374 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
so far as the shiftless grower is concerned. That some form 
of trellis will prove more satisfactory for the up-to-date 
grower is equally certain. 
VARIETIES 
At present only a comparatively small number of varieties 
of this species are in cultivation. The nurserymen are offer¬ 
ing about a half dozen varieties, and only about a dozen more 
are locally grown. The varieties in cultivation, however, 
show that there are great possibilities stored up in this 
species. Of the varieties in cultivation, one has white fniit, 
one reddish fruit, while the others are either black or purple. 
Most of the varieties have round or spherical berries, but at 
least one variety has oblate fruit and at least two varieties 
have oval berries. 
The ripening season of the early varieties begins during 
July, and the late varieties extend it to November. There 
is much variation in the color of the fruit, the thickness of the 
skin, and the quality. While most of the varieties shatter 
their berries readily when ripe, the fibro-vascular bundles 
of some enter the fruit as in the Concord, and the berries of 
these varieties cling tenaciously to the cluster. 
Some of the very best varieties are only locally known, 
and some of them are not being propagated or sold by any 
nurserymen. This is unfortunate, as some very valuable 
varieties have been lost in this way. For example, Froelichs 
Seedling, at one time grown in eastern North Carolina, has 
been lost to cultivation, so far as is known at the present time. 
This variety had a sugar content of ninety-five per cent, 
according to Oeschle’s scale. This is remarkable when we 
consider the fact that the Scuppernong, the leading variety 
now grown, tests only eighty per cent, when grown under the 
same conditions. 
One of the interesting facts regarding this species is that 
all of the leading varieties, save one, have originated in 
eastern North Carolina. The Thomas, which is the only 
important variety that has originated outside of that state, 
comes from South Carolina near the North Carolina line. 
USES 
The fruit of this species can be put to as many uses as that 
of the Northern Fox grape. Nearly all of the varieties are 
excellent for dessert purposes; 'in fact, most Southerners 
prefer these rich, aromatic grapes to any others in cultivation. 
The only way to give most of the varieties a fair trial is to 
eat the fruit as soon as it is gathered from the vines. The 
skin is often broken where the stem is attached, and if the 
weather is warm, the juice soon begins to sour at this point. 
This precludes the possibility of ever shipping the fresh fruit 
of most of our varieties, to distant markets. 
These, grapes are admirably suited for wine-making. 
Among sweet wines made from native grapes there is none, 
superior to that made from the Scuppernong. A bushel of 
Scuppernong grapes will yield from three to four gallons of 
wine. While many prefer the wine made from the Scupper¬ 
nong, some of the other varieties produce wines equally good, 
or better. 
Unfermented grape juice has been made on a small scale 
from this grape by a few individuals for a good many years. 
Some of the varieties, notably the Scuppernong, are not very 
satisfactory for this purpose, as the juice lacks character, or 
tastes “fiat.” Some varieties, like Flowers and James, will 
produce a fairly satisfactory grape juice, preferred by some 
to that made from the Concord grape. I hope that this may 
become an industry of some importance in the South, but so 
far the results have been very discouraging where it has been 
tried on a commercial scale. 
IMPROVEMENT NEEDED 
While the varieties of this species possess many very 
desirable characteristics, they also possess some extremely 
undesirable habits'. It seems as though the best and the 
worst characteristics have been combined to produce this 
species. These undesirable features are: first, the dropping 
of the berries from the clusters as soon as fully ripe; second, 
the unevenness of ripening of berries in the same cluster, 
some of the berries often ripening and falling a week before 
the last on the same cluster are ripe; third, the small size of 
the clusters; and fourth, the very thick skin of some varieties. 
As this is a very persistent and stable species, it will be a 
difficult matter to eliminate all of these undesirable character¬ 
istics. The matter is considerably complicated by the fact 
that they are self-sterile. In other words, it is impossible to 
cross directly any two varieties of this species. 
By combining all of the desirable characteristics of several 
varieties, we can get near the ideal. We must get the cling¬ 
ing quality of the berries from the Flowers, the thick skin 
from the Thomas, larger clusters from the Flowers Improved, 
and uniform ripening of all the berries from another species. 
It is possible that we may_ eventually get self-fertile 
varieties. Most of the wild Northern Fox grapes are self- 
sterile, and yet many valuable self-fertile varieties have been 
derived from that species. We have found in our work in 
North Carolina one wild fruiting Muscadine vine which 
produces good fertile pollen. It seems only reasonable to 
conclude that self-fertile varieties may eventually be found or 
produced. 
A GRAPE FOR THE MILLION 
In conclusion let me state that this is distinctly a grape for 
the amateur. It certainly is a grape for the millions. It is 
admirably suited to the careless, indifferent, happy-go-lucky 
grower. 
Let us briefly summarize its desirable characteristics. It 
is easily grown, in fact, will flourish and yield abundantly 
for the lazy, the shiftless, and the undeserving. It will 
thrive on the very poorest soils. I have seen it yielding 
abundantly on the despised sand hills, where very few plants 
can subsist. It is long lived, each vine usually outliving the 
man who plants it. Its freedom from diseases and insects 
is proverbial. It is an enormous bearer, surpassing in this 
respect any other native grape. Each variety has a ripening 
season of practically one month, during which time good ripe 
fruit can be gathered every day. The ripening season of the 
various varieties, from the earliest to the latest, extends 
without a break from July to December. It furnishes 
delicious grapes after all the ordinary kinds are gone, and at a 
season of the year when there is a scarcity of fruits in the 
South. Surely, this is the king of fruits for the family vine¬ 
yard of the South. 
