Beta (grape)

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Beta
Grape (Vitis)
Species Hybrid grape
Origin Louis Suelter
Notable regions Minnesota, New York State, Finland

Beta is a winter-hardy variety of North American grape derived from a cross of the Vitis labrusca -based cultivar Concord and a selection of Vitis riparia , the wild riverbank grape, called Carver. [1] It is an extremely cold-hardy grape that is self-fertile. This variety is grown successfully in Finland and was widely planted in Minnesota in the early 20th century. It ripens in late September in New York State. It bears dark, blue-black fruit that is used for jellies, fruit juices, etc. but rarely for wine.

History

Beta was released by Louis Suelter, and named for his wife. Because of this, the proper pronunciation is actually "Bett-uh", but the name is more commonly assumed to follow the pronunciation of the Greek letter. Suelter released a number of other cultivars from the same cross, including the equally hardy Suelter grape.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grape</span> Fruit growing on woody vines in clusters

A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus Vitis. Grapes are a non-climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marechal Foch (grape)</span> Variety of grape

Maréchal Foch is an inter-specific hybrid French red wine grape variety. It was developed at the Oberlin Institute in Colmar-Alsace, at the beginning of the 20th century, by Eugène Kuhlmann, then known as Kuhlmann 188-2. The variety arrived in the U.S. in 1946, where it was subsequently renamed Marechal Foch in honor of Marshall Ferdinand Foch, Supreme Allied Commander during the First World War. Some believe it to be a cross of Goldriesling with a Vitis riparia - Vitis rupestris cross. Others contend that its pedigree is uncertain and may contain the grape variety Oberlin 595. It ripens early, and it is cold-hardy and resistant to fungal diseases. The berry size is small, which makes it prone to bird injury. The quality of wine produced by Marechal Foch vines is highly dependent upon vine age, and the flavor profile associated with many new-world hybrid varietals is much reduced in examples made with fruit picked from older vines.

<i>Vitis vinifera</i> Species of flowering plant in the grape vine family Vitaceae

Vitis vinifera, the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native to the Mediterranean region, Central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern Iran. There are currently between 5,000 and 10,000 varieties of Vitis vinifera grapes though only a few are of commercial significance for wine and table grape production.

St. Pepin is a modern hybrid variety of wine grape, mostly grown in North America. It produces grapes suitable for making fruity white wines similar to Riesling or as a base for blended wines. The grapes also make a good seeded table grape for eating. It has the benefits of early ripening and when hardened properly in the fall it is winter hardy to at least −25 °F (−32 °C). As such, it best suited to growing in more northern climates.

<i>Vitis rotundifolia</i> Variety of grape

Vitis rotundifolia, or muscadine, is a grapevine species native to the southeastern and south-central United States. The growth range extends from Florida to New Jersey coast, and west to eastern Texas and Oklahoma. It has been extensively cultivated since the 16th century. The plants are well-adapted to their native warm and humid climate; they need fewer chilling hours than better known varieties, and thrive in summer heat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadice (grape)</span> Variety of grape

Canadice is a cultivar of seedless red grape with a bit of a spicy flavor. It is a late season cultivar ripening about mid-September into October and is hardy up to -20 degrees Fahrenheit. It is used as a table grape and is described as productive with a flavor similar to Delaware grapes. Also, these grapes come in large, cylindrical and somewhat compact clusters and are medium in individual size. Negative attributes of this particular grape are that it is highly susceptible or sensitive to black rot as well as moderately susceptible or sensitive to downy mildew and Botrytis. It is also slightly susceptible or sensitive to powdery mildew. However, tests have shown that Canadice grapes will maintain a high quality for up to four months in storage with high post-harvest sulfur dioxide fumigation.

La Crosse is a modern hybrid cultivar of wine grape, mostly grown in North America. It produces grapes suitable for making fruity white wines similar to Riesling or as a base for blended wines. The grapes also make a good seeded table grape for eating. It has the benefits of early ripening and when hardened properly in the fall it is winter hardy to at least -25° F. As such it best suited to growing in more northern climates and can be found grown in small regions of Ohio.

<i>Vitis riparia</i> Species of grapevine

Vitis riparia Michx, with common names riverbank grape or frost grape, is a vine indigenous to North America. As a climbing or trailing vine, it is widely distributed across central and eastern Canada and the central and northeastern parts of the United States, from Quebec to Texas, and eastern Montana to Nova Scotia. There are reports of isolated populations in the northwestern USA, but these are probably naturalized. It is long-lived and capable of reaching into the upper canopy of the tallest trees. It produces dark fruit that are appealing to both birds and people, and has been used extensively in commercial viticulture as grafted rootstock and in hybrid grape breeding programs.

A rootstock is part of a plant, often an underground part, from which new above-ground growth can be produced. It could also be described as a stem with a well developed root system, to which a bud from another plant is grafted. It can refer to a rhizome or underground stem. In grafting, it refers to a plant, sometimes just a stump, which already has an established, healthy root system, onto which a cutting or a bud from another plant is grafted. In some cases, such as vines of grapes and other berries, cuttings may be used for rootstocks, the roots being established in nursery conditions before planting them out. The plant part grafted onto the rootstock is usually called the scion. The scion is the plant that has the properties that propagator desires above ground, including the photosynthetic activity and the fruit or decorative properties. The rootstock is selected for its interaction with the soil, providing the roots and the stem to support the new plant, obtaining the necessary soil water and minerals, and resisting the relevant pests and diseases. After a few weeks, the tissues of the two parts will have grown together, eventually forming a single plant. After some years, it may be difficult to detect the site of the graft although the product always contains the components of two genetically different plants.

<i>Vitis rupestris</i> Species of grapevine

Vitis rupestris is a species of grape native to the United States that is known by many common names including July, Coon, sand, sugar, beach, bush, currant, ingar, rock, and mountain grape. It is used for breeding several French-American hybrids as well as many root stocks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chelois</span> Variety of grape

Chelois is a variety of hybrid grape used in the production of red wines. The fruit are small blue-black berries, which appear in compact, medium-sized clusters. Chelois is among the less hardy hybrids of red-wine grapes.

Vitis × labruscana is a subgroup of grapes originating from a hybridization of Vitis labrusca and Vitis vinifera. Popular examples include Concord and Niagara grapes, which comprise nearly all grapes processed for juice or jelly in the United States. Such cultivars are frequently referred to as "labrusca", however many are as little as half Vitis labrusca in their pedigree. Another common term, arguably more accurate, is "labrusca-type". These varieties do in fact possess many of the traits of Vitis labrusca, frequently including slipskin fruit, strong "foxy" flavor/odor, and large leaves with lighter colored and pubescent undersides. Most are self-fertile, unlike wild Vitis labrusca.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hybrid grape</span> Variety of grape

Hybrid grapes are grape varieties that are the product of a crossing of two or more Vitis species. This is in contrast to crossings between grape varieties of the same species, typically Vitis vinifera, the European grapevine. Hybrid grapes are also referred to as inter-species crossings or "Modern Varieties." Due to their often excellent tolerance to powdery mildew, other fungal diseases, nematodes, and phylloxera, hybrid varieties have, to some extent, become a renewed focus for European breeding programs. The recently developed varieties, Rondo, and Regent are examples of newer hybrid grape varieties for European viticulturalists. Several North American breeding programs, such as those at Cornell and the University of Minnesota, focus exclusively on hybrid grapes, with active and successful programs, having created hundreds if not thousands of new varieties.

Onaka is one of a number of hardy hybrid grape cultivars produced by the prolific breeder Nels Hansen at South Dakota State University. It is a product of a cross of Beta and Salem. Although never widely cultivated and today largely forgotten, it has contributed to the cold-climate grape-breeding efforts of breeders such as Elmer Swenson and is a likely parent of his variety Kay Gray.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isabella (grape)</span> Variety of grape

The Isabella grape is a cultivar derived from the grape species Vitis labrusca or 'fox grape,' which is used for table, juice and wine production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noah (grape)</span> Variety of grape

The Noah grape is a cultivar derived from the grape species Vitis labrusca or 'fox grape' which is used for table, juice and wine production. Noah has berries of a light green/yellow and has medium-sized, cylindrical-conical, well formed fruit clusters with thick bloom similar to those of Elvira.

Vitis acerifolia is a species of grape native to the south-central part of the Great Plains of the United States. Its leaf shape is the origin of its name, which is Latin for maple-leaf grape, but it is widely referenced in literature by the synonym, Vitis longii.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olmo grapes</span> Variety of grape

Olmo grapes are wine and table grape varieties produced by University of California, Davis viticulturist Dr. Harold Olmo. Over the course of his nearly 50-year career, Dr. Olmo bred a wide variety of both grapes by means of both crossing varieties from the same species or creating hybrid grapes from cultivars of different Vitis species.

Cascade is a red complex hybrid grape variety that was created by French viticulturist Albert Seibel in the early 20th century in Aubenas, Ardèche, in the Rhône Valley. It has been commercially available in North America since 1938 and has since been planted in Canada and the United States. However, in warmer climates the grape is highly susceptible to a number of grapevine viruses, which has discouraged plantings of the variety.

References

  1. Yu, Shuyi; Liu, Changyuan; Liang, Chunhao; Zang, Chaoqun; Liu, Li; Wang, Hui; Guan, Tianshu (May 2017). "Effects of Rain-shelter Cultivation on the Temporal Dynamics of Grape Downy Mildew Epidemics". Journal of Phytopathology. 165 (5): 331–341. doi:10.1111/jph.12566.