THE CHINEGE GOOSEBERRY

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIV, Issue 740, 23 June 1923, Page 2

THE CHINEGE GOOSEBERRY

VALUABLE JAM FRUIT

AN INTERESTING DESCRIPTION

Some fine examples of Chinese gooseberries were exhibited by Mr J. W. L'oynton, S.M.. at a meeting of the plants brunch of the Acclimatisation Society in Auckland. They were grown by Mr Norman Gorton at Feilding. The fruit grows on a quickly-growing vino, actinidta chinensis, and is about the size of a passion fruit or a small hen egg. .It, is not in any way related to the gooseberry Mr Poyntou explaining it gels thut name from the goose-berry-like interior of Ihe fruits. Tho taste is like that of good favours mixed. The seeds are very small, and arranged in concentric brown layer around the centre, about half-way between the skin and centre lino. The skin is thin, the plant, relying on short, thin stiff hairs as a protection for its fruit stalks and leaves. The leaves arc arc large, nearly circular, about 4in. in diameter, and very beautiful. The tree is deciduous, and "the fruit envelops fully just, as tho leaves fall, the abundant brown fruits giving tho bare vine an odd appearance. The fruit makes splendid jam. it grows in Central and North China, and would come to maturity in any part of New Zealand. Mr l'oynton stated that, missionaries repeatedly "brought thf plants to this country but failed to get fruit. The reason for this wus that the vine has male and female flowers on separate plants. There must bo two of these plants together, or no fruit can be got. It requires knowledge to distinguish* the sexes. The short, still' hairs or bristles grow over tho male plant, but they are absent from the short stalk joining the leaf to the vine or twigon tho female. In growing plants from seed it has been found that male plants arc few compared with female seedlings. There may be 15 of 17 females to one male. The vine quickly cover-; rocks, clay banks or fence-.

It is a valuable plant, and should be extensively grown in New Zealand. Mr Hay ward Wright, Avondnle, reported to tho meeting thai he bad succeeded in raising <to male and 20 female, plants of the Chinese gooseberry at his Avondnle nurserv.