Advanced production technology of kiwi fruit

2. Advanced production technology of
Kiwi fruit
Presented by
Pawan Kumar Nagar
M.sc Horti. 2nd sem
Reg. No. : 04- 2690-2015
Department of Horticulture
B. A. College of Agriculture

3. Kiwifruit
B.N.: Actinidia deliciosa
Family: Actinidiaceae
Chromosome No. : 58
Origin : China
Other names: Chinese gooseberry, China miracle

4. Introduction
Kiwi is among the very few recent introductions which have
surpassed in popularity due to its tremendous commercial
potential in the sub Himalayan region of India.
A native to central China, it is being grown commercially in
New Zealand, Italy, USA, Japan, Australia, France, Chile and
Spain.
In India, kiwi was first planted in the Lal Bagh Gardens at
Bangalore as an ornamental tree. With extensive research and
development support its commercial cultivation has been
extended to the midhills of Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh,
Jammu and Kashmir, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh
and Nilgiri hills in India.

5. Kiwifruit is a rich source of vitamin C.
The skin is a good source of flavonoid antioxidants.
The kiwifruit seed contains on average 62% alpha-linolenic acid, an omega-3 fatty
acid.
It also contains vitamin E and a small amount of vitamin A & potassium.
Some of the health benefits associated with the fruit include
Many scientists believe that the Sodium-to-potassium ratio is critical for heart
health. This ratio is extremely favorable in kiwifruit.
The high content of Vitamin C in the fruit makes it an effective immunity booster.
Regular consumption of kiwifruit ensures good Eye Health prevents Macular
degeneration.
The fruit contains ample amounts of Inositol, which, as studies indicate is an
excellent way of treating depression.
Nutrition

6. Nutritive value per 100 g of Kiwi
Principle Nutritive value
Copper 0.09 mg
Protein 2.1 mg
Vitamin C 64 mg
Sodium 2 mg
Potassium 215 mg
Calcium 23 mg
Vitamin A 60 IU
Iron 0.21 mg
Vitamin B 0.019 mg

7. Climate
Kiwi is a deciduous vine which can withstand wide climatic conditions.
However, for high yield quality fruits, it requires 700-800 chilling hours below
7 ⁰C to break its rest period in the winter otherwise the bud break may be
delayed.
It may be damaged by:-
(I) Autumn frost on the crop and the non dormant plant from October end to
November end
(II) Frost at the end of the winter before and during the budburst
(III) Spring frost after budburst.
• In summer, high temperature (> 35 ⁰C) accompanied by high insulation and
low humidity may cause scorching of leaves.
In India, kiwi can successfully be grown at 800 -1,500 m above mean sea
level.
• A rainfall of about 150 cm/ year is sufficient.

8. Soil
It can be grown on a wide range of soils but deep, rich, well
drained sandy loam soils are ideal.
A soil pH slightly less than 6.9 results in maximum yield but
higher pH up to 7.3 affects adversely because of Mn
deficiency.

9. Varieties
1. Abbott
This is an early flowering and early maturing cultivar.
The oblong, medium sized, fruits are covered with dense hairs.
They are very sweet in taste with lower ascorbic acid content and medium titratable
acidity.
2. Allison
Fruits resemble those of Abbott, except that these are slightly broader in proportion
to its length.
The petals of its flowers are overlapping and crimped along with margins.
It is an early ripening, heavy bearer and sweet in taste.
Ascorbic acid and titratable acidity are on the lower side.
This variety is most suited for Himachal Pradesh.

10. 3. Bruno
This cultivar requires comparatively less chilling period.
The fruits are tapering in shape towards the stem end.
They are longest among all the cultivars.
The fruits is dark brown having very dense, short and bristly hair, highest in
ascorbic acid and titratable acidity.
The bearing is very heavy.
4. Tomuri
It is a good pollenizer for Hayward and Monty, the late flowering kiwi.
Flowers appear usually in groups of 5.

11. 5. Monty
It is a late flowering cultivar but fruit maturity is not late.
The fruits are oblong, resembling those of Abbot and Allison.
Being a highly prolific bearer cultivar, sometimes it needs hand
thinning for obtaining good sized fruits.
The fruit is somewhat wider towards blossom end with higher
acidity and medium sugar content.

12. 6. Hayward
Most popular cultivar or the world, Hayward is comparatively shy
bearer with a tendency of biennial bearing.
The fruit is broad and flat, being much wider in relation to length.
It is superior in flavour with high sugar and ascorbic acid content.
It requires comparatively more chilling hours.

13. Planting
Land having very gentle slope is ideal for it.
If possible its rows should be oriented in a north south direction to avail maximum
sunlight.
Preparation of pits, mixing of farmyard manure and filling of pits should be
completed by December.
In T-bar, a spacing or 4m from row to row and 5-6 m from plant to plant is common,
whereas in pergola system, a spacing of 6 m from row to row should be maintained.
January is ideal time for planting.
The soil should be firmly placed around the roots.
Chinese gooseberry is a dioecious plant; therefore, interplanting of male plants is
essential for fruit production.
Adequate pollination is essential for the development of good sized fruit while poor
pollination may limit productivity.
In India, only 2 male clones-Tomuri and Allison are generally interplanted.
Planting male and female plants in a 1:9 ratio is common.

14. Propagation
Hard wood cutting
Hard wood cuttings are prepared during the dormant season (January-February)
from the previous year summer growth.
Well matured dormant shoots are used for cutting having at least three healthy bold
buds from middle of the shoot.
Tips of the shoots should be avoided as they give a very low rate of rooting.
The cuttings of the central and basal parts are ideal.
Cuttings having more number of spurs should not be selected.
The cuttings are treated with IBA (500 ppm) for 10 seconds and set deeply in moist
rooting medium.
To prevent the cuttings from desiccation and rotting the top portion of the cuttings
are waxed.
A rooting medium consisting of farmyard manure: sand: leaf compost: soil in the
ratio of 1:1:1:1 results in highest rooting in open conditions.
Irrigations are given frequently.
Adequate drainage should be provided to keep the nursery bed weed free.

15. Soft wood cuttings generally root easier and quicker than hard wood
cuttings but they require more attention and sophisticated
propagating structure (mist chamber).
Semi hard wood cutting
Semi hard wood cutting with 3 buds and 0.5 – 1.0 cm in thickness
from the middle portion of the current season’s growth are taken in
July.
A wound of about 1 cm length is made on one side of the base just
below the node.
Lower leaf on the basal bud are removed while two leaves are
retained but reduced to 20- 50 % by a circular cut maintaining the
natural leaf shape.
The cuttings are treated with sand as the rooting media.
Intermittent mist should be applied at 10 min. interval.
In this method 70 -75 successes is achieved.

16. Grafting
Kiwi plants are also propagated by grafting.
Though it takes almost two years to develop a nursery plant through
grafting or budding onto the seedlings but this method is easiest and most
economical.
The kiwi plants can be raised through tongue grafting of kiwi seedlings
during January- February.
Budding
Seedlings become ready for budding normally at the end of first growing
season when the stem diameter is about 6-8 mm.
One or two buds are inserted on the main stem by T budding method at 10
cm above the ground level.
Chip budding during mid February results in bud take as high as 95%.
The bud is firmly secured into position by tagging with a polythene tape.
When the bud has taken, the top or the vine is cut above the union during
the following dormant season.
The protection to the young growing shoot from the bud is very important
because it is very brittle and easily breaks.

17. Training
The main aim of training is to establish and maintain a well formed
framework of main branches and fruiting arms.
The supporting branches should be erected even before planting the vines or
thereafter as early as possible.
Three types of supporting structure (fences) are constructed.
A single wire fence is commonly adopted though another wire is sometimes
provided by some growers and then structure takes the form of knife in
system.
One 2.5 mm thick tensile wire is strung on the top of pillars which are 1.8-
2.0 m high above the ground.
The pillars are made of wood, concrete or iron and are erected at a distance or
6 m from each other in a row.
The wire tension at installation should not be over- strained otherwise wire
can break at knot due to crop load.

18. A cross arm (1.5 m) on the pole also carries two outrigger wires.
This training is known as T-bar or overload trellis/ telephone system.
The laterals arising from the main branch are trained on canopy of three wires.
A flat topped network or crisscross wires is prepared to train vines on pergola or
bower system.
The system is costly and difficult to manage but gives higher yield.
Pruning
The vine should grow 2-4 m every year which may become over crowded and
unmanageable if not controlled by both summer and winter pruning.
The fruits develop only on current season’s growth, arising from the buds
developed in the previous year.
Only basal 3-6 buds of the current season’s growth are productive.
The shoots developed on older wood by heading back do not fruit normally in the
first season.
Good quality fruits develop on the exposed vines.

19. A shoot dies gradually if it is pruned just beyond the fruiting bud.
Thus pruning in kiwi should be carried out in such a way that the fruiting
areas are available every year requiring the wood to be young.
This is achieved by following a 3-4 year lateral replacement system which
becomes a pruning cycle.
In the beginning, a lateral arising from main rod is cut back in winter the
provide enough space for 4-5 fruiting shoots at 4-5 bud intervals between
two such shoots.
The strong uprights or the shots arising at undesirable points are pruned in
spring when they have not grown too long.
This is more applicable to Hayward variety, in which the shoots of only
medium vigour bear fruits.
In others, vigorous shoots can be pulled back to horizontal position to
convert them into fruiting wood.
Thus the summer pruning constitutes in shortening back of fruiting arms,
thinning out of crisscross and shading shoots.

20. The secret of successful summer pruning is in the selection and
encouragement of correct laterals to bear fruits in the next year and expose
and vine to the sun.
In dormant pruning, the fruiting lateral is cut back to two vegetative buds
beyond the last fruit.
In the second year, these vegetative buds produce the fruiting shoots which
are pruned again.
The arms on the lateral shoot and allowed to fruit during third or fourth
year.
After this, the laterals are removed from the main branch and other laterals
are selected and pruned accordingly so that the balance between vegetative
and reproductive growth is maintained for the continuity in fruit
production.
The fruiting laterals which have lost vigour or become over crowded are
remove to encourage the development of new laterals.
Since the fruiting arm is removed after the third year it implies that about
one third of the total fruiting arms are cut away from the vine each year.
Dormant pruning must be completed by mid February each year.

21. Pollination
For a good yield of fruit, one male vine for every three to eight female
vines is required.
Kiwifruit is notoriously difficult to pollinate, because the flowers are not
very attractive to bees.
Generally, the most successful approach, though, is saturation pollination,
where the bee populations are made so large (by placing hives in the
orchards at a concentration of about 8 hives per hectare) that bees are
forced to use this flower because of intense competition for all flowers
within flight distance.

22. Manuring and fertilization
Thus N, P and K should be applied on yearly basis, while the other
elements on requirement basis.
Generally, a basal dose of 20 kg farmyard manure, 0.5 kg NPK mixture
containing 15% N is applied each year.
After five years of age, 850-900g N, 500-600g P, 800-900 g K and
farmyard manure should be applied every year.
In contrast, excess levels of B and Na are harmful. The N fertilizer should
be applied in two equal doses, half to two thirds in January-February and
the rest after fruit set in April- May.

23. Aftercare
Permanent soil culture predominantly with clover and clean basin is the
best system of soil management.
In view of the danger of soil erosion in hilly areas, sod culture is more
justified.
The natural weed cover provides good sod and helps conserve soil and
organic matter.
The clover sod is most common in New Zealand. The sod or the natural
weed cover should be regularly mowed and can be used as mulch (10cm
thick) during summers.
Green manuring and intercropping with vegetables and leguminous crops
can be practiced during initial 5 years of plantation.

24. Irrigation
Kiwi plants require much water due to their vigorous vegetative growth, leaf
size, vine habit and high humidity in their natural habitat.
Therefore, it cannot be successfully grown in rain fed areas.
Moisture stress during summer adversely affects fruit size and crop returns,
therefore summer irrigation is essential to cope up with growing period of
fruit.
Irrigation is also needed during September and October when the fruit is in
initial stage for growing and development.
Irrigation at 10-15 days interval is quite satisfactory for good economic returns.

25. Harvesting and postharvest management
It takes 4-5 years for a kiwi vine to start bearing worthwhile fruits and 7-8
years for commercial production.
The harvesting period varies from area to area.
The fruits mature earlier at the lower altitude and later at higher altitudes
because of variation in temperature.
Under Solan conditions, the fruits can be harvested from October end to third
week of November depending upon cultivars, whereas under Shimla condition,
the fruits are harvested from last week of November to December.
Kiwi fruits having 6.2% TSS are ideal for harvesting. But delay in harvesting
deteriorates their storability.

26. They are easily harvested by snapping off the fruit at the abscission
layer at the base of the stalk.
At least two pickings are made.
Larger sized berries should be harvested first while smaller ones
should be allowed to increase in size and improve in quality.
After harvesting, the fruits are rubbed with a coarse cloth to remove
stiff hairs found on their surface.
Hard fruits are transported to the market. Subsequently, they lose
their firmness in two weeks at room temperature and become
edible.
On an average, kiwi yield varies from 50 to 100 kg fruits/ vine.
Vines on trellis produce about 25 tons/ ha after seven years.

27. Storage
The fruits can be kept in a good condition in a cool place without
refrigeration up to eight weeks. It can be kept for 4-6 months in a
cool storage at -0.6 ⁰C to 0 ⁰C.
In India, there are no grading standards for kiwi.
In international market, fruit weight of 72 kg is the minimum for
export while 100 g is the preferred weight.
In India the fruits weighting 70 g and above are graded as ‘A’ grade
fruits and between 40 and 70 g are graded ‘B’ grade fruits.
Since there is no standard package for kiwi fruits, card board boxes
of 3-4 kg capacity are generally used for packing.
Polythene liners in storage cases are very effective in maintaining
high humidity and can be used to maintain fruits in good condition
for a longer period.

28. Insect and Pest
1. Boxelder Bug
Damage
Feeding before bloom is known to cause bud and fruit drop, as well as fruit
malformation, which is apparent when the fruit is cut in half, but can also easily be
seen when the fruit is left intact.

29. Management
Boxelder bugs are mainly found in vineyards near the coast.
Treatment, if needed, should be aimed at adult bugs and applied in early spring as
flower buds are developing.
It has been observed that deformities of the fruit are lessened if a bloom time spray
is applied.
2. Armored Scales

30. Damage
Scale insects feed on plant fluids and can be located on the bark or fruit of
kiwi.
Heavy infestations affect the vigor of the plant and result in the presence of
scales on fruit, causing it to be off graded.
Management
Although management for all three species is the same, biological control
may play a significant role in the management of greedy and latania scales.
If the previous year's crop had an economic infestation of any of these
scales, treatments are warranted.

31. Diseases
1. Crown Gall
Symptoms
Foliar symptoms typical of a root and/or crown rot pathogen are lack of vigor, small
leaves, poor terminal growth, open canopy, and yield reduction.
Galls are the most obvious symptoms of crown gall; however, they are not always
visible.

32. Damage
Agrobacterium tumefaciens is primarily disseminated by infected plant
material or in soil during cultivation.
It enters the plant only through wounds, most commonly on roots or the
crown.
The roots of young vines may be injured during transplanting, while older
vines can be injured by common cultural practices that use machinery.
Additionally, vines may be wounded by frost, herbicide, pruning, removal
of suckers, or they may develop growth cracks.
Management
Control of crown gall is best achieved by avoiding injury to vines.
A minimum of handling during transplanting and care during cultural
practices using machinery should greatly reduce the risk of wounding.

33. 2. Armillaria root rot
Symptoms
Vines infected with Armillaria root rot usually completely collapse.
Dark, rootlike structures called rhizomorphs grow from the root into the soil
after symptoms develop on vines.
Damage
The fungal pathogen survives on diseased wood and roots below ground for
many years.
Flood waters sometimes spread infected roots in a vineyard.
The fungus is favored by soil that is continually damp. Although the pathogen
may produce mushrooms around the base of the vine trunk, they are not
considered significant in disease spread.
Management
When clearing land for planting or replanting vines, carefully remove and burn
roots 1 inch or greater in diameter.
Ensure that vines are properly irrigated and not overwatered.

34. Disorders
1. Freezing Damage
Flesh translucency starting at the stem end of the fruit and progressing
toward the blossom end as the severity increases.
Susceptible fruit become somewhat yellow fleshed with prolonged storage.
There was no "graininess" observed in the fruit that showed these
symptoms.
Freezing damage can occur on early picked kiwifruit when stored at
temperatures below 0°C (32°F) or when subjected to an early frost in the
vineyard.
2. Hard-Core
This disorder is induced by exposure of kiwifruit to ethylene plus carbon
dioxide levels above 8 percent.
The fruit core fails to ripen when the remainder of the fruit is soft and ripe.

35. 3. Internal Breakdown
These symptoms start as a slight discoloration (water soaking) at the
blossom end of the fruit. With time this progresses around the blossom end
and ultimately encompasses a large part of the fruit.
As symptoms progress a "graininess" develops below the fruit surface
beginning in the area around the blossom end of the fruit.
4. Pericarp Granulation
The occurrence of granulation is predominantly at the stylar end of the
fruit, but as in the case of translucency may extend up the sides of fruit.
This disorder also is more severe with prolonged storage and after ripening
at 20°C (68°F).