Mulberry

On the Dodona property, we have several Mulberry trees. The scientific name is Morus alba. The mulberry tree is also known as the white mulberry, common mulberry, and silkworm mulberry. The mulberry is a fast-growing, small to medium-sized tree which can grow from 33 to 66 feet tall. It is generally short-lived, although there are some specimens known to live over 250 years.

The mulberry is native to India and Central China. It has been widely cultivated and naturalized in the US, Mexico, Australia, Kyrgyzstan, Argentina, Turkey, Iran and many other countries. The tree is cultivated to feed the silkworms employed in commercial production of silk. The tree is also known for its rapid release of pollen, which is launched at greater than half the speed of sound. Its berries are edible when ripe.

On young, vigorous shoots, the leaves of the mulberry can be up to 12 inches long, and deeply and intricately lobed with rounded lobes. On older trees, the leaves are generally 2 to 6 inches long, unlobed, cordate at the base and rounded to acuminate at the tip. The leaves are serrated on the margins.

The mulberry flowers are single-sex catkins with male catkins being 0.8 to 1.4 inches long, and female catkins being 0.4 to 0.8 inches long. Male and female flowers are usually found on separate trees although they may occur on the same tree. The fruit is 0.4 to 0.6 inches long. In the wild it is deep purple but in cultivated plants it varies from white to pink. The fruit is sweet but bland on the white mulberry whereas the red and black mulberry fruit is more intense. Seeds are widely dispersed by birds who eat the fruit.

Mulberry leaves are the preferred feedstock for silkworms and are also cut for food for livestock in areas where dry seasons restrict the availability of ground vegetation. For landscaping, a fruitless mulberry was developed to provide shade without the mess of dropping fruit.