Kiwi anyone? (Charlotte, Canton: neighborhood, store, tree)

[vindaloo]

My wife and I were walking around the edges of our neighborhood this morning and came upon bushes and bushes of kiwi. Anyone else had the same experience?

[chicagocubs]

Kiwi growing wild in Charlotte?? WOW. thought that they were a tropical fruit.

KIWIFRUIT Fruit Facts Native of China, apparently. How funny.

[vindaloo]

Originally Posted by chicagocubs

Kiwi growing wild in Charlotte?? WOW. thought that they were a tropical fruit.

KIWIFRUIT Fruit Facts Native of China, apparently. How funny.

Reading about kiwi, it seems as it would grow fine in North Carolina. It mentions that it is hardy in various types of soil that has good drainage and can survive cold weather. Somebody probably threw out some overly ripened kiwi, and now there are many. They need a a trellis to enhance their growth since they are a vine plant. I think I am going to transplant some of them to the side of my house. Funny how things become transplanted from other geographical areas (not talking about people, LOL). It was wild in Florida how something that wasn't native to northern Florida would grow as the result of a bird droppings during migrations. I am hoping for a mango tree next.

[chicagocubs]

Originally Posted by vindaloo

Reading about kiwi, it seems as it would grow fine in North Carolina. It mentions that it is hardy in various types of soil that has good drainage and can survive cold weather. Somebody probably threw out some overly ripened kiwi, and now there are many. They need a a trellis to enhance their growth since they are a vine plant. I think I am going to transplant some of them to the side of my house. Funny how things become transplanted from other geographical areas (not talking about people, LOL). It was wild in Florida how something that wasn't native to northern Florida would grow as the result of a bird droppings during migrations. I am hoping for a mango tree next.

yeah, after your post, I texted my son and told him to add kiwi to his list of fruits & veggies that he either has growing or plans to grow on his ever-growing little farm!

[minibrings]

Originally Posted by chicagocubs

Kiwi growing wild in Charlotte?? WOW. thought that they were a tropical fruit.

KIWIFRUIT Fruit Facts Native of China, apparently. How funny.

The Chinese Gooseberry was named after New Zealand, which is not a warm tropical country. So it would make sense that it can grow in NC. Also, China isn't exactly a tropical country in the winter, parts can get downright frigid.
Canton and points south can have chilly winters, good for kiwi growing.

[chicagocubs]

Originally Posted by minibrings

The Chinese Gooseberry was named after New Zealand, which is not a warm tropical country. So it would make sense that it can grow in NC. Also, China isn't exactly a tropical country in the winter, parts can get downright frigid.
Canton and points south can have chilly winters, good for kiwi growing.

oh, indeed. I was just in southern China, Sichuan Provence. Their climate is similar to ours. I just never knew that the kiwi was from there, somehow, my perception was that it was a tropical fruit.

[vindaloo]

Originally Posted by chicagocubs

oh, indeed. I was just in southern China, Sichuan Provence. Their climate is similar to ours. I just never knew that the kiwi was from there, somehow, my perception was that it was a tropical fruit.

My only thought was that the grocery store imported them from New Zealand. This has been a good learning experience I never thought that I would actually do research on the topic.

[CharlotteGal]

Originally Posted by minibrings

The Chinese Gooseberry was named after New Zealand, which is not a warm tropical country.

It's actually named after the kiwi bird - because of the resemblance.