Thursday, June 7, 2012

Amazing! Hampton Court Grapevine

I am reading (okay, really, "reading" is not something you do with this book because it is a technical book about the anotomy and physiology of grapevines) Markus Keller's The Science of Grapevines and came across a reference to The Great Vine in London's Hampton Court Palace. There was only a little information in this book about it being the oldest living grapevine so I wanted to find out more about this oddity. (I love oddities, especially as it relates to grapes. Please see my previous blogposts on The Vix Krater and 1540 Steinwein Tasting)
There were a few places on the Internet that had information regarding The Great Vine, but one of the more comprehensive sites was called The Human Flower Project and the article can be read at this link: The Great Vine of England. I emailed Julie at The Human Flower Project to ask permission to site the article written by Jim Wandersee and Renee Clary and she graciously gave me the okay.If you are a wine aficionado in England or traveling to England, say for the summer Olympics, you should carve out a little time to visit this grapevine, planted in 1768! It is a Black Hamburg table grapevine and still produces edible grapes in the fall. Can you believe that!
Wandersee, a biologist, and Clary, a geologist, work together as EarthScholars Research Group Please visit their website to learn more about their mission.
The photo shown above is from:
The Human Flower Project, James Wandersee and Renee Clary, The Great Vine of England: All the Makings of a Marquee Plant.
Oh, the places you go and the things you learn on the Internet!

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