435 Challenges Faced by Commercial Kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta Planch.) Production F. Debersaques, O. Mekers, J. Decorte K. Schoedl-Hummel and M.C. Van Labeke University of Natural Resources and Life Ghent University Sciences Vienna, Department of Crop Sciences Faculty of Bioscience Engineering Division of Viticulture and Pomology Gent Tulln Belgium Austria P. Latocha Warsaw University of Life Sciences - SGGW, Department of Environmental Protection Faculty of Horticulture, Biotechnology and Landscape Architecture Warsaw Poland Keywords: phenology, spring frost, greenhouse, pollination, quality Abstract Commercial production of the kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta) is relatively new in northern and western Europe. When introducing the kiwiberry to a region where fruit growers have no experience with Actinidia, many challenges have had to be overcome. For instance, the profile of the growers willing to invest in this crop is very diverse, the geographic regions have their specific climatic and soil conditions and, clearly, cultivation of the kiwiberry has very specific requirements. Therefore, proper technical advice is extremely important to obtain productive orchards. Although A. arguta is quite hardy, spring frosts are a major concern and a strongly limiting factor for yields in Europe. In recent initiatives, different cultivars with a commercial potential are being screened for frost tolerance, but currently, frost protection using sprinkler irrigation is in many cases the only and most effective system. However, growing kiwiberries in greenhouses appears to be a valuable and commercially viable alternative in The Netherlands and Belgium. The combination of a recommended fertilizer program and irrigation management, artificial pollination methods, appropriate pruning and good training has proven to be a very successful approach with yields as high as 18 t/ha five years after planting. Apart from establishing productive orchards, the successful introduction of kiwiberry as a novel fruit onto the market involves other important issues as well. Since the price of new fruits is usually rather high, growers have to realize that a product quality is essential for long-term success. Therefore, much attention must be paid to efficient grading and stringent quality control. INTRODUCTION The introduction of the kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta (Siebold et Zucc.) Planch. ex. Miq.) as a commercial crop is much more recent than that of the fuzzy kiwifruit A. deliciosa and A. chinensis. Although the growing requirements of these Actinidia species are largely comparable, particular differences offer unique opportunities for the kiwiberry in colder regions. Indeed, whereas the fuzzy kiwifruit cannot withstand temperatures below -15°C, while dormant, kiwiberry plants are resistant to temperatures below -30°C (Atkinson and MacRae, 2007; Kataoka et al., 2010; Latocha, 2007). Consequently, commercial outdoor growing of the green or yellow kiwifruit is not an option in the northern parts of Europe. In contrast, the cold-hardiness of the kiwiberry is an important advantage for growing Actinidia in these regions. Because their agricultural income is under pressure owing to overproduction and geopolitical reasons, fruit and vegetable growers in Europe looking for new, high efficiency crops are focusing their attention on the kiwiberry. Besides the yields, Proc. XIII IS on Kiwifruit Eds.: Hongwen Huang and Qiong Zhang Acta Hort. 1096, ISHS 2015