Ken’s Red Hardy Kiwi

Actinidia arguta ‘Ken’s Red’

A new hardy female A. arguta x melanandra kiwi, producing cherry-sized fruits with lovely burgundy red skin and flesh. The fruit flavor is just what you expect from a kiwi – sweet and delicious, with the classic kiwi punch, and no peeling!

These fast-growing, beautiful vines produce clusters of oblong kiwi fruits the size of large grapes. Lacking the rough “fuzzy” kiwi skin, these smooth fruits can be eaten whole, like bunches of kiwi-flavored seedless grapes. Originally brought to this country as an ornamental, the green fruit is similar to the fuzzy kiwi in flavor, though sweeter and easier to eat. The smooth-textured vines are very vigorous and need a strong support. Training a fruiting female vine up the legs or railings of a deck, or along an unattractive chain link fence, can create a great tropical effect and be uniquely easy to harvest! Have a hardy arguta or an early-blooming fuzzy deliciosa male for pollination, and allow 3-5 years to begin flowering and fruiting.

USDA Zone: 5-9

Grow Height: 40′ Long at Maturity

Sun: Full Sun to Afternoon Shade in hot climates

Ripening Time: Early Fall

Pollination: Needs a Pollinizer – one Male for 6-8 Females

Read our Kiwi Growing Guide