# mulberry



## leopard777 (Nov 19, 2014)

i read this article about mulberry , 
(Few gardeners realise that mulberries may be male, fema
le or bisexual. Commercial varieties
or those purchased from a nursery are bisexual or self pollinating, so only one tree is required
for good fruit production. If you have a tree that has grown from seed, it may occasionally turn
out to be male or female.
If it is female and there is a source of pollen available from other
nearby trees, your tree will set fruit. If your tree turns out to be male, you will never harvest
any fruit.
Male trees produce copious flowers that resemble tiny green fruit. It is ea
sy to be fooled into
thinking these flowers will ripen. Bees love male mulberry flowers, so always be suspicious of
any tree that is completely covered in bees when it flowers. When their pollen is spent, the
male flowers soon drop off and the tree develop
s its lush spring foliage canopy )

is this true ? there are male and female trees ?


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

I'm only just starting my first mulberries from saplings that were gifted to me here on the forum. So, I'm not a mulberry expert, but everything you described sounds perfectly accurate to me. There are many trees, vines, and plants that are male or female, require pollinators etc. I've also come across advertisements for fruitless mulberries, which I would assume is because they are a male variety. If you're eager for the tasty healthy fruit too, just be sure you're getting a self-pollinating variety.


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## leopard777 (Nov 19, 2014)

sure i am eager , i never tasted mulberry before  ,two of mine cutting just rooted and came alive , any tips and tricks for it to strive ?


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

I want to taste Mulberry too!!!! I'm even curious about the differences between white and black berries etc. And unfortunately you're talking to a Mulberry-newbie. I got my seedlings from @lismar79 and @Jacqui grows a bunch of them as well. We were talking about the nutritional value of mulberry leaves a while ago and it turned into kind of a nifty thread...http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...grape-and-mulberry-leaves.103122/#post-960459 people talked about growing them a bit too. It sounds like they're really hardy and can even survive in pots for decades. I'm growing seedlings and have no idea if mine will bear fruit. I'm going to grow them anyway, because the leaves are edible for torts and EVEN PEOPLE. If mine, don't bear fruit, I'll keep them for the tortoise and buy a self-pollinating variety from an online garden nursery.


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## leopard777 (Nov 19, 2014)

yes , the leaves can be deep fried or brew into a tea


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

I've heard about the tea, but didn't think about deep frying them...interesting. Have you ever eaten the leaves? 

Also, I just thought I'd mention it for fun... We started up a garden chat thread a little while ago. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/garden-chat-photos-for-torts-and-people.104546/ I've been LOVING it. Please feel free to post on it and let us know how your mulberries or anything else you grow goes for you


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## leopard777 (Nov 19, 2014)

ah not yet , i might try thou , since its so nutritious , lol i am not missing out too , heck i might even try it raw , actually i just transfer the single cutting from a water bowl into pot earlier today . still a mulberry newbie too .


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

Good luck with yours! Hopefully mine survives too


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## Iochroma (Nov 19, 2014)

Yes to the male/female/bisexual question. I would add the very important fact that _Morus_ pollen is some of the worst for allergy sufferers, so I would never plant a male selection. There are non-fruiting non-flowering clones if one just wants leaves (raising silkworms). If one wants fruit, there are named varieties that have good fruiting qualities. I personally never let seedlings live - they are just horribly irritating for people with allergies and the pollen travels far on the wind.


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## ZEROPILOT (Nov 19, 2014)

I recently purchased a self pollinating dwarf tree. It is still too small to yank off many leaves. Yes. There are male and female plants. Not just mulberry. Bees, butterflies and bats do the important part.


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

Iochroma said:


> Yes to the male/female/bisexual question. I would add the very important fact that _Morus_ pollen is some of the worst for allergy sufferers, so I would never plant a male selection. There are non-fruiting non-flowering clones if one just wants leaves (raising silkworms). If one wants fruit, there are named varieties that have good fruiting qualities. I personally never let seedlings live - they are just horribly irritating for people with allergies and the pollen travels far on the wind.


I had no idea about the pollen and allergy sufferers. I think I may have to intentionally plant some near a particular neighbor...hmm..just kidding Thanks lochroma!


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

ZEROPILOT said:


> I recently purchased a self pollinating dwarf tree. It is still too small to yank off many leaves. Yes. There are male and female plants. Not just mulberry. Bees, butterflies and bats do the important part.


Oooh you got a Dwarf mulberry!? If you happened to buy it online, I'd be grateful for a link to the nursery


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## Iochroma (Nov 19, 2014)

A weeping fruitless variety is 'Chaparral'.


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## Jacqui (Nov 19, 2014)

I bought a couple of the weeping ones a few years back (can't recall the variety) they have survived, but barely have grown. Unlike my "normal" ones which grow too fast at times.


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## ZEROPILOT (Nov 19, 2014)

Prairie Mom said:


> Oooh you got a Dwarf mulberry!? If you happened to buy it online, I'd be grateful for a link to the nursery


No, Prairie. I found it at a local nursery. It had been there so long that it blew out the bottom of the pot and had rooted deep in the ground. It looked really dead when I got it home. The fruit is black and tiny.


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## Tom (Nov 19, 2014)

Just be forewarned that fruiting mulberry trees make a huge mess. Everything on your property will be covered in purple foot prints and purple bird poop. I'd never plant a fruiting one unless it was way out in a field somewhere and not near any sort of human habitation.


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## CharlieM (Nov 19, 2014)

Prairie Mom said:


> Oooh you got a Dwarf mulberry!? If you happened to buy it online, I'd be grateful for a link to the nursery



Ebay sells them from time to time.


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## stinax182 (Nov 19, 2014)

I have a big one in my backyard.... Didn't know it was a mulberry tree til couple years ago when it sprouted fruit! @Tom is right though, the mess is bad. Ours is over rocks and every animal loves the berries. They're very good but stain everything! I made the mistake of walking around barefoot!


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## leigti (Nov 19, 2014)

I bought a dwarf fruitless mulberry tree from a site that I think was called, coastal silkworms. something like that, sorry I can't remember the exact name. now if my tortoise would just figure out that she is supposed to eat the leaves I'd have it made


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## Jacqui (Nov 19, 2014)

I don't notice the stains every where so much, but what I don't really like is all the fruit dropped under the tree. I do however love all the birds it attracts, which gives me hours upon hours of enjoyment and entertainment.


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## CharlieM (Nov 19, 2014)

leigti said:


> I bought a dwarf fruitless mulberry tree from a site that I think was called, coastal silkworms. something like that, sorry I can't remember the exact name. now if my tortoise would just figure out that she is supposed to eat the leaves I'd have it made



Coastal is a member here. I bought three weeping trees from him and gave one to Allegra. Mine are also slower to grow than other mulberry trees I have but they are in pots.


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

ZEROPILOT said:


> No, Prairie. I found it at a local nursery. It had been there so long that it blew out the bottom of the pot and had rooted deep in the ground. It looked really dead when I got it home. The fruit is black and tiny.


Darn! Thanks for letting me know. I can't believe it blew out the pot! Those are some roots! Hopefully it recovers for you.


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 19, 2014)

CharlieM said:


> Ebay sells them from time to time.


I'll check it out. Thanks!


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## ZEROPILOT (Nov 20, 2014)

I forgot to mention that our extra loud, bright green,wild parrots get most of the berries....and my grapes. Another animal from the pet trade that thrives here! They do attract birds.


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## leopard777 (Nov 20, 2014)

how tall does a dwarf mulberry grows ? and a normal one ?


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## leigti (Nov 20, 2014)

leopard777 said:


> how tall does a dwarf mulberry grows ? and a normal one ?


I don't really know, the dwarf one I bought is about 2 feet tall right now. I was told I can put it in a container if I want to. I would figure around five or 6 feet but you can keep them trimmed to whatever size you want. A regular mulberry tree gets 20 or 30 or more feet possibly.


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## ZEROPILOT (Nov 20, 2014)

My dwarf is in a very large pot and is about 6'. I think it is fully grown.


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## dmmj (Nov 20, 2014)

Dwarf treees usually reach around 8 feet, normal ones can reach 15 to 20 feet, and more, If you plant the top knot of the tree, it will no longer be dwarf, and grow to full size.


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## Jacqui (Nov 20, 2014)

The nice thing about the "normal" mulberry is it grows so fast and is easy to trim and train to what you want it to do. They don't have to grow tall, you can make the branches grow horizontally even.


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 20, 2014)

Jacqui said:


> The nice thing about the "normal" mulberry is it grows so fast and is easy to trim and train to what you want it to do. They don't have to grow tall, you can make the branches grow horizontally even.


Jacqui, do you think it would be possible to train the trees to be a shrub-like hedge? I'm also wondering if they would still fruit if I kept the tree cut back to be smaller (6-10 ft)?


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## bouaboua (Nov 20, 2014)

I hope my are fruitless one. I bought three last year.


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## Dizisdalife (Nov 21, 2014)

Mulberry leaves are one of the foods that my sulcata ate the very first time he saw them. No introduction necessary. He didn't sniff them once before starting to eat as much as I would feed him. I don't have a mulberry tree in my yard, but my neighbor has one of those 30' tall monsters. And I have a friend across town, about a 40 minute drive, that has several mature mulberry trees. Guess which leaves my sulcata prefers? Yes, the ones from my friends trees, 40 minutes from my house. In the spring when there is new growth my sulcata will eat from either tree. In summer or fall he will eat only what I bring him from my friends tree. The only difference in the two sources that I can find is that my neighbor never trims his tree and my friend cuts his all the way back to the trunk every year after the leaves have dropped. Maybe there are other differences, or my sulcata enjoys seeing my drive 40 minutes to get his food.


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## Jacqui (Nov 21, 2014)

Prairie Mom said:


> Jacqui, do you think it would be possible to train the trees to be a shrub-like hedge? I'm also wondering if they would still fruit if I kept the tree cut back to be smaller (6-10 ft)?



Yes, you could make them into a hedge, but remember you will loose all leaves in the fall. I had one I kept down to a ball shape on a trunk, but this year I let it grow out. I might try to get it back to a ball, so I could take pictures next year. I have one I have left as a shrubby bush, rather then a tree. I have several in my fence line that while not kept pruned to a hedge, are kept short to serve as a human view blocker. Each winter I cut them down to ground stubs and they come back in the spring. None of my short ones have yet fruited, so maybe because they never get any aged branches on them it stops that? Who knows. I can't recall at what height or age the one I let grow tall started producing. I don't eat mulberries, so I never paid attention.


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## Jacqui (Nov 21, 2014)

Dizisdalife said:


> . Maybe there are other differences, or my sulcata enjoys seeing my drive 40 minutes to get his food.



Maybe varieties too are different? I know I never really liked the mulberries I ever had, but when my daughter rented a house going to college, there was a mulberry tree with really good tasting fruit. I have never eaten the leaves, but I bet there is a difference in leaf taste, too.


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## Tom (Nov 21, 2014)

Dizisdalife said:


> Mulberry leaves are one of the foods that my sulcata ate the very first time he saw them. No introduction necessary. He didn't sniff them once before starting to eat as much as I would feed him. I don't have a mulberry tree in my yard, but my neighbor has one of those 30' tall monsters. And I have a friend across town, about a 40 minute drive, that has several mature mulberry trees. Guess which leaves my sulcata prefers? Yes, the ones from my friends trees, 40 minutes from my house. In the spring when there is new growth my sulcata will eat from either tree. In summer or fall he will eat only what I bring him from my friends tree. The only difference in the two sources that I can find is that my neighbor never trims his tree and my friend cuts his all the way back to the trunk every year after the leaves have dropped. Maybe there are other differences, or my sulcata enjoys seeing my drive 40 minutes to get his food.



Interesting observation Joe. My little piggies are so hungry in the summer that they gobble up any mulberry leaves I toss in. I've ben truing to figure out how much to trim my own trees back each year.


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## Tom (Nov 21, 2014)

Jacqui said:


> Maybe varieties too are different? I know I never really liked the mulberries I ever had, but when my daughter rented a house going to college, there was a mulberry tree with really good tasting fruit. I have never eaten the leaves, but I bet there is a difference in leaf taste, too.



I see a big difference in color, texture and tenderness from tree to tree. Never done a taste test though. Out here some trees stay green and hold their leaves much farther into the fall season too. Some out here grow big giant leaves too. Twice the size of my hand. My tortoises seem to like them all.


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 21, 2014)

I've been curious about White Mulberries. If anyone has tasted them, please let me know! I would assume that the white would help with staining and I've heard they're really good for you. I want the leaves for my tortoises and am interested in having fruiting varieties to taste and share with my local birds and squirrels. I've read that animals love the berries so much that people will plant them as a way of keeping animals interest in their gardens low.

(p.s. @Jacqui thanks for answering every single question I had about pruning and fruiting. I'd be curious to see the pruning you do later)


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## Yvonne G (Nov 21, 2014)

Jacqui:

The berries form on old growth. So when you cut the tree all the way back like that, you only have new growth, thus, no berries.

My tortoise partner, William, bought several of the "white" mulberry variety and planted them along the front of my Aldabran yard. He's trimming them and training them to grow horizontal branches along the fence line. The trees are not quite a year old in this picture:


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 21, 2014)

Yvonne G said:


> Jacqui:
> 
> The berries form on old growth. So when you cut the tree all the way back like that, you only have new growth, thus, no berries.
> 
> ...


Interesting! Thanks for posting this. So, if you train the branches to grow horizontally the way you and Jacqui suggested, I would assume that they would stay small, but have old enough branches to bear fruit (?)---if it works out like that, I definitely want to do this! I have way too much shade in my yard and don't really need any more huge trees, but would love to try the fruit.


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## leopard777 (Nov 21, 2014)

wow , it grows so high , but it will take how many years ? 
...looks like i have to choose a good spot to plant it into the ground .


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## Dizisdalife (Nov 21, 2014)

Jacqui said:


> Maybe varieties too are different? I know I never really liked the mulberries I ever had, but when my daughter rented a house going to college, there was a mulberry tree with really good tasting fruit. I have never eaten the leaves, but I bet there is a difference in leaf taste, too.


All of the trees that I take leaves from are fruitless. There might be a difference in species, or amount of watering they get. I doubt any of them get much watering other than the dismal amount of rainfall we have had here in Southern Cal. The texture of the leaves and the color look and feel the same. I have watched Chuck inhale a leaf the size of a catchers mitt, eat the stem and some of the new growth that produced the leaf. It's really fun to drop a freshly cut branch in his pen and watch him eat it clean.


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## leopard777 (Nov 26, 2014)

just saw this video , thats a lot sugar he adding , dont the fruit taste sweet ?


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## Prairie Mom (Nov 26, 2014)

Excellent question! I'm curious about taste also.


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