''Vitis rotundifolia'', or muscadine, is a grapevine species native to the

southeastern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

and

south-central United States The South Central United States or South Central states is a region in the south central portion of the Southern United States. It evolved out of the Old Southwest, which originally was the western portion of the South. The states of Arkansas, ...

. The growth range extends from Florida to

New Jersey coast The Jersey Shore (known by locals simply as the Shore) is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Po ...

, and west to eastern Texas and

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

. 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 ripe. Wild varieties may stay green through maturity. Muscadines are typically used in making artisan wines, juice, and jelly. They are rich sources of polyphenols. In a natural setting, muscadine provides wildlife habitat as shelter, browse, and food for many birds and animals. It is also a larval host for the Nessus Sphinx Moth (''

Amphion floridensis ''Amphion floridensis'', the Nessus sphinx, is a day-flying moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was named by Benjamin Preston Clark in 1920. It is the only member of the genus ''Amphion'' erected by Jacob Hübner in 1819. It lives through ...

'') and the Mournful Sphinx Moth ('' Enyo lugubris'').

Taxonomy and pathology

Although in the same genus '' Vitis'' 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 ''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, b ...

'' and '' Vitis popenoei''. 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, these grapes nonetheless appear to be susceptible to parasitic

nematode The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant-Parasitism, parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhab ...

Cultivars

There are about 152 muscadine cultivars 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 of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...

, requiring a pollenizer 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 The scuppernong is a large variety of muscadine (''Vitis rotundifolia''), a species of grape native to the Southern United States. It is usually a greenish or bronze color and is similar in appearance and texture to a white grape, but rounder and ...

, 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 tonnes per hectare (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, which can destroy other grape species. Muscadine is one of the grape species most resistant to ''

Phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs ...

'', an insect that can kill roots of grapevines.

Appellations

Appellations producing Muscadine wines: * America (Country Appellation) * Alabama (State Appellation) * Arkansas (State Appellation) * Florida (State Appellation) * Georgia (State Appellation) * Louisiana (State Appellation) * Mississippi (State Appellation) * North Carolina (State Appellation) * South Carolina (State Appellation) * Tennessee (State Appellation) * Texas (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 Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data about issues relating to marketing products and services. The goal is to identify and assess how changing elements of the marketing mix i ...

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 Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxy-''trans''-stilbene) is a stilbenoid, a type of natural phenol, and a phytoalexin produced by several plants in response to injury or when the plant is under attack by pathogens, such as bacteria or fungi. Sources ...

, but subsequent studies have found no or little resveratrol in muscadine grapes. Other muscadine polyphenols include

anthocyanin Anthocyanins (), also called anthocyans, are water-soluble vacuolar pigments that, depending on their pH, may appear red, purple, blue, or black. In 1835, the German pharmacist Ludwig Clamor Marquart gave the name Anthokyan to a chemical compo ...

s, tannins, and various

flavonoid Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans. Chemically, flavonoids ...

s. 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