Why is kiwi fruit called kiwi? The truth is that it is a bird!

Do you know which fruit is named after both a monkey and a bird ? The answer is the kiwi fruit that everyone is familiar with!

kiwi

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

When it comes to kiwifruit and kiwifruit, many people cannot tell them apart. Although kiwifruit is an imported fruit, China is actually the undoubted hometown of kiwifruit .

The story of kiwi fruit dates back to a day in 1904 , when a New Zealand female teacher named Isabel came to Yichang, Hubei, China, tasted a wild fruit, and then brought its seeds back to her country, where she cultivated it into a specialty product of New Zealand, which was sold well at home and abroad, turning the Chinese kiwi fruit into an exotic fruit.

How kiwi fruit became kiwi fruit is also a wonderful story. Please continue reading.

Part 1

Good name, sales off work early

In fact, there are poems about kiwi fruit in my country very early, such as "The Book of Songs·Huifeng·Changchu", in which "Changchu" was confirmed as the name of "kiwi fruit" in the Tang Dynasty's "Compendium of Materia Medica". In the Tang Dynasty, Cen Shen wrote in "Taibai Dongxi Zhang Laoshe Immediately, Sent to My Brothers and Nephews": "There is a kiwi fruit rack on the well rail in the courtyard. The rice in the stone spring is fragrant, and the wine jar is opened in a new trough." All these show that my country has been planting kiwi fruit for thousands of years.

Pharmacologist Kou Zongshi wrote in "Bencao Yanyi": "Kiwi fruit mostly grows on trees...in the mountains it is mostly eaten by monkeys." Li Shizhen recorded in "Compendium of Materia Medica": "Its shape is like a pear, its color is like a peach, and monkeys like to eat it, so it has various names." This is the origin of the name of kiwi fruit.

However, the names of kiwifruit vary from region to region, such as vine pear, sheep peach vine, sheep peach, carambola, etc. It is difficult to associate these names with food. In addition, because the sour taste of kiwifruit is similar to vinegar, Westerners call it "Yichang gooseberry" or "Chinese gooseberry", which makes people lose their appetite.

kiwi

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

In New Zealand, sellers wanted to sell kiwi fruit overseas, but the name "Chinese gooseberry" was not pleasant to the ear and difficult to sell. So someone thought of New Zealand's national bird, the kiwi , and the two birds do look a bit similar, so they gave Chinese gooseberry a new name, called "Kiwi fruit" .

Kiwi, the national bird of New Zealand

Image source: Fineartamerica

After "Kiwi fruit" returned to China, some merchants transliterated "Kiwi fruit" into "kiwi fruit" for the convenience of sales. It was well received by people as soon as it was launched on the market. The sales staff were sold out as soon as they opened the packages, so they had to leave work early.

Part 2

Kiwifruit's popularity in China

Plants of the genus Actinidia are mainly vines, and the fruits they bear are edible and sweet and sour. There are many varieties of kiwifruit in China. According to statistics from Flora of China, there are currently 54 species of Actinidia in the world, 52 of which are in China, of which 44 are unique to China .

Various kinds of kiwi fruit

Image source: Wikipedia

The Chinese kiwifruit has become the leader of the kiwifruit family on the market due to its large fruit. Most of the kiwifruit sold on the market are descendants of the Chinese kiwifruit.

In addition, the soft-fleshed kiwifruit A. arguta produced in the north has also become a rising star. (The cultivation of dog-fleshed kiwifruit is still relatively small)

The skin of the dog-shaped kiwi fruit is smooth, and its small size is rich in vitamin C.

Image source: PPBC

The soft-fruited kiwifruit is mini in shape, smooth and hairless, green like jasper, and easy to eat.

Image source: PPBC

At the same time, the hairy kiwifruit A. eriantha is high in vitamin C and easy to peel, which also attracts diners' attention.

The hairy kiwi fruit looks like a small winter melon wearing a white down jacket

Image source: PPBC

The relatives of kiwi fruit that have lived in the mountains for a long time have brought rich taste buds experience to the gluttonous diners. But in order to make the relatives bear fruit, people have to hold various blind date activities for them. What is this operation?

Part 3

“Little Monkey” also wants to find a partner?

“As the saying goes, if you plant a fruit tree like apple, citrus, grape, etc., they will produce abundant fruits in due course.

But kiwifruit is different. You cannot harvest the fruit by planting only one plant because kiwifruit is a functionally dioecious plant . That is, although the flowers of the female plant are complete flowers with male and female organs in structure, the stamens are aborted and do not produce viable pollen; while the pistils of the male plant's flowers are aborted and do not form ovules.

Actinidia chinensis male plant

Image source: PPBC

In short: male plants only have stamens and can produce pollen; although female plants have stamens and pistils, the stamens are sterile and cannot produce pollen.

Functional female flowers of Actinidia chinensis

Image source: PPBC

Now that we know that they are dioecious, should we arrange a blind date for them right away?

Don't be in a hurry. Studies have shown that kiwifruit has at least 6 different sexual phenotypes: completely hermaphroditic plants (flowers have stamens and pistils, and the stamens are fertile), female plants (flowers have stamens, but the pollen is not viable), incomplete female plants (flowers have stamens, and some flowers have viable pollen), fruit-bearing male plants (a plant has both male and hermaphroditic flowers), male plants (only male flowers, fertile) and neutral plants (flowers look like male flowers but have no viable pollen).

With such a complex gender phenotype, the matchmaker said directly: "If we can get along, then get along. Whoever you love, I don't care."

Part 4

How to choose kiwi?

As mentioned above, kiwifruit was introduced overseas and then improved and cultivated, and then brought back to China. As foreign "kiwifruit" became popular in China, local kiwifruit was unwilling to lag behind and began to catch up. With the continuous innovation of kiwifruit breeding technology, nearly 20 excellent varieties with independent intellectual property rights have been bred, including "Jinyan", "Hongyang", "Jintao", "Guichang", etc., including red heart kiwifruit, yellow heart kiwifruit, green heart kiwifruit, etc.

Red kiwifruit is the sweetest and has the highest vitamin C content

Image source: yaldafresh

Green-heart kiwifruit is the largest, harder, more acidic, rich in vitamins, high in dietary fiber, and has good storage stability.

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

Yellow and soft, sweet and sour

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

These kiwi fruits have different appearances and tastes, which can be summarized as: "The red heart is sweet, the yellow heart is fragrant, and the green heart can be stored in the refrigerator."

Now that we have come to this, some people may ask, what is the storage capacity of kiwi fruit?

In fact, although there is a saying that kiwifruit is "soft in seven days, rotten in ten days, and half of it will go bad if not eaten in half a month" at room temperature, if it is not damaged or stimulated by ethylene and is directly put into cold storage after picking, it is possible to have "long-lived" kiwifruit that will not mature or rot for a long time.

For example, the green-fleshed kiwifruit "Hayward" from New Zealand can be stored for 6 to 8 months at the optimal storage temperature of around 2°C.

Shelf-stable kiwifruit 'Hayward'

Image source: ExportersIndia

So, facing the dazzling array of kiwifruit varieties on the market, how do you choose kiwifruit that is durable and delicious? Here are a few practical tips to share with you:

At first glance , fruits that are plump, without damage or spots are of good quality, and kiwi fruits with a slightly darker color and a skin close to yellowish-brown are sweeter.

The yellow-brown exterior contains delicious fruits

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

Second , smell the kiwi fruit, which has a natural sweet fruity aroma. If the fruit has no aroma, it means that it is not mature enough, tastes sour and astringent, and is not suitable for purchase and consumption.

The placenta of green-heart kiwifruit is relatively large

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

After three pinches , the kiwi fruit is just the right hardness and maturity, and its hardness feels like pinching your earlobe with your fingers.

The placenta of yellow-heart kiwifruit is relatively small

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

Friendly reminder to foodies: the riper the kiwi is, the better it is. The sugar content of overripe kiwis decreases instead of increases, and they also produce an alcoholic taste, affecting the taste .

Finally, here are some tips for peeling kiwis. You can enjoy the kiwi fruit without peeling it. An iron spoon can help you quickly enjoy the delicious kiwi fruit.

I hope everyone can eat sweet kiwi fruit.

Both horizontal and vertical cutting are possible

Image source: Photographed by Guo Yanqing

References:

[1] Wang Lianrun, Wan Hong, Tao Bang, Li Kunming, Chen Xia, Sha Yucang, Ding Renzhan. Investigation of wild kiwifruit resources and genetic diversity in Yunnan [J/OL]. Journal of Plant Genetic Resources: 1-14 [2022-07-04].

[2] Shang Lihong. Preliminary report on the development status of Actinidia arguta industry in Liaoning Province[J]. New Agriculture, 2022(11):22-23.

[3] Ding Yuping, Wang Mengze, Liu Yuxin, NV Skripchenko, Liu Dejiang. Research progress on the development and utilization of Actinidia arguta products [J/OL]. Food and Fermentation Industries: 1-9 [2022-07-04].

[4] Li Hongli, Wang Peng, Li Xue, Tao Shuangyong, Sun Qiang, Pang Hongyang, Zhang Yuexin, Sun Xianghui. Genetic diversity of phenotypic traits of wild Actinidia arguta germplasm resources in Heilongjiang Province[J]. Journal of Economic Forestry Research, 2022, 40(01): 150-158.

[5] Zhou Mengqi, Chen Changlin, Meng Jiajun, Liu Yijun, Deng Sha, Lv Yuanping. Effect of ethylene slow-release agent on the quality of Xuxiang kiwifruit[J]. Food Industry, 2022, 43(01): 176-180.

[6] Hu Guangming, Xia Wenjuan, Zheng Li, Rao Hangkong, Lei Ming, Wang Jian, Zhao Tingting, Li Zuozhou, Zhong Caihong. Investigation of wild kiwifruit germplasm resources and analysis of fruit genetic diversity in Tongshan County, Hubei Province [J]. Journal of Plant Sciences, 2021, 39(06): 620-631.

[7] Ding Renzhan, Li Kunming, Su Jun, Chen Xia, Li Xinwei. Comparison of the research characteristics and evolution of kiwifruit in China and abroad based on knowledge graph[J]. Chinese Fruit Trees, 2021(12):27-34.

[8] He Peng, Liu Qiang, Guo Yaohui. Survey and analysis report on kiwifruit market and industry in my country[J]. Agricultural Products Market, 2021(21):46-48.

Produced by: Science Popularization China

Produced by: Guo Yanqing (Shanghai Urban Wilderness Studio) Liu Lumei (Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences)

Producer: China Science Expo

Reviewer: Yao Xiaohong (Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences)

Editor: Wang Tingting

The article only represents the author's views and does not represent the position of China Science Expo

This article was first published in China Science Expo (kepubolan)

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