412 THE GRAPES OF NEW YORK. 



tailed Ijv the fact that it reciuires a long season for its proper development 

 and the variety justifies its name only in the South and more particularly 

 in the Southwest. In the latitude of New York it is doubtfully hardy and 

 the short summer season never permits it to attain the fjuality and beauty 

 which characterize it further south. 



Triumph has, in general, the vine characters of the Labrusca parent 

 Concord, especially its habit of growth, vigor, productiveness and foliage 

 characters, falling short in hardiness, resistance to fungal diseases and 

 earliness of maturity. Even in New York the vines are as vigorous and 

 set nearly as much fruit as Concord; but they are injured in cold winters 

 unless protected, and suffer in particular from the mildews. The fruit 

 matures with or a little later than the Catawba. It proves, in regions 

 where it is largely grown, to be quite adaptable to different soils and loca- 

 tions and the small amount of data at hand on this point in New York 

 suggests that this adaptability holds for the grape regions of this State as 

 well. It prefers, if anything, a deep soil to a shallow one and alluvial or 

 clayey soils to lighter lands. 



While the vine characters of Triumph are those of Labrusca there is 

 scarcely a suggestion of the coarseness, or of the foxy odor and taste of 

 Labrusca; and the objectionable seeds, pulp, and skin of the native grape 

 give way to the far less objectionable structures of Vinifera. Grapes of 

 this variety do not have the firm and often disagreeable pulpiness of many 

 other similar hybrids, as for instance most of Rogers' hyVjrids. The flesh 

 is tender and melting and the flavor rich, sweet, vinous, pure and delicate, 

 giving the variety high rank among the Iiest American grapes. In the 

 North, as would be expected from its lack of proper maturity, the flavor 

 is insipid as compared with the same character in the South. The skins 

 of the berries are faulty being more apparent in eating than those of 

 Vinifera and under unfavorable conditions crack badly; because of 

 the tenderness of the skin the variety neither ships nor keeps remarkably 

 well. Triumph is not only one of the best dessert grapes but it is said to 

 make a very good white wine. 



There are numerous pure-bred and cross-bred offsprings of Triumjjh 

 in America which indicate that this variety may be very successfully used 

 in grape-breeding Munson of Texas, in particular, among other viti- 



