VARIETIES OF GRAPES 421 



dark bronze, heavily pubescent. Flowers self-fertile, open in mid- 

 season ; stamens upright. 



Fruit early mid-season, does not keep well. Clusters medium in 

 size, short, occasionally single-shouldered, compact. Berries large, 

 oval, dark amber with thin bloom, drop badly from the pedicel ; skin 

 tough, adherent, astringent ; flesh pale green, juicy, fine-grained, 

 tender, soft, very foxy, sweet ; poor in quality. Seeds free, numerous, 

 large, broad, faintly notched, long, brown. 



NORTON 



(TEstivalis, Labrusca) 



Norton is one of the leading wine-grapes in eastern America, 

 the fruit having small value for am^ other purpose than wine 

 or, possibly, grape-juice. The vine is hardy but requires a 

 long, warm season to reach maturity so that it is seldom grown 

 successfully north of the Potomac. Norton thrives in rich 

 alluvial clays, gravels or sands, the only requisite seemingly 

 being a fair amount of fertility and soil warmth. 'The vines 

 are robust ; very productive, especially on fertile soils ; as free, 

 or more so, from fungal diseases as any other of our native 

 grapes ; and are very resistant to phylloxera. The bunches are 

 of but medium size and the berries are small. The grapes are 

 pleasant eating when fully ripe, rich, spicy and pure-flavored 

 but tart if not quite ripe. The variety is difficult to propagate 

 from cuttings and to transplant, and the vines do not bear 

 grafts well. The origin of Norton is uncertain, but it has been 

 under cultivation since before 1830, when it was first described. 



Vine very vigorous, healthy, half-hardy, productive. Canes long, 

 thick, dark brown with abundant bloom ; nodes much enlarged ; inter- 

 nodes long; tendrils intermittent, occasioimlly continuous, long, 

 bifid, sometimes trifid. Leaves large, irregularly round ; upper surface 

 pale green, dull, rugose ; lower surface pale green, pubescent ; leaf 

 usually not lobed with terminus acute ; petiolar sinus deep, narrow, 

 sometimes closed and overlapping ; basal sinus usually absent ; lateral 

 sinus shallow or a mere notch when present. Flowers self-fertile, 

 late ; stamens upright. 



