Taking advantage of a micro-climate, or distinctive climate of a small-scale area, a farmer in southern Turkey has managed to cultivate kiwis, a fruit normally seen in the country's Black Sea Region, according to local officials. While southern Kahramanmaraş province's climate is largely Mediterranean, the climate in parts of the Onikişubat district is more like the Black Sea region. "Three years ago we established a modern kiwi garden in the Suluyayla area. We got very good results.

The kiwi grows here like it does in the Black Sea. The quality is also quite high," İhsan Emiralioğlu, provincial director of the Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry, told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday. Ahead of the project, they noted the local microclimate and researched what crops could grow well and sell at good prices, he said.

"We expect that kiwi production in our region will rise in the years to come," he added. Emiralioğlu also mentioned how hazelnuts - another Black Sea staple - are grown in the region. Farmer Adem Demirel planted 250 kiwi saplings in his garden in 2013 and expects a yield of 7 tons this year, up sharply from last year's 4 tons. Demirel told Anadolu Agency (AA) that he started to grow kiwis in his garden upon local agriculture officials urging him to do so. "After a field inspection, they gave me 250 seedlings as support. From the third year on, we got a harvest of about 4 tons of fruit," he said. He added that he also wants to grow tea, another specialty of the country's Black Sea region.