The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Vitis vulpina
Also called Fox grape, Winter grape, Wild Grape, Chicken Grape, Sweet Scented Grape
Frost grape is a North American woody climbing vine in the grape family, grown mainly for its edible fruit and as an ornamental for fences and trellises. Its tart berries turn sweeter after frost, and it grows best in moist to dry soils with plenty of sun.
Vitis vulpina (with common names frost grape, winter grape, fox grape, and wild grape) is a North American species of herbaceous perennial vines in the grape family. It is widespread across most of the eastern and central United States as well as the Canadian Province of Ontario.
The genus name Vitis comes from the Latin word for "vine" and the species name vulpina comes from the Latin word for "fox-like" or belonging to a fox. It is believed that foxes were attracted to this type of grapevine, and Linnaeus used the term vulpina to differentiate these smaller wild grapes from the other American known grapes. The more common name, frost grape, refers to the fact that this otherwise acidic/tart-tasting grape becomes more desirable and sweet once it is exposed to a frost. Vitis vulpina is a high-climbing woody vine with a thick trunk and red tendrils.
Vitis vulpina is most commonly found in moist or dry soils in woods, flood plains, and ravines. Due to its known ability to climb, the vine is often used along fences and trellises for ornamentation.
The grapes are edible and can be used to make wine, jam, and jellies.
Mapleleaf grape · Vitis adenoclada · Summer grape · Amur grape · Canyon grape · Vitis balansana · Vitis bellula · Autumn grape · Birch-leaf grape · Vitis blancoi · North China Grape · California wild grape
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Vitis vulpina by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
