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About Appeal tribune. (Silverton, Or.) 1999-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 5, 2018)
SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM ܂ WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2018 ܂ 3A Taking mystery out of kiwi harvest Gardening Carol Savonen Guest columnist Question: I grow kiwis at home. This is the first year the female vines have fruit and I’m so excited. But I realize I don’t know when to pick them or how to tell when they are ripe. Help?! Answer: It can be a little baffling to know when to harvest kiwifruits in the fall. Commercial kiwifruit orchardists use a tool that measures the amount of sug- ar in a fruit, called a refractometer. When the sugar in the fruit reaches a certain level, they harvest the fruit for market. Since these tools cost about $150, most home gardeners don’t have one. Here are some guidelines for the tim- ing of harvest of both hardy and fuzzy kiwifruits without the use of fancy equipment, from Growing Kiwifruit, OSU Extension’s publication, available online: https://catalog.extension.ore- gonstate.edu/sites/catalog/files/pro- ject/pdf/pnw507.pdf Hardy Kiwifruit These grape-sized fruits develop the best flavor if they are vine-ripened, but they don’t store well this way. To be able to store them, pick the fruit while still hard, store them in the refrigerator, and then bring them to room temperature to ripen. To determine when to pick hardy ki- wifruits, cut open a fruit. If the seeds are black, the fruit is ready to be picked. In the Willamette Valley, fruit are usually ready to be harvested in mid-Septem- ber. At this stage, they will still be hard and green. Hardy kiwifruits will tolerate light frost. Store hardy kiwifruit in vented plas- tic bags in the refrigerator for up to 2 months. To ripen them, take them out of the fridge and place them in a vented plastic bag with a banana or apple. Keep them at room temperature until they are soft, hence ripe. They can be left on the vine to ripen. Most varieties will develop a red blush on the skin surface when they vine rip- en. Once they are soft, however, they will not last long in the fridge. So if you want a sustained supply of ripe kiwis, it Hayward kiwifruit is sorted at Venida Packing Company in Exeter, Calif. The company was the first packing house to commercially pack Hayward kiwifruit in North America in the late 1970s. PHOTOS BY USA TODAY NETWORK might be best to pick most of them early, then bring them out from the fridge in small batches to ripen them. Fuzzy Kiwifruit These larger, fuzzier cousins of the hardy kiwifruit do not ripen on the vine in Oregon. Leave them on the vine as long as possible for the fruit to be phys- iologically ready to ripen off the vine. As with hardy kiwis, the seeds need to be black, which normally happens around early November, depending on the sea- son. Fuzzy kiwifruit vines will tolerate light frost but harvest your fruit before a hard freeze occurs. Store and ripen fuzzy kiwis the same way as with the hardy—in the refrigerator or cold ga- rage. The difference is, fuzzy kiwifruits will keep in a cold environment for about 4 to 6 months, depending on the temperature of the fridge. A few more hints for successful har- vesting and storage of both types of ki- wifruit include: ܂ Handle kiwifruit with care, as they bruise easily. Damaged fruit does not store well. ܂ Chill fruit as quickly as possible af- ter picking them. The colder the temper- ature, the longer they keep. Kiwifruits store better at high humidity. ܂ Avoid exposing stored kiwifruit to other ripening fruit, which gives off eth- ylene gas, a plant hormone that hastens the ripening process. FOR A N L L E A F W KU Six Marion students graduate from Oregon Connections Academy Kiwifruit doubles sit for sale at farmers market. The fuzzy brown, egg-looking fruit with bright green flesh is named for its resemblance to the kiwi, New Zealand’s national bird. BO TA Z122RKW-42 • 21.5 Gross HP , Gasoline, Air-Cooled V-Twin Engine • 42” Pro Commercial Mower Deck • Hydro-Gear™ Transmission † $0 DOWN, 0% A.P.R. FINANCING FOR UP TO 60* MONTHS ON SELECT NEW KUBOTAS! BX2380 WITH LA344 LOADER • 23 Gross HP , 3-Cylinder Kubota Diesel Engine • 4WD with Rear Differential Lock Standard • Category I, 3-Point Hitch • Performance-Matched Implements Available † Briannah Cline of Silverton was one of six Marion County students who finished their high school education requirements over the summer months with Oregon Connections Academy. PHOTO COURTESY OF OREGON CONNECTIONS ACADEMY Lee Clarkson Salem Statesman Journal USA TODAY NETWORK Oregon Connections Academy an- nounced that 45 students finished their high school education requirements over the summer, including six from Marion County. The summer graduates boosted Ore- gon Connections Academy's Class of 2018 to 410 members. A summer com- mencement ceremony was held recent- ly at the Oregon Garden in Silverton. Here are the Marion County summer graduates: ܂ Jacob Blocker, Stayton ܂ David Borisyuk, Keizer ܂ Briannah Cline, Silverton ܂ Catherine Duvall, Stayton ܂ Taylor McKern, Salem ܂ Kelsina Snegirev, Silverton Oregon Connections Academy's Class of 2018 accounted for nearly $1 million in scholarship awards, accord- ing to a release. For more information, go to www.O- regonConnectionsAcademy.com or call 800-382-6010. OVS MCMINNVILLE 2700 ST. JOSEPH RD. 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