather than as fully distinct — see that entry.

Spread warning. Documented as an occasional garden escape in parts of the US and in Austria/Germany; not classified as invasive by any regulatory body found, but the record is real enough to plant with escape-control in mind.

Hardiness

Zone 7–9

Habit

Vine

Edible part

Fruit

Ripens

Late Aug–Oct

Mature size

Vine 8–10 m, to 15 m unpruned; strong trellis. Container short-term only

Light

Full sun

Soil pH

5.0–6.5 (slightly acid)

Environment

Subtropical forest

Native range

Central and southern China, notably Hunan and Hubei provinces, in mountain forests

Status

Cultivated

Years to fruit

3–5 yrs

Growth speed

Vigorous and fast-growing, typically reaching about 5 m though unmanaged vines can reach 8 m or more.

Spacing

375 cm (148 in) apart — about 14 m² (151 sq ft) per plant

Leaf shape

Broadly ovate to nearly round with a heart-shaped base, dark green and hairless above, downy with silvery-grey hairs and prominent veins beneath.

Root system

Thick, fleshy and shallow, densest in the top 30–60 cm and spreading sideways rather than down. This is the plant's weak point: fleshy roots plus a very high transpiration rate make it exceptionally intolerant of waterlogging, and saturated soil is exactly what Phytophthora crown and root rot needs. Plant on a slope or a raised bed, never in a hollow.

Fruit description

Egg-shaped berries to about 3 cm, bronze-brown skin with fine soft down (much less hairy than fuzzy green kiwifruit), sweet golden-yellow flesh, more aromatic and less tart than A. deliciosa.

Propagation

Commercial cultivars are grafted (whip-grafting or T-budding) onto seedling rootstock; seedlings themselves aren't true-to-type.

Pollination

DIOECIOUS — needs male and female plants

The edible parts listed above are a starting point, not a field guide. Identify a plant with certainty — ideally against a local authority — before eating any part of it, and read the full disclaimer. Spotted something wrong? Report it.