Frost Grape

Vitis riparia Michx., commonly called frost grape or riverbank grape, belongs to the Vitaceae family. It is indigenous to central and eastern Canada and the central and northeastern United States, with reports from Quebec to Texas and from eastern Montana to Nova Scotia. The vine is long-lived and can grow into the upper canopy of tall trees. It produces dark fruit that attract birds and humans. Vitis riparia is widely used in commercial viticulture as a grafted rootstock and in hybrid grape breeding programs. The species was first described in 1803 and is distributed across regions including British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Vermont-US, and several European and U.S. states.