Muscadines, Vitus rotundifolia, grow throughout Georgia, but they thrive in the Georgia Piedmont. The experts say the wild grapes ripen from July to October. I think August is the peak.
Some varieties of muscadines have made their way into the gardens. Those are the early bearers, or so it seems to me.
Ripe muscadines come in many colors: purple, oxblood, black. There’s a variety of bronze grapes. People call them scuppernongs.
I think just about all the songbirds eat muscadines, as do turkey, quail and ducks. Many mammals, including the bears of North Georgia, love them too. The paths through the woods are covered with half-eaten muscadines.
Terry W. Johnson, a naturalist who keeps a blog, says that some butterflies get drunk on fermenting muscadines. I’ve been watching for two kinds he mentioned — question marks and commas. But I haven’t seen any flying drunk.
• Source: Terry W. Johnson used to write “Out My Backdoor” for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. His column on muscadines appeared here:
http://georgiawildlife.com/out-my-backdoor-wildlife-love-muscadines-too
Since retiring, he posts at the “Backyard Wildlife Connection.” It’s here:
No comments:
Post a Comment