The hardy kiwi plants on the farm are tangled and overgrown because they were not properly trained their first year of planting. It is imperative to develop a single straight trunk at planting by choosing one strong shoot to grow upward as the trunk. The shoot should be loosely tied, and not allowed to wrap or twist itself around a support stake, all suckers and shoots must be removed. During the second growing season cordons are established by choosing two shoots and training them to grow in opposite direction along the main support wire, allow shoots to remain every foot and secure to outer trellis wire. It is important to stay on top of pruning task during the summer, all unwanted shoots and suckers should be removed to establish a good structure that will allow air flow and sunlight penetration. During the third year the leaders should be trained and tied off at an angle to the right of where they come off from the cordon to reduce sunlight competition. Do not allow the cordon to twist or wrap around the support wires, doing so will cut off the flow of sap. Once a good framework is established it is much easier to maintain and prune our kiwi vines.
The kiwi vines on Evergreens’ farm do not have a good structure, the vines have intertwined and there is a great amount of unchecked growth, especially in the upper canopy which make harvesting the fruit very difficult ant time consuming. The best course of action would be a heavy winter prune while the vine is still dormant, waiting too long will result in heavy sap flow that weaken the vine.
- Do not allow male vines to get entangled with the female vines, male plants should be pruned after they bloom.
- Female vines should be pruned while dormant, nearly 70 percent of older wood can be removed, second year wood will often still have last years fruit stems, which should be pruned.
- Space replacement canes along the leaders about 12 inches.
- Remove all dead, twisted, tangled, and crossing shoots.
- The male vine should be pruned more lightly to allow for an abundance of flowers for spring pollination, after flowering the male plant should be pruned more heavily to maintain structure and order.