The first time Iago Hale popped a cold-hardy kiwifruit in his mouth in graduate school, he was left speechless, amazed that he had never encountered the delicious fruit before. Now the researcher with the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of NH is a hardy kiwifruit breeder working to develop the small, grape-like, sweet fruit into a new high-value crop for New England farmers.
“Hardy kiwis are well-suited to the relatively small and diverse farms that dot the New England landscape. Cultivated by hobbyists and backyard gardeners in the northeast for nearly 150 years, these species show great commercial potential in our region. Until now, however, they have lacked the necessary support of a public breeding program to develop high-performing varieties and demonstrate their economic viability to producers. We’re going to change all that,” says Hale, a plant breeder and assistant professor of specialty crop improvement at UNH’s College of Life Sciences and Agriculture.
“By establishing a long-term breeding program for hardy kiwis on experiment station land, the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Stationaims to supportour region's producers and consumers through the development and dissemination of this novel crop,” Hale says.
Native to China, Japan, Korea and Siberia, hardy kiwis differ from their larger, fuzzier relatives in that they are hairless, have thin edible skin and are about the size of a grape. Some varieties of the perennial vining plants can be grown as far north as USDA Growing Zone 3, and a single, mature hardy kiwi plant can yield up to 100 pounds of fruit.
Hardy kiwis first were appreciated for their ornamental value, covering cottages and trellises in estate gardens throughout the region. The leaves of some varieties turn a lovely white then rosy hue in early summer, and the smell of the small, white flowers is similar to that of gardenias or Lily of the Valley. By the mid-1900s, the excellent eating quality of the berry-like fruit was starting to be appreciated as well. In the 1960s, UNH botanist Edwin Meader brought hardy kiwis he collected in Korea to his farm in Rochester after serving in the U.S. Army. One of his selections (Meader male) remains one of the most prevalent and preferred hardy kiwi cultivars offered by nurseries today.
At UNH, Hale is growing nearly the entire USDA collection of hardy kiwis, about 150 accessions, in order to characterize the collection and identify parent plants for his breeding program. This first observational vineyard was planted in 2012, and Hale will see a first harvest this fall.
“Hardy kiwis are nutritionally dense, a superfood, with extremelyhigh levels of vitamin C,beta-carotene, anthocyaninsand lutein. They are remarkably sweetand flavorful fruits that are about 25 percent sugar. And given their complex flavor profile, with hints of tropical fruits with a nice acidity, some producers even use them for winemaking,” Hale says.
Hermit Woods Winery of Meredith makes two wines using hardy kiwis and has plans for a third. According to co-owner Bob Manley, both kiwi wines sell out every year, and hardy kiwis have become an important part of the company’s wine production. “They are unique in that they are the rare fruit that can produce sugar levels equal to or higher than grapes, especially grapes grown in this region,” Manley says. “Since Hermit Woods has had so much success with the kiwi berry in our wines, other wineries have either begun to or are already producing kiwi wines as well.”
The company currently gets its hardy kiwis from Pennsylvania. “Ideally we would like to be able to procure our fruit from local farmers. The shipping costs alone to get the fruit from Pennsylvania drive our price up. If we could identify farmers in the area that could produce good quality organic fruit, we would be willing to pay top dollar for it,” Manley says.
Whether for fresh eating, winemaking or other value-added products, Hale is hopeful his research will lead to the establishment of a hardy kiwi industry in NH. To that end, he is already working with two northern farmers in Coös County who are interested in diversifying their crops with hardy kiwis.
Kitty Kerner and her family operate WinterGreens Farm and Aquaponics in North Stratford, a small farm that has to contend with a short growing season and hard winters. The family has been working to expand its selection of high-value crops, and according to Kerner, “Hardy kiwis seemed just right for our challenging climate, given their native habitat is Siberia.”
“We are excited to be part of professor Hale's kiwi selection trials and believe this crop has great potential as a new opportunity for farmers in New England — especially in the northern areas. As with any new product, it will take some effort to introduce the hardy kiwis to consumers and convince them how great they are, but we believe that won't be too hard once you can get samples to the markets and other potential customers,” Kerner says. “Should the kiwis be successfully established on our farm, we are definitely hoping to expand the vineyard and also looking into their potential use for value-added products such as for wine-making, jams and perhaps dried fruit.”
Like Kerner, Pierre Miron of New Earth Organic Farm in Colebrook sees hardy kiwis as a potential to diversify his crops. Its potential demand, ability to grow in colder climates, survive Northern NH’s cold climate and store for up to two months appeal to him.
“For me hardy kiwis could become a high-value new crop, a good complement to what I offer to my customers. I have been farming for eight years in Colebrook and I know, to be realistic, I need to do my own experiment at my farm and see how it is doing here. Working with Iago, we will develop the best varieties suitable for the North Country. I am already preparing another section in the garden to expand. I am very optimistic,” Miron said.
This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 233561.
Founded in 1887, the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture is UNH’s original research center and an elemental component of New Hampshire's land-grant university heritage and mission. We steward federal and state funding, including support from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, to provide unbiased and objective research concerning diverse aspects of sustainable agriculture and foods, aquaculture, forest management, and related wildlife, natural resources and rural community topics. We maintain the Woodman and Kingman agronomy and horticultural farms, the Macfarlane Greenhouses, the Fairchild Dairy Teaching and Research Center, and the Organic Dairy Research Farm. Additional properties also provide forage, forests and woodlands in direct support to research, teaching, and outreach.
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