''Vitis rotundifolia'', or muscadine, is a

grapevine ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 79 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus is made up of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, ...

species native to the southeastern and south-central United States. The growth range extends from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

to New Jersey coast, and west to eastern

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and Oklahoma. It has been extensively cultivated since the 16th century. The plants are well-adapted to their native warm and humid climate; they need fewer chilling hours than better known varieties, and thrive in summer heat. Muscadine berries may be bronze or dark purple or black when

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. Wild varieties may stay green through maturity. Muscadines are typically used in making

artisan An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art ...

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

s, juice, and jelly. They are rich sources of

polyphenol Polyphenols () are a large family of naturally occurring organic compounds characterized by multiples of phenol units. They are abundant in plants and structurally diverse. Polyphenols include flavonoids, tannic acid, and ellagitannin, some o ...

s. In a natural setting, muscadine provides

wildlife habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

as shelter, browse, and food for many birds and animals. It is also a

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. ...

l host for the Nessus Sphinx Moth ('' Amphion floridensis'') and the Mournful Sphinx Moth (''

Enyo lugubris ''Enyo lugubris'', the mournful sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found from Argentina and Paraguay to Uruguay, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and the West Indies through Belize, Guate ...

'').

Taxonomy and pathology

Although in the same genus ''

Vitis ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 79 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus is made up of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, ...

'' with the other grapevine species, the muscadine species belongs to a separate subgenus, ''Muscadinia'' (all other grapevine species belong to subgenus '' Euvitis''). Usually the species is divided into three varieties, ''Vitis rotundifolia'' Michx. var. ''rotundifolia'' (southeast USA), ''Vitis rotundifolia'' Michx. var. ''munsoniana'' (Florida), and ''Vitis rotundifolia'' Michx. var. ''popenoei'' (Central America). Some taxonomists have suggested giving the muscadines standing as a genus of its own. It has then also suggested upgrading the varieties to species rank and so splitting two additional species off from ''Vitis rotundifolia'', '' Vitis munsoniana'' and ''

Vitis popenoei ''Vitis popenoei'', commonly called the totoloche, or totoloche grape, is a New World species of liana in the grape family native to Belize, Mexico (Chiapas, Hidalgo, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tabasco, Veracruz, and eastern Querétaro), and north-central ...

''. All have 40 chromosomes, rather than 38, are generally not cross-compatible with ''Euvitis'' subgenus, and most hybrids between the subgenera are sterile. A few are moderately fertile, and have been used in breeding. A commercially available ''Euvitis'' × ''Muscadinia'' hybrid is the ''Southern Home'' cultivar. Although muscadines are hearty grapes with tough skin that protects them from many

plant diseases Plant pathology (also phytopathology) is the scientific study of diseases in plants caused by pathogens (infectious organisms) and environmental conditions (physiological factors). Organisms that cause infectious disease include fungi, oomy ...

, these grapes nonetheless appear to be susceptible to

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...

nematodes.

Cultivars

There are about 152 muscadine

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

s grown in the Southern states. These include bronze, black and red varieties and consist of common grapes and patented grapes. Unlike most cultivated grapevines, many muscadine cultivars are

pistillate Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl (botany), whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or m ...

, requiring a

pollenizer {{Unreferenced, date=May 2009 A pollenizer (or polleniser), sometimes pollinizer (or polliniser, see spelling differences) is a plant that provides pollen. The word ''pollinator'' is often used when ''pollenizer'' is more precise. A pollinator ...

to set fruit. A few, such as 'Carlos' and 'Noble', are perfect-flowered, produce fruit with their own pollen, and may also pollinate pistillate cultivars. Muscadine grape cultivars may have low or inconsistent yields, small berries, flavor and thick skin unsuitable to consumer acceptance, and disease susceptibility. Cultivars tend to be developed either for a limited fresh market or for winemaking. For consumer acceptance, fresh market grapes need to be large, sweet, and with relatively thin skin, whereas those for wine, juice or jelly need high yields of high-sugar, color-stable berries. Fresh-market cultivars include Black Beauty, Carlos, Cowart, Flowers, Fry, Granny Val, Ison, James, Jumbo, Magnolia, Memory (first found on T.S. Memory's farm in 1868 in Whiteville, NC), Mish, Nesbitt, Noble, Scuppernong, Summit, Supreme, and Thomas. Produced by the University of Florida, the cultivar, 'Southern Home', contains both subgenera ''Muscadinia'' and ''Euvitis'' (more precisely, ''V. rotundifolia'' × ''V. vinifera'') in its background. Crops can be started in 3–5 years. Commercial yields of 20–45

tonne The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...

s per

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...

(8–18 tons per acre) are possible. Muscadines grow best in fertile sandy loam and alluvial soils. They grow wild in well-drained bottom lands that are not subject to extended drought or waterlogging. They are also resistant to pests and diseases, including

Pierce's disease ''Xylella fastidiosa'' is an aerobic, Gram-negative bacterium of the genus ''Xylella''. It is a plant pathogen, that grows in the water transport tissues of plants ( xylem vessels) and is transmitted exclusively by xylem sap-feeding insects such ...

, which can destroy other grape species. Muscadine is one of the grape species most resistant to '' Phylloxera'', an insect that can kill roots of grapevines.

Appellations

Appellation An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...

s producing Muscadine wines: * America (Country Appellation) *

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

(State Appellation) *

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

(State Appellation) *

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

(State Appellation) *

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

(State Appellation) *

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

(State Appellation) *

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

(State Appellation) *

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

(State Appellation) *

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

(State Appellation) *

(State Appellation)

Nutrients

100 grams of muscadine grapes contain the following nutrients according to the USDA: * Energy: 57 kilocalories * Fats: 0.47 g * Carbohydrates: 13.93 g * Dietary Fiber: 3.9 g * Protein: 0.81 g * Calcium: 37 mg * Phosphorus: 24 mg * Potassium: 203 mg * Sodium: 1 mg * Vitamin C (total ascorbic acid): 6.5 mg * Riboflavin: 1.5 mg

Consumer research

Consumer research indicates that the thick skins and variable in-season quality of fresh muscadine grapes are significant deterrents to retail acceptance.

Resveratrol and other polyphenols

One report indicated that muscadine grapes contained high concentrations of resveratrol, but subsequent studies have found no or little resveratrol in muscadine grapes. Other muscadine

s include anthocyanins,

tannins Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'', f ...

, and various flavonoids. The rank order of total phenolic content among muscadine components was found to be seeds higher than skins higher than leaves higher than pulp.

References

External links

The Muscadine Experience: Adding Value to Enhance Profits
2004 – 80 page technical resource for growers and processors, University of Arkansas {{Authority control rotundifolia Fruits originating in North America Flora of the North-Central United States Flora of the Northeastern United States Flora of the Southeastern United States Flora of the South-Central United States Flora of the United States Flora of the Appalachian Mountains Red wine grape varieties Table grape varieties Crops originating from the United States Plants described in 1803 American wine Cuisine of the Southern United States Plants used in Native American cuisine