Actinidia really like lots of humus, so more is better. Also, the time needed for the vines to start flowering is related to the size of the vine, so more compost=faster growth=faster maturity.

After having seen what an arguta vine will look like in a few years, I would never try to grow one on a grape trellis. You certainly could, but it would require a lot more pruning to keep things under control.

The best support is a pergola, where the vine can really spread out. The shading this creates protects the trunk and also suppresses weed growth, and is much more like the natural habitat where these are found in the wild. The downside is these take up a lot of space and can be expensive to build.

Thanks kiwinut!

I'll go with the T-style trellis. Is there any value/benefit in allowing some vine "branches" to go along the lower wires of the trellis? I'm thinking that more leaves = more photosynthesis = more fruit production, up high and down low. Is there anything to that, or should I just stick with a 6 foot high trunk/vine that doesn't spread out until it gets to the top?

I was just thinking that there's a lot of available space below the top of the trellis that would be unused.

Thanks again,
Bart

I've grown kiwis different ways and if you're really interested in the fruit it seems best to have them growing slightly overhead so the fruit will hang below the foliage so it can easily be seen and picked.

I prune mine 4 times a season with a hedge shear, keeping light near the spur-wood. I have to wonder if you wouldn't be better served with a less fertile soil to reduce vegetative vigor though I'm no expert on this species. Rapid establishment may not be as important as how a very rich soil will affect long time maintenance and yeild. My most vigorous plants are my least productive.

Of course kiwis do require a lot of water so instead of enriching the soil I'd stick to mulch to help you deal with that issue.

I use the "lazy mans T" method - my trellis is a single wire but I am letting big spurs come out either side, forming the "T" over time with the kiwi vine itself. This has generally worked OK. You have to balance each side because if there are too many branches sticking out one side the whole thing can tip over. I didn't think about that until it happened on one vine. Overall I would have built a real T had I not had 10 other trellises to put up in limited time. I originally built two Ts for blackberries and discovered how much more work they were than single-wire.

Scott

The T trellises that I use have 5 wires, all side by side, so there are no upper and lower wires. The cordons run down the middle wire, and the lateral shoots go out sideways and lay across the other wires. Even though I use some strong wire now (200Klbs/sq in), I would not want all the weight of the vine on one wire. When wet and windy, there will be a lot of stress on the wire once the vines get big.

I made the mistake of using electric fence wire that stretched too much when I built my first trellis. The wires kept sagging and eventually would break. The wire breaks where it touches pressure treated wood, due to galvanic corrosion from the copper in the wood. After the Easter freeze killed all my vines to the ground last year, I re-wired the trellises with good galvanized high-tensile wire, and I inserted the ends of the wires inside a small plastic tube so it would not contact the wood. The only problem now is anchoring the posts well enough to keep them from pulling over. I added an extra post with a cross support at each end. Hopefully, nothing short of a tornado will pull them over now.

~kiwinut