Description

Grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus vitis . Grapes can be eaten fresh as table grapes or they can be used for making wine, jam, grape juice, jelly, grape seed extract, raisins, vinegar and grape seed oil. Grapes are a non-climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. Grape is an important commercial fruit crop of south India. Grape growing has been regarded as most remunerative enterprise. In North India particularly, Punjab its cultivation is being taken in a big way. Due to heavy initial investment on erecting the system of training and occurrence of rains at the ripening time of grapes, the area under grapes may not increase further. In Madhurai area through staggered pruning fruit is taken throughout the year.

Characteristics:

Grape is a liana growing up to 30 m tall, with flaky bark. The leaves are alternate, palmately lobed, 5-20 cm long and broad. Flowers are borne in large inflorescences carried on stalks 4-5 cm long, often bearing unbranched tendril. Flower are bisexual or functionally pistillate with shorter sterile stamens, greenish in colour, about 1.5 x 1 mm, flower-stalk about2 mm long, wiry, elongated and thickened in fruit. Calyx is minute, cup-shaped. Petals are 5, about 1.5 mm long, lanceshaped. The fruit is a berry, known as a grape, in the wild species it is 6 mm in diameter and ripens dark purple to blackish with a pale wax bloom. In cultivated plants it is usually much larger, up to 3 cm long, and can be green, red, or purple-black. The species typically occurs in humid forests and streamsides. The grape is eaten fresh, processed to make wine or juice, or dried to produce raisins. Cultivars of Vitis vinifera form the basis of the majority of wines produced around the world. All of the familiar wine varieties belong to Vitis vinifera, which is cultivated on every continent except for Antarctica, and in all the major wine regions of the world. Grape Vine is native to the Mediterranean region, central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern Iran.

Medicinal Uses:

Generally grapes are eaten fresh as table fruit. As it contains glucose as major sugars it is easily digestible. Grapes are good source of calcium, phosphorus, iron and vitamins. The total soluble solids in different cultivars may range from 10 to 20 percent and acidity 1 to 4 percent. Fresh grapes are laxative in nature. Wine can be prepared from grape juice. Berries are used to prepare resin.