=1.= Bentham, _Bot. Sulph. Voy._, =1844=:10. =2.= Buckley, _U. S.
Pat. Off. Rpt._, =1861=:479, 483. _California grape_. =3.=
Engelmann, _Mo. Ent. Rpt._, =1872=:62. =4.= Ib., _Bush. Cat._,
=1883=:10, 11, 12, 14, 15. _California grape_. =5.= Munson, _Am.
Hort. Soc. Rpt._, =1885=:137. =6.= Planchon, _De Candolle's Mon.
Phan._, =5=:323, 339. 1887. =7.= Munson, _Soc. Prom. Ag. Sci.
Rpt._, =1887=:59. _California grape_. =8.= Hammond, _Gar. and
For._, =2=:39. 1889. _Wild grape_. =9.= Munson, _U. S. D. A. Pom.
Bul._, =3=:10. 1890. =10.= Ib., _Gar. and For._, =3=:474, 475.
1890. =11.= Ib., _Mich. Hort. Soc. Rpt._, =1893=:116. =12.=
Husmann, =1895=:4, 189. =13.= Bailey, _Gray's Syn. Fl._, =1=:426.
1897. =14.= Munson, _Tex. Sta. Bul._, =56=:230, 239. 1900. _North
California grape_. =15.= Viala and Ravaz, _Am. Vines_, =1903=:42,
50.
Vine vigorous, climbing, but shrubby if left without support;
shoots cylindrical or slightly angled; diaphragms of medium
thickness to rather thin; tendrils intermittent, bifid or trifid.
Leaves with stipules medium to small; leaf broadly cordate;
petiolar sinus variable, usually wide and open, usually entire,
sometimes slightly tri-lobed; teeth variable in size, blunt; smooth
above and varying below from glabrous to much whitish pubescence.
Clusters small to medium, usually compact; peduncle mostly long and
slender. Berries small, black with rather abundant bloom. Seeds
small to medium, plump, slightly notched, if at all; chalaza
oblong-oval; raphe slightly distinct or invisible.
Californica was named and described by Bentham in 1844. It was later
mentioned by Newberry, Torrey and others. As these descriptions were all
made either from herbarium specimens or by botanists traveling through
the region, they are not so definite as those made later.
The habitat of Californica is the northern half of California along
streams west of the Sierra Nevada mountains and north into Rogue River
Valley in southern Oregon, its northern limit.
This species is interesting in that it is a native of a region of North
America not originally infested with phylloxera, but in which phylloxera
has since been introduced. As might be suspected, it has little more
resistance to this insect than Vinifera and less than any other
American species. The roots are thick and fleshy, resembling Vinifera.
The fruit, while pleasant, is too small to be of cultural value. It is
too tender for planting in the open ground where the thermometer drops
much below freezing. California growers state that it does not flourish
in dry shallow soils. It is very susceptible to attacks of mildew, to
which it usually succumbs when planted east of the Rocky Mountains.
Californica grows readily from cuttings. It is sometimes used in its
native country as an ornamental on account of its highly colored autumn
foliage but is otherwise of no value.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account