102 THE EVOLUTION OF OUR NATIVE FRUITS 



ously, deeply and irregularly toothed and sometimes cut, the 

 teeth and the long point prominently acute: fertile flowers 

 bearing reclining or curved stamens, and the sterile ones 

 long and erect or ascending stamens: clusters medium to 

 large on short peduncles, branched (often very compound), 

 the flowers sweet-scented: berries small (less than %-inch 

 in diameter), purple-Mack with a heavy blue bloom, sour 

 and usually austere, generally ripening late (even after 1 

 seeds rather small and distinctly pyriform. — New Brunswick 

 to X. Dakota, Kansas, and Colorado, and south to "\V. Virginia, 

 Missouri, and N. W. Texas; the commonest grape in the north- 

 ern states west of New England, particularly along streams. 

 Commonly known as Vitis riparia. Variable in the flavor 

 and maturity of the fruit. Forms with petioles and under 

 surfaces of leaves pubescent sometimes occur. Occasionally 

 hybridizes with /'. Labrusca eastward, the hybrid being known 

 by tie tomentose young shoots ami unfolding leaves, and the 

 darker foliage which is marked with rusty tomentum along 

 the veins of the less jagged leaves. Parent, either direct or 

 crossed, of Clinton, Elvira, Pearl, and others. 



Var. prcecox, Bailey, is the June grape of Missouri, the 



little sweet fruits ripening in July. 



In a note attached to his specimens (now at the Jardin des 

 Plantes, Paris), Miehaux speaks of this as being the sp 



known to the French VOyageurS upon the Ohio and Missis- 

 sippi: " Vitis riparia. — Vigne des battures par lea francais qui 

 royagenl sur I'Ohio & le Misissipi, parce que cette espeee 

 croit sur les roehers el les Babies inondes annnellement, par 

 les debordements. Le raisin en est le meillenr de tons ceux 

 qui se trouvent, dans l'Amerique Beptentrionale. L'on ne 

 trouve nullemenl cette espeee a I'esl des Monts AJleganies, 



Ohio & Misissipi. Le raisin est meur en Aoiist et croit sur les 



Isles & sur les Roehers qui bordenl les Rivierres Bhavanon 

 on Cumberland, Cheroquis on Tenassee, ainsi que sur les 

 Hives ,1,. linen River, dans 1'Ktat de Kentucky. II eel 

 difficile de trouver du Raisin Bar les Isles on plages gabion- 



llellses du M isissippi et de I'OhU) pal'cc <|M elles stmt tlop 



longtemps Bubmergees." 



There is a ourious confusion respecting the name of this 



