Niagara Grapes

Niagara (Concord x Cassaday). 19th century, private breeder. Niagara shows the value of advertising. There are several white American grapes with better traits, but massive advertising of the part of the breeders made Niagara into the "companion" to Concord. Excessively vigorous, it is often sold as a grape for arbors, but it soon outruns it's space. Hardy only to about -15 F, and somewhat more susceptible to disease than Concord. Very aromatic, such that you can smell it some distance from the arbor. The strong aroma is liked for juice, though. Also used in some sweet wines. It will produce well when trained to cordons with spurs, but may need to be trained to canes to load it up with enough crop to reduce the vigor. I've seen single vines of this grape trained up the side of a three story building, producing 1,000 pounds of fruit a year. A W T,J,W M