''Actinidia'' is a genus of woody and, with a few exceptions,

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproducti ...

plants native to temperate eastern

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

, occurring throughout most of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic ...

, and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

, and extending north to southern areas of

Russian Far East The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admin ...

and south into

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

. The genus includes

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from tree ...

s growing to tall, and vigorous, strong-growing

vine A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themsel ...

s, growing up to in tree canopies. They mostly tolerate temperatures down to around , and some are much hardier. The

leaves A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

are alternate and simple, with a dentated margin and a long petiole. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanis ...

s are solitary or in axillary

cymes An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed ...

, usually white, with five small

petal Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usuall ...

s. Most of the species are

with separate male and female plants, but some are

monoecious Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy. Monoecy is ...

. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

is a large

berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, rasp ...

containing numerous small

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...

s; in most species, the fruit is edible. In particular, this genus is known for the species ''

Actinidia deliciosa ''Actinidia deliciosa'', the fuzzy kiwifruit, is a fruiting vine native to Southern China. Other species of ''Actinidia'' are also found in China and range east to Japan and north into southern areas of Russian Far East. This species grows natu ...

'', one of the most common cultivated

kiwifruit Kiwifruit (often shortened to kiwi in North American, British and continental European English) or Chinese gooseberry is the edible berry of several species of woody vines in the genus ''Actinidia''. The most common cultivar group of kiwif ...

s, and for the hardy ornamental '' A. kolomikta''.

Fossil record

Fossils of the extinct species ''A. faveolata'' are known from Europe and

Western Siberia Western Siberia or West Siberia (russian: Западная Сибирь, Zapadnaya Sibir'; kk, Батыс Сібір) is a part of the larger region of Siberia that is mostly located in the Russian Federation. It lies between the Ural region ...

extending from the Upper

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but t ...

to the

Early Pleistocene The Early Pleistocene is an unofficial sub-epoch in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, being the earliest division of the Pleistocene Epoch within the ongoing Quaternary Period. It is currently estimated to span the time ...

Species

The 40–60

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

of ''Actinidia'' include: *''

Actinidia arguta ''Actinidia arguta'', the hardy kiwi, is a perennial vine native to Japan, Korea, Northern China, and the Russian Far East. It produces a small kiwifruit without the hair-like fiber covering the outside, unlike most other species of the genus.< ...

'' – kokuwa, tara vine or hardy kiwi **''A. arguta'' var. ''cordifolia'' **''A. arguta'' var. ''giraldii'' **''A. arguta'' var. ''nervosa'' **''A. arguta'' var. ''purpurea'' *'' Actinidia arisanensis'' *'' Actinidia callosa'' **''A. callosa'' var. ''acuminata'' **''A. callosa'' var. ''discolor'' **''A. callosa'' var. ''ephippioides'' **''A. callosa'' var. ''formosana'' **''A. callosa'' var. ''henryi'' **''A. callosa'' var. ''strigillosa'' *'' Actinidia carnosifolia'' **''A. carnosifolia'' var. ''glaucescens'' *''

Actinidia chengkouensis ''Actinidia'' is a genus of woody plant, woody and, with a few exceptions, dioecious plants native to temperate eastern Asia, occurring throughout most of China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, and extending north to southern areas of Russian Far East ...

'' *''

Actinidia chinensis ''Actinidia chinensis'' (Planch.), known commercially as the golden kiwifruit, is a fruiting vine, native to China. It is one of some 40 related species of the genus ''Actinidia'', and closely related to ''Actinidia deliciosa'', which is the sou ...

'' **''A. chinensis'' var. ''hispida'' **''A. chinensis'' var. ''jinggangshanensis'' **''A. chinensis'' var. ''setosa'' *'' Actinidia chrysantha'' *'' Actinidia cinerascens'' **''A. cinerascens'' var. ''longipetiolata'' **''A. cinerascens'' var. ''tenuifolia'' *'' Actinidia cordifolia'' *''

Actinidia coriacea ''Actinidia'' is a genus of woody and, with a few exceptions, dioecious plants native to temperate eastern Asia, occurring throughout most of China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, and extending north to southern areas of Russian Far East and south ...

'' *'' Actinidia cylindrica'' **''A. cylindrica'' f. ''obtusifolia'' *''

'' – kiwifruit, mi hou tao or Chinese gooseberry *'' Actinidia eriantha'' *'' Actinidia farinosa'' *'' Actinidia fasciculoides'' **''A. fasciculoides'' var. ''cuneata'' **''A. fasciculoides'' var. ''orbiculata'' *†'' Actinidia faveolata'' *'' Actinidia fortunatii'' *'' Actinidia foveolata'' *'' Actinidia fulvicoma'' **''A. fulvicoma'' var. ''lanata'' ***''A. fulvicoma'' var. ''lanata'' f. ''arachnoidea'' ***''A. fulvicoma'' var. ''lanata'' f. ''hirsuta'' **''A. fulvicoma'' var. ''pachyphylla'' *†'' Actinidia germanica'' *'' Actinidia glauco-callosa-callosa'' *'' Actinidia glaucophylla'' **''A. glaucophylla'' var. ''asymmetrica'' **''A. glaucophylla'' var. ''robusta'' *'' Actinidia globosa'' *'' Actinidia gracilis'' *'' Actinidia grandiflora'' *'' Actinidia hemsleyana'' **''A. hemsleyana'' var. ''kengiana'' *'' Actinidia henryi'' **''A. henryi'' var. ''glabricaulis'' **''A. henryi'' var. ''polyodonta'' *'' Actinidia holotricha'' *'' Actinidia hubeiensis'' *'' Actinidia indochinensis'' *''

Actinidia kolomikta ''Actinidia kolomikta'', the kolomikta, miyamatatabi, variegated-leaf hardy kiwi, is a species of flowering plant in the family Actinidiaceae, native to temperate mixed forests of the Russian Far East, Korea, Japan and China (Eastern Asiatic Regi ...

'' *'' Actinidia laevissima'' *'' Actinidia lanceolata'' *'' Actinidia latifolia'' **''A. latifolia'' var. ''mollis'' *'' Actinidia leptophylla'' *'' Actinidia liangguangensis'' *'' Actinidia lijiangensis'' *'' Actinidia linguiensis'' *'' Actinidia longicarpa'' *'' Actinidia macrosperma'' **''A. macrosperma'' var. ''mumoides'' *'' Actinidia maloides'' **''A. maloides'' f. ''cordata'' *''

Actinidia melanandra ''Actinidia melanandra'', known as purple kiwi or red kiwi is a fruiting plant in the genus ''Actinidia'', which contains three commercially grown species of kiwifruit. The plant is native to parts of Hubei, Sichuan, and Yunnan Yunnan , ...

'' **''A. melanandra'' var. ''cretacea'' **''A. melanandra'' var. ''glabrescens'' **''A. melanandra'' var. ''kwangsiensis'' **''A. melanandra'' var. ''subconcolor'' *'' Actinidia melliana'' *'' Actinidia obovata'' *'' Actinidia oregonensis'' *'' Actinidia persicina'' *'' Actinidia pilosula'' *''

Actinidia polygama ''Actinidia polygama'' (also known as , silver vine, , and cat powder) is a species of kiwifruit in the Actinidiaceae family. It grows in the mountainous areas of Korea, Japan and China at elevations between . Silver vine can reach up to high ...

'' – silver vine *''

Actinidia purpurea ''Actinidia'' is a genus of woody and, with a few exceptions, dioecious plants native to temperate eastern Asia, occurring throughout most of China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, and extending north to southern areas of Russian Far East and south i ...

'' *'' Actinidia rongshuiensis'' *'' Actinidia rubricaulis'' **''A. rubricaulis'' var. ''coriacea'' *'' Actinidia rubus'' *'' Actinidia rudis'' *'' Actinidia rufa'' *'' Actinidia rufotricha'' **''A. rufotricha'' var. ''glomerata'' *'' Actinidia sabiaefolia'' *'' Actinidia sorbifolia'' *'' Actinidia stellatopilosa'' *'' Actinidia styracifolia'' *'' Actinidia suberifolia'' *''

Actinidia tetramera ''Actinidia tetramera'' (四萼猕猴桃 si e mi hou tao) is a species of flowering plant belonging to the family Actinidiaceae, that is native to Central China. It is a vigorous climber that can reach tall and broad. The ovate leaves are dark g ...

'' **''A. tetramera'' var. ''badongensis'' *'' Actinidia trichogyna'' *''

Actinidia ulmifolia ''Actinidia ulmifolia'' is a species of plant in the Actinidiaceae family. It is endemic to China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by ...

'' *'' Actinidia umbelloides'' **''A. umbelloides'' var. ''flabellifolia'' *'' Actinidia valvata'' **''A. valvata'' var. ''boehmeriaefolia'' *'' Actinidia venosa'' **''A. venosa'' f. ''pubescens'' *'' Actinidia vitifolia'' *'' Actinidia zhejiangensis'' Actinidia fruits

Uses

Kiwifruit is a

cultivar group A Group (previously cultivar-groupInternational Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants, 4th edition (1969), 5th edition (1980) and 6th edition (1995)) is a formal category in the '' International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants'' (' ...

of ''A. deliciosa'', and hardy kiwi is the species ''

'', which has small fruit weighing , with green edible skins and green flesh; it is hardier than ''A. deliciosa''. Some species are grown as

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

s, notably ''A. kolomikta''. In Japan, ''

'' ( silver vine) is noted for having an effect on cats much like that of

catnip ''Nepeta cataria'', commonly known as catnip, catswort, catwort, and catmint, is a species of the genus '' Nepeta'' in the family Lamiaceae, native to southern and eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of China. It is widely ...

. It is mentioned in the saying 猫にまたたび、女郎に小判 (''neko ni matatabi, jorō ni koban'', " silver vine to a cat, a coin to a prostitute"), meaning to put someone in a good mood by providing that which they most desire. ''A. kolomikta'' is the hardiest species (to about -40 °C or -40 °F), and has distinctive white- and pink-

variegated Variegation is the appearance of differently coloured zones in the leaves and sometimes the stems and fruit of plants. Species with variegated individuals are sometimes found in the understory of tropical rainforests, and this habitat is the ...

foliage even on wild plants, an unusual phenomenon. Its fruit is very small, weighing or less.

Etymology

''Actinidia'' is derived from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...

'ray', and is a reference to the rayed styles of the flowers.

References

External links

Images : Actinidia kolomikta (Maxim. et Rupr.) Maxim.
- Flavon's Secret Flower Garden
Characterization and phylogenetic analysis of the complete chloroplast genome of Actinidia latifolia (Actinidiaceae)
— chloroplastic phylogeny of some species {{Authority control Ericales genera Extant Eocene first appearances Dioecious plants