Vitis coignetiae

Vitis coignetiae, called crimson glory vine, is a plant belonging to the genus Vitis that is native to the temperate climes of Asia, where it can be found in the Russian Far East (Sakhalin); Korea; and Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku). It was described botanically in 1883.^[1] It is called meoru (머루) in Korean and yama-budo (ヤマブドウ) in Japanese.

Crimson glory vine
Vitis coignetiae leaves
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Vitales
Family:	Vitaceae
Genus:	Vitis
Species:	V. coignetiae
Binomial name
Vitis coignetiae Pulliat ex Planch.[1]
Varieties
V. coignetiae var. coignetiae V. coignetiae var. glabrescens Nakai[1][2]
Synonyms
V. amurensis var. glabrescens (Nakai) Nakai [possibly syn. of V. coignetiae var. glabrescens, not V. coignetiae][1][2]

History

The species name is dedicated to Marie Coignet, née Sisley,^[3] who reportedly brought seeds back from a trip to Japan with her husband in 1875.^[4]

This vine was also reported in 1884 snowy regions of Japan by Henri Degron sent to East Asia to seek wild vines resistant to Phylloxera. Degron sent specimens to a Professor Planchon of Montpellier who named them Vitis coignetiae but did not retain them due to their low resistance to phylloxera. Degron planted a vineyard in Crespières, Île-de-France where one of the vines reached a length of 32.8 meters and a height of 2.8 meter. In the cooler Norman climate the vine produces a bitter wine, rich in color and extract.^{[citation needed]}

Description

The vine is very vigorous, with grey-brown, tomentose shoots. The deciduous leaves are large (10-25 cm in diameter), simple, orbicular, toothed, with 5-15 cm long petiole. Dark green during the growing season, they turn red-orange in autumn.^[5]

Wild vines can be male, female or hermaphrodite. Clusters are large with small, purple-black, seeded berries. It is found in the mountainous regions of Japan and up to 1300 m altitude in Korea.^{[citation needed]}

Uses

Crimson gloryvine fruits, sold in Mungyeong, Korea

In East Asia it is grown as an ornamental plant for its crimson autumn foliage; and as an Oriental medicinal plant.^{[citation needed]}

It is a recipient of the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.^[6]

It is used to produce wines in Korea and Japan. These are at first bitter, but softened with the addition of sugar.^{[citation needed]}

Chemistry

The plant contains the stilbenoids ε-viniferin^{[citation needed]} and rhapontigenin.^[7]

Gallery

• Vitis coignetiae
• 
  Vitis coignetiae leaves.
• 
  Vitis coignetiae vine growing in Cheshire, United Kingdom.
• 
  Vitis coignetiae fruit cluster.
• 
  Vitis coignetiae berries.
• 
  The ornamental grape autumn colors. Growing in Victoria, Australia.
• 
  Vitis coignetiae in Northern France.

See also

• Vitis 'Ornamental Grape', a nonfruiting ornamental grapevine cultivar, also known as 'crimson glory, grown for its autumn foliage