'Jinfeng' is probably one of the three yellow fruited A. chinensis cultivars imported into the US by Roger Meyer, which were simply called 'Red', 'Yellow' and 'Orange', even though all are yellow fleshed. All three are tetraploid and can be pollinated by A. deliciosa, but they bloom much earlier than most A. deliciosa, so most of the pollinators for 'Hayward', which blooms late, are not good. 'Tomuri' is no good, as it blooms too late, but 'Matua' would probably work, as it has a longer bloom period and starts to bloom earlier.

Axier, thanks for that article, I had not seen it.

My vague impression the 'Lushanxiang' in that article is Roger's 'Yellow' and the 'Jinfeng' is his 'Orange'. I recently grafted both from Roger but they have not fruited yet so I have not been able to ID them.

I am interested in growing the chinensis types because they taste better than the deliciosa types. It is interesting that the article you posted claims that the chinensis types are less hardy than the deliciosa based on where they naturally occur.

Linked below is a US article on a similar topic. It has less information than your article but gives you an idea what is going on in the US.

Scott

Here is a link that might be useful: Newcrop article on kiwis

Kiwinut, do you think that to sow seeds of an Actidia Chinensis kiwifruit like Zespri Gold (easily available in groceries) to get an Actidia Chinensis male is a good idea? I haven't found Actidia Chinensis males to buy.

Scott, that article is the most interesting one that I have found in Internet about Actinidia chinensis. A lot of information that there are available in internet about kiwis is very redundant, and it is difficult to find any new data.

Thanks for your interesting comments.

Regards.

I have several plants grown from Zespri Gold (Hort16a) seeds. They leaf out and bloom much earlier than the other A. chinensis (and have much better taste as well), so they may not have a good bloom period overlap. They are also diploid, so they may or may not pollinate the tets well.

~kiwinut

Also, regarding hardiness, it really depends on where the plants were found. Both species cover vast areas. At the same location, the A. deliciosa will be found higher and probably be hardier. However, A. delicosa from warmer areas will be less hardy than A. chinensis from colder areas.

Do you have fruiting plants from Zespri Gold?! It is very interesting!!

How long it's been from seeds to fruit?
What male do you use to pollinate it?
What is the average size of the fruit?

Sorry by lots of questions but I have curiosity with this question.

Regards

I think promotional web pages I have seen on Zespri Gold claim it is hybrid.

Zespri Gold is pure A. chinensis. It is restricted to licensed growers only, and I don't have it. I have seedlings from the fruit purchased in a grocery in 2001. The first to flower was a very vigorous male, only 1.5 years from seed. It had about 700 flowers the first time it bloomed. Two others bloomed the following year, both female. One had fruit very much like Zespri Gold, but a little smaller at 75-80 grams. The other has smaller fruit, 50-60 grams, which are very sweet. Neither one has produced many fruits due to frost problems, as these break bud very early. The male is very frost resistant and has only had minor frost damage.

Go to the link below and type in hort16a, and you will see the patent, which has info regarding its origin.

Here is a link that might be useful: Patent search

Thank you Kiwinut, I am going to sow the seeds of one Zespri kiwifruit. I was discouraged because I thought that the plants take a lot of time to flower (up to seven years!). Your answer is a good news!

As you konw (better than me :-), the kiwi is a difficult plant to breading because it needs a lot of place. Instead of growing each plant in soil, I am thinking to grow the plants in pots to graft in other adult plants to see how flower/fruit and, from this, to select the best plants.

Maybe it is an ingenuous idea, but unfortunately I have no place to grow each plant in the garden.

I know that Zespri and other New Zealand kiwi developments are patented, they have lost much money and time in breading and they don't want that other countries take advantage of their efforts, like with "Hayward" variety.

Regards.

Seedlings are distinct entities, having their own genetic makeup. I think with plants usually the rights cover only the same clone, although annual flowers and vegetables are raised from seed...

I am also growing out several Zespri Gold seedlings. I am trying with them only 3' apart so I can grow enough of them. We will see how well it works, it may be too close.

I had thought the Zespri Gold variety was licensed to some California growers as well -- the company with the patent wants to make as much licensing money as possible.

Scott

I have grown them 4-5 feet apart with two plants per hole with no problems other than making sure to prune them well to keep them from getting all grown together.

Keep in mind that if you grow these in pots, they may not flower for you, as the general rule is that the faster and bigger the plants get, the sooner they begin to flower. You may succeed using really big containers. The only Actinidia I have gotten to flower in pots are the kolomiktas and 'Iaasi'.

Here is a link that might be useful: photos of fruit from Hort16a seedlings

Very interesting post, I didn't know it. Really, it is very similar to Zespri Gold, a little bit smaller. It is very encouraging that in a very small scale breading (like yours) the fruit obtained is so good.

My problem is my overcrowded garden, I have 3 Hayward females and 1 Tomuri male, I have place for 1 female and 1 male, no more. If I grow the seedling plants as you say I will can find any place to grow 3'-4' apart, two per hole but, what will happen when they get branches of several meters? it can become an small jungle! ;-)

I prefer to try the plant selection with grafting and keep the mother plants in a moderate size until I will be sure what are the best.

As I said in my previous post, maybe it will be an ingenious idea but I want to try it.

Regards.

Only one thing; when I say "breading" in my previous posts, obviously I really want to say "breeding".

Sorry!!

I have sowed some seeds from Zespri Gold (Hort16a) kiwis.
I have no place for many plants so I will plant 2 plants per hole in six holes. I hope to get any modestly valuable plant between them.

Here you are two photos of my seedlings:

{{gwi:54208}}

{{gwi:54210}}

Instead of starting a new thread...

Does anyone here know of a hardy kiwi (actinidia arguta) fruit that has  YELLOW  colored flesh?

I have room for one more hardy kiwi in my yard and want something real special.

Thanks, Ron

Hi guys, can I join the club? I've sowed golden seed from Zespri as well. Now is about 0.5 foot tall about 30 plants. I'm planning to transfer to 18cm diameter pot sometimes in december.

Hope to share more info on this type of plant. afterall this is an attempt to raise in a tropical country.

Ops, not 18cm pot, should be 1.5 foot diameter.

This thread is eight years old, I think I may be the only old poster still around here occasionally. I didn't have any luck with my seedlings, every one was a male. But I think some of the others got good fruits. A good chinensis to get is El Dorado, it was bred in California but does well in Maryland.

Scott, thank you so much for the advice. Sorry to hear about you getting all boys. Next time I get my hands on some Zespri Golds, I'm going to try growing some seeds. And I'll definitely be on the lookout for El Dorado. Thank you.