Hello Shelby,

Thanks for contacting the UVM Master Gardener Helpline with your question ! The kiwi family (Actinidiacea) are quite rapid growing (up to 30’ in a year) species and are sometimes considered ‘weedy’ because of that exceptional growth habit but in Vermont is not currently listed as an invasive species. Although not technically invasive in Vermont, they’ve gotten attention from various authorities over the years relating to its aggressive growth habits and potential damage to existing plants. With that said, there are numerous species that are known to be invasive, whether they are listed in Vermont or not. The Nature Conservancy had a breadth of species listed including Hardy Kiwi. Hardy Kiwi and its impacts are certainly part of
research and management discussions across the northeast. Maine even recently added it to their watchlist: https://www.maine.gov/dacf/php/horticulture/invasiveplants.shtml. 

Here are several docs to consider before committing to these plants:

https://www.northeastipm.org/neipm/assets/File/Publications/Hardy-kiwi-handbook.pdf

https://www.maine.gov/dacf/mnap/features/invasive_plants/actinidia.pdf

https://www.massaudubon.org/nature-wildlife/invasive-plants-in-massachusetts/hardy-kiwi

https://www.wnyprism.org/invasive_species/hardy-kiwi/

In any event, you can plan on significant maintenance to keep them controlled. If the plants invade other areas, removing them may be difficult.

To the specific species you asked about :

Actinidia spp. is dioecious (separate male and female plants) so if you intend to grow fruit you would need one plant of each gender. Not necessary for just flowers and foliage.

I did find some docs on the particular cultivars that you are considering. The 1^st is A. kolomikta ‘Arctic Beauty’ . ‘Arctic Beauty’ is the common name for a male plant and reportedly has the better variegation. You can find lots of info using this link :

https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=442393&isprofile=0&hf=1

The 2^nd is A. arguta that uses common names of Issai and Anna. The pertinent info for this plant is included in this link.

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/actinidia-arguta/#:~:text=Popular%20fruiting%20variety%2C%20readily%20available.,Female%2C%20pineapple%20flavored%20fruit

You may want to consider some alternatives such as Vitis spp ( some native to Vermont) and Celastrus scandens (American Bittersweet). Don’t confuse C. scandens with C. orbiculatus (Asian Bittersweet) which is invasive. Both are detailed in the reference above. These vines also grow aggressively but to a lesser degree.

If you’d like to find out if a particular plant is invasive in Vermont you can look it up on the Vermont invasives website using this link https://www.vtinvasives.org/ . There’s lots of info for terrestrial and aquatic invasives.

Best of luck should you decide to go forward with your hardy kiwis !