Diamond is a diluted hybrid between Vitis labrusca and Vitis vinifera; the touch of the exotic grape given by the Vinifera parents has been just sufficient to give it the richness in flavor of the Old World grape and not overcome the refreshing sprightliness of our native fox grapes. It is without the insipid sweetness of the first or the foxiness of the latter. The Vinifera characters are wholly recessive in vine and foliage, the plant resembling very closely its American parent, Concord. Diamond is not as highly esteemed as a commercial variety as it deserves to be, for beside being of high quality the fruit packs, carries and keeps well. Were it known by consumers the demand for it would be such that it would command a fancy price and thereby more than make up for its lack in fruitfulness, but through the unfortunate condition of American fruit markets it is, more often than not, sold as Niagara and has not therefore established the reputation it should have in the markets. Diamond is in demand among wine-makers and especially for the making of champagnes. For the amateur it has few superiors, the chief drawback for the small garden being that robins prefer it to most other varieties and greatly reduce the crop. Diamond is well established in Canada and can be grown in as great a range of latitude as the Concord. The vine is as free from the attacks of fungi as the Concord but the fruit is a little more susceptible to cryptogamic diseases and especially to black-rot, though not attacked by fungi so much as Niagara.
The late Jacob Moore of Brighton, New York, originated Diamond about 1870 from Concord seed fertilized by Iona. It was introduced about 1885. It has gained in favor somewhat slowly, and was not placed on the grape list of the American Pomological Society fruit catalog until 1897.
Vine medium to vigorous, hardy, productive in most locations. Canes medium to short, not very numerous, of average thickness, brownish or with a slight reddish tinge; nodes slightly enlarged, not flattened; internodes medium to short; diaphragm intermediate in thickness; pith of medium size; shoots pubescent; tendrils intermittent, bifid.
Leaf-buds small, short, pointed to conical, open in mid-season. Young leaves tinged on lower side and along the edges with red. Leaves of average size, thick; upper surface light green, dull, nearly smooth; lower surface light bronze, downy; veins distinct; lobes usually three in number, indistinct; petiolar sinus very shallow; teeth shallow, of mean width. Flowers fertile, open early to somewhat late; stamens upright.
Fruit usually ripens slightly earlier than Niagara, keeps well. Clusters variable in size, medium to short, rather broad, somewhat blunt, cylindrical to slightly tapering, often single-shouldered, compact; peduncle short to medium, moderately thick; pedicel short and thick, covered with a few, inconspicuous warts, wide at point of attachment to berry; brush slender, of average length, pale green. Berries above medium to medium size, roundish to strongly ovate on account of compactness, green with tinge of yellow on riper berries but less yellow than Niagara, glossy, covered with thin gray bloom, persistent, rather firm. Skin thin, toughish, adheres somewhat to the pulp, contains no pigment, astringent. Flesh pale green, rather transparent, juicy, tender, inclined to melting, fine-grained, slightly aromatic, sprightly, nearly sweet next the skin to agreeably tart at center, quality very good. Seeds separate easily from the pulp, one to four, average two or three, intermediate in size, rather broad and long, moderately sharp-pointed, yellowish-brown; raphe shows as a narrow obscure groove; chalaza small, slightly above center, oval, rather obscure.
DIANA.
(Labrusca, Vinifera, Aestivalis?)
1. Mag. Hort., 10:242. 1844. 2. Horticulturist, 4:224, 535. 1849. 3. Mag. Hort., 16:28, 306, 546. 1850. 4. Am. Pom. Soc. Cat., 1854. 5. Mag. Hort., 27:6, 262, 490, 523, 531. 1861. 6. My Vineyard at Lakeview, 1866:78. 7. N. Y. Ag. Soc. Rpt., 1866:803, 881. 8. Horticulturist, 22:356. 1867. 9. Am. Jour. Hort., 5:15, 297. 1869. 10. Mich. Pom. Soc. Rpt., 1873:60. 11. Am. Pom. Soc. Rpt., 1881:37, 119, 123, 136, 153. 12. Mass. Hort. Soc. Rpt., Pt. 1:96. 1883. 13. Bush. Cat., 1883:93. fig. 14. N. Y. Sta. An. Rpt., 17:540, 543, 544, 545, 547, 554. 1898. 15. Va. Sta. Bul., 94:137. 1898. 16. Mo. Sta. Bul., 46:38, 43, 45. 1899. 17. Rural N. Y., 61:719, fig., 722. 1902.
