Irregular Notions about the Chinese gooseberry*

In the October issue of Vegetarian Times, there is a recipe for Kiwi jam. I love Kiwi fruit, so the sight of the jewel-like Kiwi jam was enough to make me think that learning to can wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

The notion that I would be remotely inclined to do any canning lasted for about three seconds. What stuck with me instead, was the statement at the top of the recipe that said something to the effect of: “Kiwis are often thought of as an exotic, tropical fruit, but they can be grown in most temperate climates.” What??? You mean *I* could grow these wonderful little furry jewels? Oh dear.

A bit of research suggests that like grapes, they can be somewhat time consuming to grow. You have to stake the plants, thin the vines, etc. They also require a male and a female plant to produce fruit, so they could be somewhat of a space hog. Regardless, it is an interesting idea that Kiwi fruit could be grown in the U.S. Even better, there are already people growing it here.

U.S. Kiwi Harvest
Fruit Production in Alabama

My husband will be happy to know that I have no desire to start growing Kiwi fruit. I’m not really into growing anything that needs intensive effort to maintain. I’m definitely more of a thrive-or-die kind of gardener. I think I will, however, investigate the possibility of finding slightly more local Kiwi fruit.

*According to Wikepedia, there are a variety of names for the Kiwi fruit, mostly from Chinese:
Macaque peach
Macaque pear
Vine pear
Sunny peach
Wood berry
Hairy bush fruit
Unusual fruit or wonder fruit