Vitis × californica × vinifera ' Rogers Red'
Common name:
Rogers Red Grape
Roger's Red California Grape
Pronunciation:
VI-tis
Family:
Vitaceae
Genus:
Synonyms:
Vitis californica 'Roger's Red'
Type:
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon:
No
- Broadleaf, deciduous grape vine, grows rapidly and can reach 25-40 ft (8-12 m). Leaves alternate, simple, dull green and gray in the growing season but transformed to of rich, scarlet red in autumn. The flowers are insignificant and the fruit is small and purple, however it is edible and the juice is flavorsome, but its large seeds and bitter skin are detractions.
- Full sun to light shade; best in well-drained, alkaline soil. Drought tolerant.
- Hardy to USDA Zone (6)7
- This selection was discovered by Roger Raiche in Sonoma County, California in 1983 and soon became popular as an ornamental native plant (Vitis california) with its striking fall color and one also that attracted wildlife. However, a suspicion soon arose that it was a hybrid with the commercial grape, Vitis vinifera. In 2009 the DNA fingerprint of ‘Roger’s Red’ was compared to those in a database with over 800 V. vinifera selections. The paternity test confirmed ‘Roger’s Red’ was a hybrid between the native grape and a wine grape cultivar, V. vinifera ‘Alicante Bouschet’. The grape of this cultivar has red flesh and juice. The same genetics that added color to red wines is responsible for the spectacular crimson foliar display that makes ‘Roger’s Red’ so distinctive in autumn. (Pacific Horticulture, October, 2011).
Click image to enlarge
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plant habit, late fall
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leaf, late summer
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leaves, late fall
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leaves, late fall
