Kiwis are very healthy and tasty fruits. By going to the supermarket, you have surely been able to distinguish two different types: green and yellow. But did you know that there are many other varieties of kiwis?
While it is true that all types of these fruits tend to have the pulp one of these two colors, there are many other differences: size, flavor, skin, etc. If you want to know more, I recommend that you continue reading, because we will talk about the most popular varieties of kiwi.
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How many varieties of kiwi are there?
The kiwi, scientifically known as Delicious actinide, originates from China, but is mainly grown in New Zealand. It belongs to the genus Actinidia and, to date, the most famous cultivars in the world are Bruno and Hayward. In 1983, the Guangxi Botanical Institute of China managed to classify a total of 5 varieties, 53 species and 15 different forms, all included in this genus.
At the botanical level, three varieties of kiwi can be distinguished: Chinensis, hedges and hispida. It must be said that they can also be distinguished by their sex. Therefore the female kiwi They are:
- abbe
- Monty
- Hayward
- Bruno
- Allison
- Kramer
- Greensil
- grace
- Tewi
- vincent
- elm wood
- jones
Regarding the male varieties of kiwithese are:
- M-3
- Matua
- Tomuri
- M51
- M52
- M54
- M56
- self
- clan leader
The most famous varieties of kiwi
As is often the case, there are varieties of kiwi that are much better known than others. let’s see what they are among the most popular in the world:
- Grace: Let’s start with the variety known as Gracie. It is distinguished by its skin, which has a greenish-brown color with hair. The pulp, like in most kiwis, is green in color and has a slightly sour taste.
- Jones: This variety has a slightly more oval shape than the others. Its pulp is quite shiny and its taste is a little sweet and sour.
- Kiwifruit 16: It is a medium sized kiwi that comes from the Yellow Kiwi. Thus, the pulp is not green, but yellow. This fruit has very high levels of iron and vitamins C and E.
- Kiwi A 19: While it is true that this variety is very similar to the Yellow Kiwi, there is one fundamental difference. A 19 is more acidic and much smaller. Despite this, the cultivation of this variety has become very popular in New Zealand.
- Kiwi Sun Gold: It is still a variety of the Yellow Kiwi. The skin of Sun Gold is hairless and the taste of the pulp is sour. It is a widely grown variety in New Zealand.
- Kiwi Jin Tao: Although it also comes from the Yellow Kiwi, this variety is closer to the Hort Kiwi. Therefore, it is not surprising that its pulp is yellow, but the fruit itself is sweeter and smaller.
- Kiwi Soréli: It is another variety of the Yellow Kiwi. However, it stands out for its high resistance to low temperatures. Its shell is smooth and hairless. They grow it mainly in Italy.
- Kiwi JB Gold or Kiwi Kiss: Finally, we have the Kiwi JB Gold, also known as Kiwi Kiss. It is another variant of the Yellow Kiwi, but it exceeds it in size. It was first cultivated in New Zealand.
The 9 Most Popular Kiwi Varieties in Spain
In the case of Spain, Hayward cultivars are the most popular. Some varieties of this type were introduced later, such as the Top Star, Hayward K and Hayward 8 clones, which were first collected in other countries. Although there are many varieties of kiwi, we are going to focus on the 9 most famous of the Iberian Peninsula:
- Green kiwi: It is the most famous all over the world. It stands out for its sweet taste with a touch of acidity. Additionally, it has very high levels of vitamin C. In some places it is also known as Kiwi Zespri.
- Kiwi Hayward: This one is a little bigger than the previous one. Its shell is brown and covered with small hairs. The pulp of this kiwi is very juicy and green. Properly stored, this variety can last up to six months.
- Kiwi Hayward clone 8: Another very popular kiwi in Spain is the Hayward 8 clone. It is a hybrid created in Greece. The advantages of this variety are that it is very resistant to low temperatures and its ripening process is faster than in other types of kiwi.
- Kiwi Top Star: It is a modification of the Hayward variety. Its size is medium and its main characteristic is that its carapace has no hair.
- Summer kiwi: The variety known as Summer Kiwi is also very popular in the Iberian country. It is the result of various crosses between various species of kiwi. The taste of this one is much sweeter compared to others. In addition, it weighs less and the harvest time is much shorter. For this reason, it is very advantageous economically for the people who cultivate it.
- Kiwi Abbott: The variety called Abbot is a medium sized kiwi. This usually keeps a little longer than other types of this fruit.
- Kiwi Bruno: Although it is among the 9 most popular kiwi varieties in Spain, Bruno is the one with the least commercial impact of all. That is to say: It consumes much less. However, this type has a higher concentration of vitamin C than most kiwis on this list.
- Yellow kiwi: The scientific name for the yellow kiwi is Actinidia Chinensis. This variety is much sweeter than the Green Kiwi and does not have the typical sour taste of this fruit. Also, as the name suggests, the pulp is yellow, not green. It is the second most cultivated kiwi species in the world. You can read more about the properties of Yellow Kiwi here.
- Kiwi Monty: Finally, we have to highlight the Kiwi Monty. It is small in size and has a sweet flavor, but not as much as the Yellow Kiwi, as it retains some of that sour touch of the green variety.
Now that you know which are the most famous varieties of kiwifruit in the world, more than one certainly looks familiar to you. My favorite is definitely the Yellow Kiwi. And yours?