- Type
- Trees & Vines
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Season
- Fall
- Sowing
- Plant a sapling
Hardy kiwi
Actinidia arguta
Vitamin C and actinidin in a wild kiwi you eat skin and all
Darae is the fruit of a vine that climbs through other trees on Korean mountainsides. At 2-3 cm across it is small, and because the skin has no fuzz you rinse it and eat the whole thing. The Donguibogam described it as climbing trees by vine in the mountains, with green fruit, flat and large, and noted that it is bitingly astringent at first and only turns sweet after a frost. It belongs to the same genus as the supermarket kiwifruit but is a different species, and improved selections of it are now grown commercially in Korea under the name hardy kiwi. The plant most easily confused with it in the hills is silver vine, Actinidia polygama, which is a different species again: around flowering time part of the upper leaf surface turns white, and that whitening is the field mark. Its fruit has a pointed tip and a sharp, acrid taste, so it is not eaten fresh. The young spring shoots of darae are eaten too, blanched and dressed as a mountain green.
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Where It Grows
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Main producer
It grows wild in mountains throughout the country, and cultivation is increasing. Gwangyang and Gurye in South Jeolla, Hadong in South Gyeongsang, and the mountain areas of Gangwon and North Gyeongsang are the known growing areas. Harvest September, October
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Main producer
It grows wild in Dongbei (Liaoning and Jilin) and the mountains of central China, and the planted area has expanded rapidly in recent years. Harvest September, October
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- Wild population Known as sarunashi, it grows wild in the mountains of Honshu and Hokkaido.
- Wild population It grows wild in the forests of Primorye and Sakhalin and has been used in breeding programmes since the Soviet era.
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Major producer
It is grown commercially in Oregon and Washington under the name kiwiberry. Harvest September, October
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It is native to the northern temperate forests of the Korean Peninsula, northeastern China, Japan and the Russian Far East. Commercial production worldwide is so small that FAO has no separate listing for it, and in recent years small-scale cultivation has been growing under the name kiwiberry in Oregon in the United States, in Chile and New Zealand, and in Europe in France and Poland. The fuzzy kiwifruit sold in supermarkets (Actinidia deliciosa, A. chinensis) is a different species native to central China, with hairy skin and far less cold hardiness.
- Optimum
- 15~25℃
- Range
- 5~30℃
- Hardiness
- Hardy
Far hardier than the fuzzy kiwifruit, it survives winter temperatures down to -20 to -25℃, which is why it grows even in the inland central regions and mountain areas. The trade-off is that a late frost after the spring buds break costs the grower that year's fruit. Its roots spread shallowly, so it suffers in summer drought.
Harvested 3–4 years after planting. It takes three or four years after planting a sapling before it bears fruit. The month of planting and the month of harvest are not in the same year. The plants are dioecious, so unless a male vine is planted alongside, no fruit will set no matter how many years you wait.
In Korea Nationwide
It grows wild in mountains throughout the country. For cultivation, the known areas are Gwangyang and Gurye in South Jeolla, Hadong in South Gyeongsang, and the mountain areas of Gangwon and North Gyeongsang.
How to grow
- Light
- Five to six hours of sun. It likes its roots shaded and its growing tips in the light.
- Soil and depth
- Free-draining soil with plenty of leaf mold, slightly acidic at pH 5.5-6.5. The roots are shallow, so it suffers quickly when dry.
- Spacing
- Three to four meters apart in open ground, with a pergola or wire frame to climb. In a container, at least 50 cm across with a 2 m support.
- Watering
- Shallow roots make it drought-sensitive. Check the surface morning and evening through summer and mulch the base with straw or wood chips.
- Feeding
- Organic fertilizer in March and June. Too much nitrogen gives you long vine and few flowers.
- Harvest
- Pick in September or October, just before the fruit softens. Frost sweetens it as the old text says, but a few days ripening indoors after picking does the same job.
What makes the difference. The plant is dioecious, so female vines alone will never fruit. Plant one male for every three or four females. In winter, cut back the canes that fruited last season to bring on new ones.
Why this one is harder. The vine runs past 5 m and needs a sturdy frame, and because male and female plants are separate you need at least two plants before you see any fruit.
Common problems
- Bacterial canker You will see Red ooze seeping from the trunk in early spring and wilting leaves What to do Cut out and burn infected wood and disinfect the cuts. Sterilize your pruning tools too
- Leafroller caterpillars You will see Leaves rolled and stuck shut with a caterpillar inside What to do Pick off the rolled leaves entirely and scrape away egg masses
- Scale insects You will see White shells on older vines and sticky leaves What to do Scrub them off with a toothbrush and apply horticultural oil in winter
This page describes how a crop is grown and used. It does not claim health effects for any food, nor is it intended to prevent or treat disease. Component and study notes are references only and do not mean the same result occurs in people. Consult a medical professional about health concerns.
Health Benefits
What the old text says. The Donguibogam enters the fruit in its fruit section as 獼猴桃, mihudo, the darae that grows wild on Korean mountainsides. It records the fruit as cold in nature, sour and sweet in taste and free of toxicity, describes a vine that climbs trees in the mountains bearing green fruit, flat and large, and notes that it is bitingly astringent at first and turns sweet only after a frost. The one other name the entry gives is 藤梨, deungni. The kiwifruit sold in shops is a different species that arrived later. This is a record from a seventeenth-century medical text, not a modern medical judgement.
Extract research - a different condition from the fresh fruit. These were studies on an extract, which is not the same condition as eating a fruit as food. Trials reported in Korea examined allergy-related markers using a standardized extract of Actinidia arguta. Those results cannot be carried across to eating the fresh fruit picked from the vine.
Nutrition
- Vitamin C (About 100 mg per 100 g) — A water-soluble vitamin common in fruit
- Actinidin (A protein-digesting enzyme) — The enzyme that tenderises meat, and the main allergen protein of the genus
- Potassium (About 300 mg per 100 g) — A mineral common in fruit
- Polyphenols and chlorophyll (The pigments of skin and flesh) — The pigments that colour the flesh green
Vitamin C Hardy kiwi has been reported at around 100 mg of vitamin C per 100 g, higher than most citrus. Since you eat it unpeeled, what sits in and near the skin comes along too. It is heat-sensitive, so cooking it down into jam loses a good share of it.
Actinidin The fruit contains actinidin, a protein-digesting enzyme. That is why grating it into a marinade tenderizes meat. The same property means fresh fruit stirred into a gelatin dessert will keep it from setting. Actinidin is also the protein identified as the main allergen of this genus, so stop eating if the mouth itches or swells.
Potassium and fiber Potassium runs around 300 mg per 100 g, high for a fruit. Eating the skin brings the fiber with it. The fruit are small enough that you tend to eat a lot of them in one sitting, so the totals add up quickly.
Pairings
○ Meat marinades — Grated into bulgogi or galbi marinade, the actinidin tenderizes the meat. Keep the marinating time short, though, since past half an hour the surface turns mushy. It works in place of Korean pear, with more acidity.
○ Yogurt and honey — Halved over yogurt with a drizzle of honey, the tartness settles into balance. The fruit is small enough that there is essentially no prep. Fully ripe ones are sweet enough to skip the honey.
○ Darae shoots as namul — The young spring shoots, blanched and dressed, make a tender mountain green. It means harvesting leaves and fruit from the same vine in different seasons. Rinse them in cold water after blanching to draw out the astringency before dressing.
△ Itching or swelling in the mouth — stop right there — Actinidin is the main allergen protein of Actinidia fruit, green kiwifruit included, and hardy kiwi belongs to the same genus. If the lips, tongue or throat itch or swell while eating, or hives, stomach pain or vomiting follow, stop at once. Trouble breathing or a swelling face calls for emergency care without delay. People who have reacted to latex gloves are known to react to fruit of this genus as well, so start with one or two berries, and start a child on a very small amount.
△ Silver vine — not gathered alongside hardy kiwi — Silver vine (Actinidia polygama) grows on the same slopes and is a different species. Around flowering time part of the upper leaf surface turns white as though painted, the clearest field mark, and its fruit has a pointed tip and a sharply acrid taste. Hardy kiwi fruit is round-tipped and its leaves do not whiten. Leave the fruit of any whitened vine where it is, do not eat silver vine fruit fresh, and leave alone any vine you cannot identify with confidence.
Varieties
- Darae (Sapling) — The wild vine of Korean hills. Small, hairless fruit.
- Improved darae selections (Sapling) — A cultivated improvement on darae. Larger fruit and an even harvest.
- Fuzzy kiwi (Sapling) — A different species. Hairy and far larger.
- Silver vine (Sapling) — A wild relative. The fruit carries a pungent heat and is not for eating fresh.
Source: Donguibogam, Fruit Section (獮猴桃) · Rural Development Administration (nongsaro.go.kr)