The seeds were introduced to New Zealand by Isabel Fraser in 1904. In the 1960s New Zealand began growing kiwifruit commercially. In the 1970s, NZ kiwifruit growers experimented with a natural development of a golden kiwifruit whose seeds were imported from China. The kiwifruit is native to China.

Widely distributed over the eastern two thirds of central North America, American plum grows in prairies, woodlands, pastures, and along roadsides and riverbanks. The shrub is winter-hardy, but intolerant of shade and drought; it requires the equivalent of 22 to 25 inches of precipitation.