Kiwi – females thriving, males died off every winter
i’m going to remove the females and transplant as vines
and in their place, more valiant grapes, hopefully from cuttings

if anyone has any pruning tips for valiant’s, that would be appreciated
mine are 3rd year, fan trained

“The medicinal values of fruits have long been appreciated for their therapeutic effect on cardiovascular diseases; they are known to reduce blood pressure and there are claims of curative effects for malaria and gastrointestinal diseases. Plekanova and Streltsyna (1993) report exceptionally high vitamin C content, ranging from 50-70 mg/100 gm fresh weight. Fruits are also high in anthocyanins and phenolic compounds which provide the health benefits due to antioxidant properties. Due to the high stability of the dark-red pigments when processed, these fruits are very suitable for making juice as well as providing a good source of food coloring for other products”

To the lady asking about ants, try diatomaceious earth (you can find it at greenhouses and in Canadian Tire) – sprinkle it around, let the ants eat it and haul it back to their hill and you won’t see them again. We used it inside a travel trailer and got rid of hundreds of ants that way who had made a home in the electrical wiring pathways in the ceiling.

I’m in northern Alberta (Peace River) with an extensive edible urban yard. Last year I harvested 2 gallons of Valiant grapes off my 5 year old vine (I moved it late in 2008 so it didn’t produce as well as it had the previous two years. I also harvested 5 gallons off my sister’s grape vine. it’s 7 years old but in an excellent location – good drainage, excellent protection about 2 feet from house foundation and superior sun. She directs rainwater to it as the ground slopes away from the house for good drainage. Neither get any more extra winter protection than heaping snow over them. They both benefit from the warming effects of being near concrete sidewalks and drives. Last year I had a bit of whitefly because I let it get water-stressed. Daily water hosings got rid of the infestation.

As for my other fruit/nut bearing trees and bushes, I’m a bit of a fanatic. I have several blueberry bushes, three honeyberry and two haskaps, three kiwi vines (2 female & 1 male), a Golden pear, a Norland apple , two cherry trees (one Evans, a sour pie cherry and one Sweetheart), an elderberry tree, an almost dead rowan (mountain ash) and a very young one, two black and one red currant bushes, a baby gooseberry bush (we’ll see how it fares, it’s new), a Pembina plum, a hazelnut and a butternut (both planted 2009), a huge chokecherry bush, a aging pincherry and three volunteer pincherry saplings and a raspberry thicket. I also have a rhubarb – not sure what kind but it’s juicy and red.

You’ll notice a lack of strawberries. I’ve found them a lot of work and space for little berry. My local market garden grow luscious berries which I buy in bulk and freeze. I do a lot of freezing, preserving, and drying as well as wildcrafting gallons of saskatoons and more chokecherries (great wine).

This year I’ll plant an apricot, a Trebizond Date and some more nut trees if I can find them (Grimos Nuts by mail order, I think). I’d also like some Josta berries and some cranberries but have run out of room. Fortunately I’ve purchased some rural property this winter so will be planning a whole new forest soon.