Concord Grapes Can Improve Your Memory and Fight Cancer

The purple power of the grape - especially the Concord grape - is becoming increasingly well known for the positive effects it can have on our health. The dark purple grape juice purchased in grocery stores comes from Concord grapes, and this robust, aromatic grape can help increase the daily consumption of fruits and vegetables that many of us lack. Concord grape juice is available all year round, but this is the perfect time of year to look for Concord grapes in your grocery store or at the farmers' market, as they are in season from late summer to autumn.

Although commercial grape production dates back to 1000 BC, the Concord grape made its debut in 1849 when Boston-born Ephraim Wales Bull developed the Concord grape, named after the village of Concord in Massachusetts. Since then, the variety has been an eternal favorite, from drinking the juice to enjoying the jams and jellies made from it, to eating the whole grape.

Concord Grapes for the Home Garden

Virtues: Concord grapes are easy-to-grow fruits with great sweet flavor and many uses. Eat them fresh or use them for juice, jelly, jam or dessert wine. Large heart-shape leaves and twisting branches lend visual interest in summer and winter.

concord grapes

Common name: Concord grapes

Botanical name:Vitis labrusca ‘Concord’

Exposure: Full sun to part shade

Season: Fall, for fruit

Fruit: Deep purple grapes ripen in autumn. They have a sweet flavor. These grapes develop from small, greenish, ornamentally insignificant flowers that bloom in spring.

Habit: Concord grape vines typically grow to 6 feet long with routine maintenance and annual pruning. Left to their own devices, they may reach 20 feet.