Rooting hardy kiwi

Question

I live in the Catskill Mountains in N.Y. My daughter just bought an old abandoned property and I discovered massive hardy kiwi vines growing up over the tree tops over 50′ up. They are loaded with ripe kiwi fruit. My guess is there is probably over 100 lbs of fruit. They plan to fix and flip the property. I read your info on taking cuttings but you didn’t mention the time of year. We haven’t had frost yet so the vines still have green leaves. Can I take cuttings now?

Answer 1

You can. You will want to take these from the newest growth without a woody stem. These can be reluctant to root sometimes. I recommend using a mixture of a crushed aspirin tab, honey, and a few drops of warm water enough to mix them and turn them into a sticky paste. This will be your rooting hormone. You will want to root these indoors.

Now you will want to identify the male plants and female plants. You will need both to produce fruit. Here is an article on rooting plant cuttings: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/projects/rooting-plant-cuttings.htm

Here is an article on determine the sex of kiwis: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/fruits/kiwi/sex-of-kiwi-plants.htm