Fuzzy kiwifruit or hairy kiwi
Almost all the kiwis on the market belong to a few cultivars of hairy kiwi ( Actinidia deliciosa ): these are mainly: Hayward, Blake and Saanichton 12. They have a hairy and brown skin, with a bright green pulp. The Hayward cultivar was developed by Hayward Wright in Avondale, New Zealand, around 1924. It was initially grown in domestic gardens and commercial planting began only in 1940.
The Hayward is therefore the most commonly available cultivar in stores. It is a fruit of good size, oval shape and sweet taste.
Saanichton 12, from British Columbia, is a more square kiwi than Hayward, but despite being equally sweet it can have a leathery core.
The Blake type is able to self-pollinate itself, but it is smaller, more elongated and with a less pleasant taste.
Golden kiwifruit or gold kiwi
The gold kiwi ( Actinidia chinensis ) has a smooth skin, bronze (or gold), with a point where the beak stem is fixed. The color of the flesh varies from bright green to intense yellow.
This species has a sweeter and more aromatic taste, vaguely reminiscent of subtropical fruit.
The storage period is short and limits its commercial potential a lot.
The yellow fruit occupies a larger slice of the market and, being less hairy than the previous one, it is also attractive in consumption without peeling.
One of the most interesting varieties of gold kiwi has a red iris that circumscribes the center of the fruit, while the external pulp is yellow. It is a cultivar of the Chinese variety "yang hong", actually known as "red-ringed kiwifruit", patented as "EnzaRed ™".
The Hort16A is a variety of gold kiwifruit marketed throughout the world of which production is being reduced, due to significant losses in New Zealand between 2010 and 2013, inflicted by the bacterium PSA. A new type of golden kiwi, Gold3, has been declared more resistant to diseases and most producers have grafted onto this variety. Gold3, marketed by Zespri under the name of Sungold, is not as sweet as Hort16; on the other hand, it has a pinch of flavor and does not present itself with the beak-shaped stem fixing.
Kiwi berries or kiwi berries
Kiwi berries are a group of three species of kiwi: hardy kiwi or baby kiwifruit ( Actinidia arguta ), arctic beauty ( A. kolomikta ) and silver vine ( A. polygama ).
They are creepers and fast-growing, durable in their growing season. The fruits are berries of edible bunches, similar to the hairy kiwi for the taste and appearance, with a thin and smooth skin. They are known as: kiwi berry, baby kiwi, kiwi dessert, grape kiwi or kiwi cocktail.
The Issai cultivar is a hybrid of Actinidia arguta and A. polygama that can self-pollinate. Thanks to the considerable size of its fruit, its commercial value is growing; it is however less resistant than most of the kiwis belonging to the witty species.
