Vitis berlandieri facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Vitis berlandieri |
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Vitis
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berlandieri
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Vitis berlandieri is a type of grape plant that grows naturally in southern North America. You can mostly find it in places like Texas, New Mexico, and Arkansas.
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What Makes This Grape Special?
This grape is well-known because it can grow very well in soils that have a lot of lime. Lime is a common material found in the ground. For many other types of American grapevines, too much lime can cause a problem called chlorosis. This makes the leaves turn yellow because the plant can't get enough nutrients.
How it Helped French Wine
Many famous French wine regions have soils rich in lime. The traditional French grapevines, called Vitis vinifera, were used to these conditions.
A long time ago, in the 1800s, a tiny insect called phylloxera attacked grapevines in Europe. This event, known as the Great French Wine Blight, almost destroyed all the vineyards. To save the grapes, people started bringing American grapevines to Europe. They would attach the French grape parts onto the roots of the American vines. This process is called grafting.
However, many American vines couldn't grow well in the lime-rich soils of France. This was a big problem!
Solving the Lime Problem
Luckily, Vitis berlandieri had already adapted to grow on limestone hills in central Texas. This meant it could handle the lime in the soil. So, it had the special ability needed to help the French vineyards.
Even though Vitis berlandieri itself wasn't perfect for grafting, it was used to create new, stronger grape rootstocks. Scientists crossed Vitis berlandieri with other grape types like Vitis riparia, Vitis rupestris, or Vitis vinifera. These new rootstocks were resistant to both phylloxera and lime, and they were great for growing grapes for wine.
Other Names for Vitis Berlandieri
Vitis berlandieri is sometimes also called the Fall Grape.
How it's Classified
In some ways of classifying plants, Vitis berlandieri is seen as a smaller group (a subspecies) of another grape called Vitis cinerea.
