Kiwi plants whose flowers are self-pollinating: 7 varieties of kiwi

The Chinese gooseberry, as the kiwi is also called, can also be grown in the home garden under certain conditions. For the most part, dioecious varieties, i.e. only male or only female, are offered, whereby a male can fertilize several females. There are even fewer fruiting kiwi varieties. They are male, so-called virgin fruits, which develop fruits even without pollination.

Special features of self-fruiting kiwi plants

The fertilization is usually the basis or Prerequisite for lots of tasty and healthy fruits. The self-fruiting kiwi can theoretically do without an additional pollinator variety. The self-fertility of these varieties is actually not based on efficient self-fertilization, but on the ability of this Plants regularly develop fruits even without a pollinator, which is more or less reliable with the different varieties Case is. But that doesn't detract from their taste.
Tip: Despite self-fruiting properties, experts recommend ensuring pollination with an additional male kiwi variety in order to significantly increase the fruit size and the fruit yield.

Self-fruiting varieties

Grape or column kiwi 'Issai'
The grape kiwi 'Issai' is one of the best-bearing, self-fertile varieties with good leaf health. Among the many types of kiwi, this one is a bit out of line, because its grape-like fruits can be included

Shell to be eaten. In contrast to the classic kiwi, it is smooth. The fruits have a very pleasant, fig-like aroma and have a slight taste of wild berries. The grape kiwi 'Issai' has a climbing habit and therefore needs a suitable climbing aid. It grows 300-400 cm in height and between 400 and 800 cm in width. Harvest time is from September to October. It blooms, but does not wear reliably every year.
Tip: If the fruits are overripe, they usually have a floury consistency.

Actinidia deliciosa 'Jenny' / 'Yennie'
This self-fruiting variety impresses with its rapid growth, growth heights of up to 500 cm and cylindrical fruits with the typical hairy skin. In May / June the delicate cream-colored flowers appear, from which the aromatic, sweet-sour tasting fruits develop. They can be harvested from mid-October to November. The fruits can be eaten raw but can also be used to make jams. With this variety, too, the additional planting of another self-fruiting or male variety can significantly increase the yield.
Actinidia deliciosa 'Solo'
This robust and richly bearing kiwi gives very good harvests for many years in a row in sunny locations. It reaches heights of growth of 300-400 cm and grows

between 400 and 800 cm in width. Their loopy, upright and bushy growth as well as the double, cream-white flowers also ensure a beautiful look. The fruits, which are up to 4 cm long, are ripe for consumption and their characteristic sweet and sour taste towards the end of October.
Large fruity kiwi 'Solissimo'
Even if even fruiting varieties are usually rather rich in bearing, it can happen that they do not develop any fruit despite a good flower set. The large-fruited kiwi 'Solissimo' is also a variety. This is because self-fruiting kiwi varieties only tend to produce fruit without fertilization and are actually not self-fruiting at all. As a result, they won't wear reliably year after year.
Tip: With this large-fruited kiwi in particular, it is probably better to choose a different variety and, if not, to plant a male pollinator plant with it.

Actinidia arguta 'Julia'

Thanks to its smooth skin, the Actinidia arguta 'Julia (R)' kiwi can be eaten straight from the bush. Under optimal conditions, it will sometimes bear fruit in the first or second year. In contrast to many other kiwi varieties, it grows a maximum of 300 cm in height, so that it is also suitable for planting in a container. The considerable size of its fruits of 4-5 cm makes it a really big one of the small fruity kiwi varieties. It is ready for consumption and picking, and thus its full aroma, in September.
Sharp-toothed ray pen 'Kokuwa'
The sharp-toothed ray pen 'Kokuwa' is a Japanese, hermaphrodite mini kiwi. Its smooth-skinned fruits are about 2 cm long and can be enjoyed with the peel again. The plants climb up to 600 cm in height with an annual increase of 100-200 cm. They are ready for harvest in September / October, whereby flowers and a fruit set can be expected for the first time after 2-3 years at the earliest.
Actinidia arguta 'Vitikiwi'

Actinidia argute 'Vitikiwi' also regularly and reliably plants seedless fruits without a pollinator, which works much more reliably with this variety than with the grape kiwi 'Issai'. Already in the first and

second year after planting, this seedless berry kiwi starts to produce fruit. They are also smooth-skinned and therefore completely edible. In October they are ripe and ready to be harvested. Actinidia argute 'Vitikiwi' reaches heights of growth between 600 and 800 cm. Here, too, the proximity of a male plant can increase the yield and also have a positive effect on the size of the fruit.

If the bloom stops

• Depending on the cultivated form, it can take several years for the first flowering
• Usually five or six, sometimes even ten years
• Only then does flowers and yields worth mentioning
• If the kiwi does not bloom after this time, there are several possible causes
• For example, too much pruning and / or too much nitrogen fertilization
• Or the soil is too calcareous or not fertilized at all
• The result can be a lack of trace elements and the flower does not bloom
• Possible flower approaches may have fallen victim to late frosts

Kiwis generally need acidic, evenly moist soil that should not dry out completely at any time. When choosing the right fertilizer, care should be taken not to use fertilizers containing chloride and to avoid soils that are too calcareous.

No fruit in spite of flowering

When the kiwi finally blooms, that doesn't mean that it will also set fruit. If fruit formation does not take place in spite of abundant flowering, you may have acquired a plant that has a so-called in vitro propagation was bred, which is the case with most of the commercially available plants is.

• In vitro propagation also known as meristem propagation
• The plants in question are grown in a test tube or petri dish
• Plants grown with the addition of hormones
• Plants grown in this way must reach a certain age
• Only then can they set flowers and fruits
• It may take six, seven, or even ten years before that happens

Tip: The situation is different with plants that have been propagated in the conventional way using cuttings, they usually bloom after 2-3 years.