Mulberry - Morus spp.

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Mulberry - Morus spp.

By goodadmin | September 16, 2007

By steve stamos

The Mulberry is a genus of 15 species of deciduous trees of varying sizes, native to warm moderate and the semitropical areas of Asia, Africa and North America, with the bulk of the species indigenous to Asia. The following species are those commonly accepted and most familiar species:

White Mulberry - Morus alba
Chinese Mulberry - Morus australis
African Mulberry - Morus mesozygia
Texas Mulberry - Morus microphylla
Black Mulberry - Morus nigra
Red Mulberry - Morus rubra

The white mulberries can grow up to 25 meters but is the most inconsistent in form. The red mulberry can reach 20 meters in height while the black mulberry is the smallest and can grow up to 10 meters. The species vary greatly also in longevity. The red mulberry seldom lives more than 75 years, while the black mulberry has been known to bear fruit for hundreds of years. In general the mulberry makes an attractive tree which will bear fruit while still small and young.

The leaves of the mulberry tree are thin, shiny, light green diversely lobed even on the same tree. A few leaves are unlobed although others are glove-shaped. The red mulberry leaves are bigger and thicker and often lobed. They are rough on their top and hairy underneath. The smaller black mulberry leaves are alike to those of the red mulberry, only with stouter twigs and fatter buds. The species vary in the season they begin to leaf-out. White mulberries typically come out in early spring, nearly two months ahead of black mulberries.

Mulberry trees produce blossoms that are either dioecious or monoecious, and some of the times will convert from one sex to another. The flowers are hung on short, green, drooping, ordinary catkins that appear on current season’s growth and also on spurs of older wood. They are wind pollinated and cross-pollination is not necessary.

The fruit, botanically speaking, isn’t a berry but a clustered fruit. The color of the fruit does not identify the mulberry species, for instance, white mulberries can produce white, lavender like or black fruit.

Mulberry Trees produce pleasant-tasting juicy blood-red, black, red or white fruit that is seldom seen on the supermarket shelves. They mature over an extended period of time contrary to a lot of other fruits which appear to come all together.

Mulberries require full sun and also enough space to grow. They favor a warm, well-drained soil, preferably a thick loam. Although fairly drought-resistant, mulberries require some watering in dry times of the year. During drought, the fruit is likely to drop before it has fully ripened. Mulberries in general flourish with minimum fertilization.

Mulberries can be grown from seed, but plants can take several years to bear. Seeds should be sown as soon as extracted from the fruit. Sprig budding is the most common technique for grafting mulberries.

The berries can be consumed fresh or any way that berries are used, including in pies, tarts, puddings or as a sauce. Slightly unripe fruits are better for making pies and tarts. Mulberries mix well with other fruits. They can as well be made into wine and make a first-class dried fruit, specially the black varieties. For an easy to grow fruit tree that will reward you with crops of fresh fruit in spring, mulberries are a must in the garden.

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