This is the 15th year of continuous daily publication for 365Caws. All things considered, it's likely it will be the last year as it is becoming increasingly difficult for me to find interesting material. However, I hope that I may have inspired someone to a greater curiosity about the natural world with my natural history posts, or encouraged a novice weaver or needleworker. If so, I've done what I set out to do.
Tuesday, June 22, 2021
Supposedly Self-Fertile
Day 252: Should Hardy Kiwi "Issai" prove to be self-fertile (as it is purported to be), I will have enough thumb-sized kiwi berries to feed an army. However, in the three or four years I have cultivated the vines, they have yet to produce a single fruit, nor have I been able to detect pollen on the anthers. In an attempt to solve this problem, I planted a pair (male and female) of an unspecified variety on the advice of a professional horticulturist. The idea is that the male will pollinate both its partner and Issai. That said, the new pair will not bloom this year, so if Issai produces any fruits at all, they will validate the claim that it is self-fertile. If I can detect pollen on any of its hundreds of flowers, you can trust that I'll be out there with my little paintbrush assisting with the natural process which so far has proved quite literally unfruitful.
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