Muscadine Grape

Vitis rotundifolia 'Carlos'

fruit

Carlos is the self-fertile bronze muscadine grape, the most widely planted muscadine in the southeastern US. The medium 1/2 in bronze grapes ripen in late summer with the distinctive musky-sweet flavor that defines muscadine wines, juice, and jam. The vigorous heat-loving vines thrive where European and American grapes fail (zones 7 to 9).

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• Hyssop — May improve grape vigor and repel aphids
• Chives — Sulfur compounds may help suppress fungal pressure
• Yarrow — Hosts beneficial parasitoid wasps
• White Clover — Living aisle mulch fixes nitrogen

❌ Keep away from

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts — tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Black rot →

  Muscadines are highly disease-resistant; basic sanitation (remove fallen leaves and mummies) is usually enough

• Japanese beetles →

  Hand-pick into soapy water at dawn

• Pierces disease →

  Muscadines are highly resistant; this is the main reason muscadines thrive where Vitis vinifera fails in the South

• Birds →

  Net mature vines as harvest approaches

🌾 Harvest & storage

Carlos ripens late summer through early fall (August into October in most muscadine regions). Unlike other grapes, muscadines do not all ripen together within a cluster; berries drop individually when fully ripe. Shake the vine over a tarp or pick into a bucket below the cordon for the easiest harvest. Muscadines have thick skins that slip from the seeded pulp; cooked muscadine juice and jelly are Southern classics.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

About 57 calories per 100 g with 3.9 g fiber and exceptional resveratrol levels (muscadines have 2 to 5 times the resveratrol of Vitis vinifera grapes). The thick skins are particularly rich in ellagic acid and quercetin, polyphenols studied for cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory effects.