When kiwifruit root system infected with nematodes was treated by hot water dipping treatment, the maximum temperature for this treatment was suggested as 50℃. The lowest killing temperature of internal root-knot in the root tissue was 48℃. Consequently, root-knot nematodes could be killed without damaging root tissues by the hot water dipping treatment at 48℃ for 10 minutes. This could be useful for organic production and distribution of kiwifruit seedlings by avoiding the synthetic nematicides which are not easily decomposed in soil once applied.

Organic production practices varied among producers. Generally, organic producers were relying on imported input materials such as organic compost and liquid fertilizer even more than conventional producers. Very few organic farmers had composting facilities or sites for the own supply of compost in need. The productivity of organic kiwifruit orchard (92%) was not as low as that of conventional while the net income (243%) was more than double that of conventional. This was mainly aftributed to high farm gate price of organic fruits, low paid labour use and electricity. As a consequence, organic kiwifruit production seems to become a feasible option in Korea. However, high dependence on imported farming material, fuel and labour for too frequent liquid fertilizer spray should be addressed to achieve long term sustainability of organic kiwifruit production.