Medicinal Trees: Mulberry (Morus)

judsoncarroll4

https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/12/medicinal-trees-mulberry-morus.html

Torey

I would like to try a mulberry tree if they weren't so expensive. There is a vendor at one of the local farmers markets who started bringing limited amounts of mulberries to market. She is in a slightly warmer micro-climate than I am and as we are on the extreme edge of their range, I think that little bit of difference will make it challenging to have them survive and produce fruit in my garden. But I would try if I could find an inexpensive start.

judsoncarroll4

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/918498#Comment_918498

My problem is finding those in the wild that actually bear fruit. I am not sure why, but I seem to find about 5-1 that never seem to have any fruit.

Torey

Something that I have found out about mulberries is that while they are usually dioecious, sometimes they may be monoecious. So maybe you have a larger than usual distribution of wild male trees in your area?

judsoncarroll4

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/918508#Comment_918508

That is my theory. The deer sure love eating the leaves - they don't seem to mind the lack of berries at all!

gardneto76

@torey keep looking! People give away cuttings like crazy around here. Maybe I just hear of a large portion of them as I am part of a free Garden exchange stand where people will place anything of garden interest in/on shelves with signs for the group. The stands are listed on a group page and we often post what we are leaving where so others know where to look. Once of the few advantages of living in a city with lots of gardeners. You might ask someone that has a tree if you can have a cutting off the tree and start your own this winter.

Torey

@gardneto76 There is only the one person that I have heard of that has tried to grow mulberries here. I've never seen one at a local garden centre. The closest ones I have seen are 8 hours and several climate zones away. They are a pretty good size so I'd have difficulty getting it home. The size is part of the reason they are so expensive.

Cuttings would be a good idea but in my climate it would probably be better if I got one that already had quite a bit of root growth to enable it to survive the first few winters. Much easier, too, in larger urban settings where there might be more planted as landscape trees.

gardneto76

@torey the cuttings they give away down here to start a new tree are lucky to be 8 inches long. Many start them inside in solo cups, even with our mild winters, although my chicken food bucket was covered in ice this morning 🥶. I imagine you could get a pretty established root system by spring to plant it outside. The biggest thing I have learned in gardening is do not be afraid to try things outside of your zone or planting time, but I am sure you already know that one.