Pixie Grape
The study of a prolific dwarf grape plant has led to international demand for the newly developed Pixie grape, bred for planting in ornamental gardens or even in patio plant pots.
Chandra Bierhuizen, sales and marketing manager with Sunrise Greenhouses in Ontario said it was when Daryl Somers with Vineland Research Centre had discarded the plant that things really took off.
“Robert Bierhuizen [Sunrise’s founder] was on a director’s tour at Vineland Research,” notes Chandra. “Daryl was working with the Pixie grape that he needed for research.”
The plant had been studied because of its ability to produce fruit quickly. When done with his research, Somers discarded it, but Robert saw it on the disposal pile and considered the possible ornamental potential of the plant. It was 2008 when Robert and Somers began working together to develop the Pixie grape as the first dwarf species and get it into the grape breeding program.
“The first variety to come aboard was the ‘Purple’ Pinot Meunier for a soft trial into the consumer market,” says Chandra.
Although the tiny plant is part of the Sunrise line of plants, its research has continued to be a shared project with Vineland. Prior to the soft launch in 2012, it was Vineland that put together a consumer market survey to gauge consumer interest. Soon, the plant was known everywhere.
“The results were dramatic,” Chandra notes. “We had people from all over the world calling, emailing and stopping in at Sunrise for the Pixie grape.”
New varieties are still being created.
“Hopefully we will build a series of types like your local winery,” says Chandra.
Sunrise began working to get the plant into places like France and Japan and has had a few Pixies released into the Japanese market in the past year. North American markets have been successful for the grape plant, selling everywhere from independent garden centers to large grocery stores in Canada. Plug Connections, a plant propagator and reseller out of California, managed sales and marketing for more than 40,000 of the plants to its customer base in 2015 alone.
“City dwellers are able to bring a bit of country home,” Chandra says of the plant’s success. “And for the wine lovers out there it creates a great conversation piece, plus they are edible.”
Not a bad result for the tiny plant found in the disposal pile.