{"id":2645,"date":"2020-05-22T09:08:59","date_gmt":"2020-05-22T13:08:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/?p=2645"},"modified":"2020-05-22T09:09:01","modified_gmt":"2020-05-22T13:09:01","slug":"uga-releases-new-muscadine-variety-rubycrisp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/2020\/05\/uga-releases-new-muscadine-variety-rubycrisp\/","title":{"rendered":"UGA releases new muscadine variety, \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Sadie Lackey for CAES News<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From late summer into fall, Southerners start looking for muscadines \u2014 a popular grape native to the Southeastern U.S. Selections run from the dark purple, thick-skinned traditional muscadine to a light golden-green variety. Soon, growers and consumers can add a new red variety to the mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences\u2019 muscadine grape team, led by horticulture Professor Patrick J. Conner, developed a variety of muscadine for those who prefer the sweet taste of a berry with limited muscadine flavor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe unusual red color of this berry really makes it stand out,\u201d Conner said. \u201cBut the tender skin and crisp flesh of this variety are what truly make it unique. The texture of this variety is a marked change from traditional muscadines, which are often known for having tough skins and a soft pulp.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers found \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 to be a good fit for pick-your-own operations and home gardens because of its distinctive taste and texture and excellent productivity. Unfortunately, commercial production is not a good fit for this specialized berry, because it often cracks with rough handling. However, \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 vines can flourish in the backyards of at-home cultivators looking to try the newest muscadine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 originated in Tifton, Georgia, as a result of a cross between \u2018Supreme\u2019 and \u2018Tara\u2019 varieties. \u2018Supreme\u2019 produces black berries with exceptional size and firmness. \u2018Tara\u2019 produces bronze berries with dry pedicel scars that ripen early in the muscadine harvest season. In 2011 the \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 vine was chosen because of its large berry size, flower type and outstanding flavor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The original \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 vines were tested on UGA experiment plots in Tifton and at a commercial vineyard in Wray, Georgia. There, researchers discovered that given the large berry size and high production potential of \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019, growers may need to limit vine fruitfulness by increasing the distance between fruiting spurs or thinning the crop so that the vine is not weakened by maturing excessive crops. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

UGA researchers also found that heavy rainfall can lead to fruit cracking. \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 has a mid-season harvest date around Aug. 21 in south Georgia and has perfect flowers so it does not need a pollinator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBecause further study is needed to explore the optimum environment for producing this vine, especially its cold hardiness, we suggest growers in northern muscadine regions refrain from planting large numbers of \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 until more data is collected,\u201d Conner said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UGA has the oldest muscadine breeding program in the U.S. The program began in 1909, and since then, it has released over 30 cultivars and counting. The program focuses on continued improvement of the muscadine grape by developing new cultivars that satisfy the needs of growers and the demands on consumers. The UGA muscadine breeding program works to create new cultivars that combine large berry size with perfect flowers, expand the harvest season with earlier and later ripening dates, and produce berries with dry stem scars, crisp flesh and tender skins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A list of nurseries licensed to propagate \u2018RubyCrisp\u2019 muscadine is available by contacting Conner at pconner@uga.edu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information about the UGA muscadine grape breeding program, visit\u00a0muscadines.caes.uga.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sadie Lackey is a student writer for the CAES Office of Communications and Creative Services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authors:Sadie Lackey<\/a><\/a>Experts\/Sources:Patrick J. Conner<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"UGA<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"UGA<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

UGA researchers released new red ‘RubyCrisp’ muscadine variety for those who want a sweet berry flavor with just a hint of muscadine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Sadie Lackey for CAES News From late summer into fall, Southerners start looking for muscadines \u2014 a popular grape native to the Southeastern U.S. Selections run from the dark purple, thick-skinned traditional muscadine to a light golden-green variety. Soon, growers and consumers can add a new red variety to the mix. The University of Georgia College of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":281,"featured_media":2646,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2645","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/281"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2645"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2645\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2647,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2645\/revisions\/2647"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/colquittag\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}