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  • From: Jim Fruth <jfruth@uslink.net>
  • To: <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [NAFEX] Actinidia
  • Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2006 07:10:03 -0500

Seems to me that the best ratio of male to female vines would be that
which nature intended and that is not 1 : 8.
I planted A. kolomitka for fruit in August and A. arguta for fruit in
September. I spaced plants 12" apart alternating
male/female/male/female/etc. and all grew wonderfully. I had posts to climb
up on and horizontal wires so I could stand beneath to see and harvest the
fruit. My vines received sunlight only from 9:a.m. to 1 p.m. and they were
shielded from the prevailing wind. Wind pollenation, if it occurred at all,
was not a significant factor.
A. kolomitka does a wonderful job attracting pollenators because it
produces white leaves prior to (and during) its bloom. In a gentle breeze,
one can smell the flowers 100', or more, away. A. arguta doesn't produce
the white leaves and got pollenated anyway. As for A. kolomitka being a
"weak pollenator," I didn't see that.
--

Jim Fruth
Brambleberry Farm
Pequot Lakes, MN
www.bberryfarm.com
Jams, Jellies and Syrups
(218)568-8483 [Store]
(218)831-7018 [My cell]

I've been running into a number of references recently (NAFEX, Internet,
etc.) that suggest that the standard suggestion of a 1 male to 8 females
pollination ratio for hardier actinidia (arguta and kolomikta) may be
way low of optimal, especially for the home grower. Arguments are that
actinidia is generally a weak insect attractor, that males are generally
weak growers, and that wind pollination is a significant factor.

This suggests that a useful planting strategy for the home grower is to
(1) plant a much higher male-female ratio in close proximity to each
other, and (2) to consider the prevailing wind direction. So planting
co-located/entwined male-female pairs should help. If a lower
male-female ratio is used, then planting the males upwind may be useful.






  • [NAFEX] Actinidia, Jim Fruth, 06/26/2006

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