Fox grape (Vitis labrusca) — Plotwright

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Fox grape

Habit (mature) · Doug McGrady / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0

Limited coverage

Fox grape

Vitis labrusca

Native eastern North American grape vine, the genetic parent of the Concord cultivar + most American slip-skin table grapes. Vigorous climbing or sprawling vine with three-lobed leaves + clusters of dark purple-black grapes with the distinctive 'foxy' flavor. Highly cold-hardy + disease-resistant compared to European wine grape (Vitis vinifera). Important wildlife fruit resource — songbirds, deer, and mammals consume the fruit + foliage.

Native: 26 US states + 2 CA provinces

Review: Source-backed

Climate fit: moderate (69/100)

Edible

Structure

Light

Full sun

Water

Moderate water

Mature size

180-360" tall · 96" apart

Hardy in zones

5a-8b

very cold to frosty winters

Summer heat range

Cool-Hot

cool to hot summers Interim Plotwright tier until the plant AHS range is authored.

Native in Illinois

Yes

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Native across 28 US states and Canadian provinces — a wide-ranging part of North America's plant communities.

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Cold hardiness

Now

Zone 6b

USDA

Chicago, IL · 1991-2020 average annual coldest day

Source: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (1991-2020 climatology) via ArcGIS FeatureServer

Well-suited

2050

Zone 7b

Plotwright

Your zone + climate-model shift · SSP3-7.0 (regional rivalry)

Well-suited

In plain terms: cold winters — coldest nights typically around -3°F.

✓

Well-suited today and still thriving in 2050.

Heat tolerance

°C

°F

Loading current AHS heat-zone and plant heat-fit data at your coordinates…

Where this plant fits

Suitable across 40 ecoregions — 34 climate-resilient through 2070 · 5 suited today · 1 newly possible by 2070. Best matches first.

Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests

Appalachian-Blue Ridge forests

Arizona Mountains forests

Blue Mountains forests

Canadian Aspen forests and parklands

Central Pacific Northwest coastal forests

Central Tallgrass prairie

Central-Southern Cascades Forests

Colorado Rockies forests

Cross-Timbers savanna-woodland

Appears in collections

+2

Collection · 6 plants

Mediterranean drought-tolerant edible

A low-water edible palette of culinary herbs + a hardy grape for hot dry sunny sites. Mediterranean-origin plants thrive on neglect; their primary failure mode is overwatering, not underwatering.

English lavender

Rosemary

Garden sage

Oregano

Common thyme

Fox grape

Sources & citations

Cite this page

For lesson plans, articles, or research that uses this page. To cite a single upstream fact instead, use its specific source listed below.

Plotwright. (2026, May 17). Fox grape (Vitis labrusca). Retrieved 2026, June 5, from https://plotwright.garden/plants/fox-grape

Sources for every fact

Every fact on this page traces to a source. 18 fields cited — 18 source-backed.

Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder

Botanical research database

Backs 17 fields

Identity

Summary

Plant type

Light

Moisture

Hardiness

Heat zone

Size

Spacing

Habit

Design roles

Seasonal interest

Growth stages

Lifecycle

Regional guidance

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Designer notes

Wikimedia Commons

Photo · CC BY 2.0

Backs 1 field

Image

Community photos

The photos above are our reviewed reference set, curated for accuracy.

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