Well, that sounds like fun.
If you got them through the first winter, you can probably keep them
alive even easier now that they are bigger.
You will probably have to handle them the way I have to handle seedless
grapes up here. I prune them in the fall after the leaves are gone and
lay them on the ground so I can cover them. The trunks are going to get
thick and hard to bend so plan ahead. I train the grape trunks to be
close to the ground until I bend them up to the trellis 5 or 6 feet away
from where they grow out of the ground.
I have no idea how long the growing season has to be to get ripe Kiwi
fruit. You're into it now so you can tell us in a few years. Lets hope
at least one vine is male and at least one isn't.
I've often thought I might try growing some Kiwi fruit. I wouldn't dare
try the fuzzy kind but there are some small smooth skinned species that
can take some cold and a short season.

Steve in the Adirondacks

kettlink wrote:
In April last year I planted some seeds from an over ripe grocery store
fuzzy kiwi, they grew about a foot tall by the end of the year and
wintered over during last year's severe winter. This year I have 10
vines with main stems almost a half inch in diameter and which have
twined around a wooden trellis I built. They're about 15 feet tall,
very exotic looking with their hairy red stems and lush foliage. My
question is, last year I simply mulched the vines under a leaf pile to
protect them- but I didn't really care if they survived; this year I've
grown attached to them, but I have no idea how to get them through our
New York winters. Should I lay the trellis on the ground (with vines)
and mulch them with hay- maybe with a top-dressing of soil? Does anyone
have experience growing fuzzy kiwi fruit outdoors in climate zone
6-7? -Ken