Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
Can't find the answer in our existing FAQs, submit a question to Mr. Smarty Plants.
Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.
From: Gage, OK
Region: Southwest
Topic: General Botany, Vines
Title: How to distinguish male and female grape vines in Gage OK.
Answered by: Jimmy Mills
Grapes are in the genus Vitis in the family Vitaceae, and there are numerous species and varieties of grapes grown in the United States. This link to okwildcrafting.com indicates at least 11 species growing in Oklahoma with the species Vitis acerfolia occurring in Ellis County.
Lets clear up a little terminology before we continue. If a plant species has flowers that contain both pistils and stamens, the flower is termed perfect, and the condition is termed monoecious (or hermaphrodite in some cases). In many cases the flowers can self pollinate. If a species have pistillate (female) flowers on one plant and staminate (male) flowers on another, the condition is termed dioecious. In this situation you would need “male plants” and “female plants” in order to produce grapes.
A widespread species of wild grape is Vitis mustangensis (Mustang grape). Looking through this link to plantsforafuture.org, we find that the mustang grape is considered monoecious (both male and female flowers on the same plant).
If you look through this article from AgriLife Extension you will find this statement
“Wild grapevines, rootstocks (and a few cultivated varieties such as St. Pepin) have either pistillate (female) or staminate male flowers -- that is, the entire vine is either male or female. Vines with female, pistillate flowers need nearby vines with staminate or perfect flowers to produce fruit. The majority of commercial grapevine varieties have perfect flowers, that is, both male and female components.”
So the situation isn't as simple as one would like. The answer to the question then is to look at the flowers, and the AgriLife Extension article has some pretty decent photos of perfect flowers. When you examine the flowers from your vines, look for the stamens and the pistils;if they are both present, you have a perfect flower; if the stamens are missing, you have a female flower and thus a female plant. It may have produced grapes last spring. If you find stamens and no pistil you have a male. You will need a magnifying glass, or hand lens, to do your examination.
For some help closer to home, you msy want to contact the folks at the Eiils County office of Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service.
Flowering vine in Tennessee
September 01, 2009 - I'm in Memphis, TN & have a flowering vine growing wild behind my A/C unit. Not the sort of vine that twines. Small blue flowers bloom out of pods; flowers only have two petals. Blooms last only one...
view the full question and answer
Native trees of Hornsby Bend in Austin, TX
April 10, 2013 - We are looking for a list of the trees occurring along and in the vicinity of the Colorado River at Hornsby Bend circa 1820.
view the full question and answer
Propagate a trumpet vine from a cutting in Toms River NJ
July 17, 2009 - Can you propagate a trumpet vine from a cutting?
view the full question and answer
Climbing plant for Maryland
December 09, 2008 - Hi I am looking for a climbing plant which is native to Maryland. I want the plant to climb up the front of the house to assist with cooling in summer and to make the house look more attractive. I wou...
view the full question and answer
Vines for a cliff in backyard
October 17, 2010 - I have a large (25 ft) cliff in my backyard. Its too large to
use a retaining wall and occasionally some of the caliche slides down. I'm planning on planting vines at the top and letting them drape...
view the full question and answer
![]() |
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. Mr. Smarty Plants wants you to be his Facebook friend. Click the Facebook icon to add yourself to Mr. Smarty Plants list of friends. |