Arkansas wine and juice lovers are about to have a new reason to raise a glass. The state’s fruit breeders have unveiled fresh varieties that stretch the harvest season by withstanding colder temperatures.
The two muscadine varieties, profiled here by FoodPrint, are a nod to the past. Known as Mighty Fine and Altus, the muscadines have been grown in Arkansas before. But the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station developed versions that survive cold snaps, which often damage legacy varieties, the University of Arkansas reported.
In fact, past cold seasons had nearly obliterated muscadine crops. In April 2021, an overnight freeze in Arkansas resulted in “total crop loss for the season and possibly next season in many northern parts of the state,” said Amanda McWhirt, extension horticultural crop specialist for the UA System Division of Agriculture, per Fruit Growers News…