I am assuming you have male and female plants? How close are the plants?

This variety is supposed to fruit without having two plants.

From Edible Landscaping, "Issai has long fruits @ 1.5". Issai will produce one year after planting. Sets fruits without a male, but sets more with one. Not as vigorous as most arguta types, but similar in most respects. Less pruning required because of its early fruiting and spur type growth. Plant 8' apart on 6' trellis. Zones 6-9."

Cindy

Here is a link that might be useful: Edible Landscaping

EL is a little optimistic. They should have said *can* produce one year after planting. Not having a male also may make it take longer. Since you got a few flowers this year next year could be the year you finally get some fruits.

Scott

i had one a few years ago, it died over its 2nd winter in zone 5, i never got fruit from it. i heard from someone that it is not a very consistant producer without a male, but i dont know how true that is. i have 2 year old arctic kiwis right now with a few fruits, but they produce faster than argutas.

Issai is not THAT self-fertile. That could be the problem.

Also it doesn't taste that great. The other cultivars all taste better and it's not a hassle to have a male at all since you can keep the male growing up some random tree/bush/fence nearby whatever pruned to 10-20% of the the female size since you just need the male for some flowers, not to bear fruit.

I planted an Issai last spring, along with 3 other females (49er, Geneva, and Ken's Red) and one male. It immediately had around a dozen flowers, but only 1 fruit set. Something ate it when it was getting close to ripe, so I haven't been able to taste it yet. None of the other 4 have flowered, last year or this. The Issai flowered much more heavily this year, but most were wiped out by the cold snap. Only a few parts of the plant closed to the stone retaining wall it is growing against made it. It's now got a few dozen open flowers. Soon I'll see how the set is this year with no male pollinator.

My advice would be to get a male if you want fruit. The year before my male first flowered my Issai had hundreds of blossoms and not one produced a fruit. The next year with pollination almost every single one fruited.

Thanks for all of the responses.

Looks like that is what I'll have to do - get a male plant.

Where would be a good place to purchase one of them? I bought the Issai locally.

Thank you again.

Cindy

Given how warm it is now, you'll want a place that ships potted plants. I would suggest RollingRiver, but they are out of the males. Another top choice would be WhitmanFarms. Other options would be Raintree and Ediblelandscaping.

Thank you, Bob, for that information!

Is this a plant that nurseries could shipped in the fall or is it only shipped in the spring?

Cindy

I think that would depend on the nursery. Many only ship in the spring. Assuming you can get a potted one (not bare root) you should be able to plant now. I've done so successfully in June/July for gooseberries, currants, and blueberries (haven't tried with kiwi). Depending on your weather, it may take a bit of care early on (watering and maybe some shade-cloth if you plant it in full sun).

Cindy, Edible Landscaping should be able to get you a male this time of year since they sell potted plants. Potted plants can be planted year-round. July/August are best avoided since that weather can fry plants but most other months work.

Scott

Thanks for all of the information.

Greatly appreciated.

I will definitely be contacting Edible Landscaping.

Cindy

When you go to buy an assai kiwi how do you know if you have a male or female plant?

Roger,

Issai is a female variety only.

There are no male Issai plants -- all are female. If you'd like a compatible male pollinator, Flowercloud (available at Burnt Ridge and One Green World) is supposed to be a good match.

To update my post from 2 years ago, all 5 of the kiwi I listed above (I've also added more, but they are too young) are flowering. The first blooms just opened yesterday and each vine has quite a few (except 49er, which has only a few dozen flowers). Last year I got about half a pint of Issai, but I'm hoping for a lot more this year.

Thank you I'll try to get a Flower Cloud Kiwi next spring.

keep us posted bob! I would like to follow this and see how your ken's red turn out. I have it here also but it is a little too tender here in my climate.Please take pics and post them!!!

Here's a pic of the kiwi planting I started in 2011. The hardy kiwi are along the right hand side, starting on the right with Geneva, followed by Ken's Red, the male (74-32), Issai, and 49er (in the far background on the left).

I also have a few other plants in the picture:
- a bean trellis right in front of the Kiwis.
-Hostas and Lilly (from the previous owners) as a mulch in between the two trellis
-Court Pendu Plat apple, sharing the far-right Kiwi post
-a row of peaches on the left of the left
-a potted apricot next to the bean trellis on one end and a Gold Dust peach on the other.
-in front of the 49er, there are Black Velvet gooseberries and Primus white curants, which just appear as blobs of green in this pic.

I pruned pretty heavily this spring, but looking at the above picture you would think I left them growing wild. Maybe I need to prune with an even heavier hand...

Here's the Ken's Red, between the two posts.

Ken's Red flowers.

Issai is the only one who's flowers haven't opened up.

After closely examining the flowers for the picture, I'm getting a bit worried that my male isn't really a male. My understanding that I shouldn't see the fruit-like projection in the middle from male flowers. I'll have to take a closer look to make sure it is really coming from the male vine- it is definitely possible that it is coming from a female which curved around. Here's a pic.

Yes that's a female Bob

Bob, hopefully you can get some branches of flowering males somewhere and get fruit this year!
My male vine died to the ground last year due to trunk damage but some of my females mysteriously set fruit though it was light. The only thing I could think of somehow viable pollen from my kolomikta male was somehow still floating around on insects or something and did the trick.I had saved a few kiwis and was going to plant the seeds but my wife threw them out accidentally:(
Tyler we had a big freeze here last week and I was able to save some of my kiwis using the sprinkler trick you used a few years ago!!! That was an awesome tip!!!

Glenn glad to hear that worked for you :)

Is this Issai Kiwi? http://postimg.org/image/wfavz546d/

I have fruit!!

After seven years I finally had lots of flowers in the spring and now I have little tiny fruit. Something is eating them (probably squirrels) and today blossom bags are being placed around what is left.

Hopefully, I'll get to taste one this year.

Cindy