Rhonda Griffin, Staff Writer

DUBLIN — A warm Friday afternoon was the perfect time to tour one of the most beautiful places in Bladen County.

Lu Mil Vineyard in Dublin hosted a tour of the North Carolina Muscadine Grape Association (NCMGA) on Friday as a part of the organization’s two-day 34th annual meeting and trade show. More than 50 individuals who are associated with the Muscadine grape industry traveled from all regions of the North Carolina and surrounding states to take a peek at the Bladen facility located on Suggs-Taylor Road.

The group gathered under the deck beside the gift shop to enjoy a catered lunch provided by Lu Mil when they arrived. The tour through the acres of plentiful grapes at Lu Mil began with the group boarding the 1949 Leyland Double Decker English Bus the facility recently acquired from the Beaufort Historical Association.

The main topic of the annual gathering was the effects the Easter freeze had on this year’s crop, said NCMGA Executive Director Jessica Swencki. The muscadine usually produces well in areas such as Bladen, with the warm climate and sandy soils. It could be two to three years before the industry realizes the full loss the cold weather had on the muscadines.

“The Easter freeze didn’t slow people down though,” said Connie Fisk, extension associate and muscadine grape specialist with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension in Kenansville. “They’re still planting.”

The purpose of the association and its meetings is to ensure the growth of the muscadine industry and to make the berries nationally known as a home-grown North Carolina crop.

In 2002, a mere 400 acres of the state’s land was filled with muscadines, Fisk said. In only five years, she said, the industry has shown a 325 percent growth, with more than 1,300 acres now used to grow the sweet berries in Bladen, Duplin, Sampson and surrounding counties. These are also the areas that were the most highly damaged from the freezing weather around Easter of this year.

One of the many benefits of the muscadine grape, said Swencki, is that each berry is 100 percent usable. In addition to the sweet juice being used in wines, jams and juices, the skin and seeds have many uses.

The group’s tour of both the Duplin Winery and Lu Mil Vineyard on Friday also boosts the region’s agritourism. It is beneficial to the industry to have facilities such as Lu Mil that allows interested groups to tour the vineyard to learn the many benefits of muscadines and also how they can get started growing their own.

Studies are currently being conducted to clinically prove the health benefits of the grapes. Publications are expected next year, filled with hard and fast data to support what those involved with the industry already believe is true, Swencki said. These studies, she said, will be what the industry needs to keep growing.

“The tour was a good opportunity for different folks in muscadine grape business to see someone else’s crops and to evaluate the damage we had back on Easter Sunday morning,” said Lu Mil Owner Ron Taylor. “It was also beneficial to talk about the different challenges that face the muscadine grape growers.

“With all of the scientists and knowledge from several states on that tour, it gave growers an opportunity to listen to their evaluation of our crops,” he added.