Desert Wild Grape, Vitis girdiana

About Desert Wild Grape (Vitis girdiana) 37 Nurseries Carry This Plant

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Desert Wild Grape is a native vine or shrub that grows in southern California. It tends to grow in streamsides, at elevations from 0-4100 feet, but it is found in more arid areas than its close cousin, Vitis californica. It grows in southern oak woodlands, coastal sage scrub, pinyon-juniper woodland, joshua tree woodland, and riparian habitats. In the wild it tends to climb over other plants with stems reaching up to 50 ft. In the garden it can be trained to climb up a trellis, fence or wall. It is deciduous and is leafless for several months every year. The flowers are inconspicuous, followed by the edible fruits which attract many birds. It may not fruit reliably if too close to the coast.

Plant Description

Plant Type

Shrub, Vine

Size

10 - 50 ft tall

Form

Spreading

Growth Rate

Fast

Dormancy

Winter Deciduous

Fragrance

None

Flower Color

Green

Flowering Season

Spring

Wildlife Supported

Numerous birds and mammals are attracted to the fruit
Bird gardens

Butterflies & moths hosted ( 32 likely * ) SHOW ALL

White-lined Sphinx Hyles lineataHyles lineata

Polyphemus moth Antheraea polyphemusAntheraea polyphemus

Alfalfa Looper Moth Autographa californicaAutographa californica

Elegant Sheepmoth Hemileuca eglanterinaHemileuca eglanterina

Achemon Sphinx Eumorpha achemonEumorpha achemon

Lappet Moth Phyllodesma americanaPhyllodesma americana

Ipsilon Dart Agrotis ipsilonAgrotis ipsilon

Landscaping Information

Sun

Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture

Low, Moderate - High

Summer Irrigation

Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries

Carried by 37

Ease of Care

Very Easy

Cold Tolerance

Tolerates cold to 0° F

Soil Drainage

Medium

Soil Description

Tolerates a variety of soils. Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

Common uses

Groundcovers, Bird Gardens

Companion Plants

Oaks (Quercus species), Sycamore (Platanus racemosa), Salt Marsh Fleabane (Pluchea odorata), Willow (Salix species), Wild Rose (Rosa californica), Rush (Juncus species), and Willow Baccharis (Baccharis salicina)

Maintenance

Prune to train in winter when it is leafless. In spring and summer, wayward stems can be pruned off at any time.

Propagation?

Seed or cuttings

Sunset Zones?

4, 5, 6, 7*, 8*, 9*, 10*, 11*, 12*, 13*, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting

Site Type

Streamsides, springs, canyons

Climate

Annual Precipitation: 2.8" - 39.0", Summer Precipitation: 0.17" - 2.54", Coldest Month: 38.6" - 59.3", Hottest Month: 63.1" - 88.6", Humidity: 1.14" - 45.66", Elevation: 17" - 5937"

Alternative Names

Common Names: Southern California Grape, Valley Grape

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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links: Jepson eFlora Taxon Page CalPhotos Wikipedia Calflora

Desert Wild Grape

Vitis girdiana

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Desert Wild GrapeVitis girdiana

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Desert Wild Grape

Vitis girdiana