''Vitis rupestris'' is a species of

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...

native to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

that is known by many common names including July, Coon, sand, sugar, beach, bush, currant, ingar, rock, and mountain grape. It is used for breeding several French-American hybrids as well as many root stocks.

Distribution and ecology

The natural distribution of ''Vitis rupestris'' is concentrated in the Ozark Hills of

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

and

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 ...

. The species is less common in scattered populations east as far as

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

and southwest into Oklahoma and

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 ...

. There are a few reports of the species occurring in the San Francisco Bay area of

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, but these are most likely escapes from cultivation.Munson, T.V. 1909. Foundations of American Grape Culture. New York: Orange Judd Company.
/ref> ''Vitis rupestris'' is a self-supporting bushy plant that does not grow in the shade, and is found only on rocky riverbanks and streambanks. Much of its habitat has been destroyed due to damming of rivers and destruction of islands for navigation. ''Vitis rupestris'' has been listed as threatened or endangered by Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee. Known locations of wild ''Vitis rupestris'' are quickly disappearing, which may threaten the future of this grape species. It is found hybridized in parts of its range with the Riverbank grape and other Vitis species.

Botanical description

Growth is tapering, erect, much branched and rarely climbing more than 4 to 8 feet. The roots are slender, wiry and deep and enable it to resist drought by spreading deep underground to find the water table. Wood is smooth and red when young, becoming cylindrical and finely striated when mature with dark colored bark that becomes darker with age. Wood is quite persistent with age and dense but not hard. Buds are small, globose or slightly conical. Tendrils are small and crimson colored with short internodes. Leaves are lanceolate with large stipules with crimson veins. Petiole are deeply and broadly grooved throughout the length. Leaves are distinctly striated and nearly always smooth. Width of the leaves is usually 3" to 4", sometimes 5" . Clusters are very small, sometimes shouldered. Rachis is smooth and light green. Flowers are fertile, stamens recurved and bent laterally with flowers producing abundant pollen. Fruits are 1/4" to 1/2" in diameter, round or slightly flattened around the stem and often doubled like two berries coalesced. The berries are black with little bloom, skin is very thin and tender and pulp is tender and melting. Pulp is deeply colored crimson or violet and part clings closely to the skin. The berries bear 3 to 4 small seeds on clusters around 8" long. Germination is quick and fruit ripens early. The species is able to bear fruit on young shoots pushed out by 2 to 4 year old wood if last year's wood has been lost to winter damage. It propagates easily from cuttings, and the pollen is very prepotent in fertilizing and hybridizing with other Vitis species.

Pest and disease resistance

Has great resistance to drought due to its deep roots penetrating the water table. Where it is unable to do this though it is subject to injury. Foliage is well adapted to resisting fungus and insect attacks, although favored by many grazing mammals. Occasionally attacked by anthracnose but with minimal injury, and resistant to black rot, downy mildew and powdery mildew.

Cultivars and hybrids

Widely used in hybridizing with other species (mostly

Vitis vinifera ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native to the Mediterranean region, Central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern Iran. There are curr ...

and

Vitis lincecumii ''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, ...

) to produce disease resistant

Hybrid grapes Hybrid grapes are grape varieties that are the product of a crossing of two or more ''Vitis'' species. This is in contrast to crossings between grape varieties of the same species, typically ''Vitis vinifera'', the European grapevine. Hybrid grap ...

. The species was used extensively to produce varieties able to withstand Phylloxera on their own roots and withstand attacks of Downy mildew. Breeders that used the species frequently include T.V. Munson, Albert Seibel (see:

Seibel grapes Seibel grapes are a group of wine grape varieties which originated with the work of Albert Seibel crossing European grape with American grape species to increase disease resistance. They were planted widely in France during the 1950s but have seen ...

Joannes Seyve Joannes Seyve (1900–1966) was a French biochemist who often used Seibel wine grape hybrids first produced in the 1860s. He created the Chambourcin grape, a French hybrid variety that is grown extensively in the Midwest and Northeast United State ...

and Elmer Swenson (indirectly via hybridizing existing varieties containing 'Vitis rupestris'. 'Vitis rupestris' often contributes a large proportion of ancestries of 'French hybrid' grapes (or 'French direct producers') such as

Seyval Seyval blanc (or Seyve-Villard hybrid number 5276winepros.com.au ) is a hybrid wine grape variety used to make white wines. Its vines ripen early, are productive and are suited to fairly cool climates. Seyval blanc is grown mainly in England,win ...

, although it was often overlooked in its homeland in favor of

Vitis labrusca ''Vitis labrusca'', the fox grape, is a species of grapevines belonging to the ''Vitis'' genus in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The vines are native to eastern North America and are the source of many grape cultivars, including Catawba, C ...

. A large proportion of modern European "PIWI" varieties categorized as

contain 'Vitis rupestris' background such as Solaris and

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

. The cultivar known as Rupestris St. George has been widely used in breeding and as a

root stock A rootstock is part of a plant, often an underground part, from which new above-ground growth can be produced. It could also be described as a stem with a well developed root system, to which a bud from another plant is grafted. It can refer to a ...

. A popular cultivar in Australia is

Vitis vinifera 'Ganzin Glory' ''Vitis'' 'Ornamental Grape', also known as ornamental grapevine, Ganzin glory, glory vine and crimson glory, is a nonfruiting ornamental plant that is a hybrid of ''Vitis vinifera'' (Aramon noir) and ''Vitis rupestris'' ( Alicante Ganzin).Ganzin ...

, a hybrid of V. rupestris and V. vinifera, that does not fruit and is grown for its autumn foliage as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

Gallery

File:Vitis rupestris leaves.jpg, Vitis rupestris growing in Southern France. File:Vitis rupestris.jpg, Vitis rupestris growing in Southern France. File:Photograph of Vitis rupestris from the book The Grapes of New York 1908.jpg, Photograph of Vitis rupestris from the book The Grapes of New York, 1908

References

External links

Missouri Plants, Photos of Vitis rupestris
{{Taxonbar, from=Q138189 rupestris Plants described in 1848 Flora of the United States