Red mulberry (Morus rubra) tree with fruit. Photo by Vern Wilkins,
Indiana University, Bugwood.org
Mulberry (Moras spp.) is a fruit producing tree that can provide gardeners tasty fruits. This tree also has a rich history.
Native red mulberry trees have been enjoyed by people in North America for centuries. On expedition in the mid-1500s De Soto observed Muskogee Indians eating dried mulberry fruits. Over winter the Iroquois mashed, dried, and stored the fruit to later add to water, making warm sauces that were occasionally mixed into cornbread. Cherokees made sweet dumplings by mixing cornbread and sugar with mulberries. The Timucua people of northeast Florida used the fruit, along with the tree's leaves and twigs, to make dyes, and the Seminoles used the branches to make bows.
The introduced white mulberry was brought from China in the early 1800s as a host plant for silk worms in hopes of establishing silk production in the United States. Trees were planted throughout the United States; however, silk production was too costly a venture. Despite the failure of the silk industry, the mulberry trees did well.
Characteristics
The mulberry plant family, Moraceae, also includes figs, jackfruit, and breadfruit. Mulberry trees produce small, sweet fruits that resemble slender blackberries. Mulberry fruits are quite popular with wildlife. Visiting creatures will reduce the harvest for your personal use, but on a good sized tree there should be enough fruits for all to enjoy.
These deciduous trees can have male and female flowers on the same plant (monoecious) or different plants (dioecious). Berries ripen in late spring or summer. If you select a dioecious type be sure you plant both a male and female tree to insure fruit production. Be sure to pay attention when purchasing trees, there are also weeping and contorted mulberry trees that are purely ornamental and do not produce fruit. Red mulberry trees and white mulberry trees can both grow quite large while black mulberry trees are generally the smallest. When considering their mature size, black mulberry trees may be the most practical choice for home gardens.
Red mulberry (Morus rubra), is a native, deciduous tree, found in moist soils from South Florida to west Texas. Also called American Mulberry, this tree grows to heights of 40 feet tall with the tree growing taller in the northern parts of its range. The pollen from male trees is extremely allergenic while female trees cause few to no allergies. These trees produce reddish or black fruits that are considered to be good quality. Red mulberry trees grow fairly quickly and are able to provide you with shade and fruit relatively soon after planting.
Despite the name, fruit from white mulberry (Morus alba) trees can actually be pink, black, purple, or white. White mulberry trees actually get their name from the color of the flower buds, not their variably colored fruits. These fruits, while sweet, are described by some as insipid when compared to red and black mulberries. Flower buds on white mulberry trees emerge a bit before those on red mulberry trees and well before those black mulberry trees. This is a large tree that grows up to 60 feet tall and has some salt and wind tolerance.
Black mulberry (Morus nigra) is native to western Asia and the Middle East. This mulberry tree produces what many consider to be the highest quality mulberry fruits. Fruit from these trees is almost without exception black. Black mulberry trees are more popular in warmer, drier areas like California; when grown in Florida, they're generally smaller with a more bush-like habit. If you're looking for a mulberry bush worthy of the nursery rhyme, black mulberry just may fit the bill.
Planting and Care
Red mulberry tree in a home landscape. Photo by T. Davis Sydnor,
The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org.
Mulberry trees can be planted in many Florida landscapes as they thrive in infertile, sandy soils, are drought tolerant after establishment, and moderately wind resistant. These trees do best in full sun to light shade. Native red mulberry trees are usually found growing in the shade of larger trees.
When choosing a location, keep in mind that fallen fruits stain the surfaces they land on, so it's best to avoid planting over driveways, sidewalks, and patios. Selecting a light-fruited cultivar can also cut down on the mess factor; look for 'Tehama' or 'King White Pakistan'.
Mulberry trees require very little maintenance; they rarely require irrigation after establishment and generally do not require fertilization. As far as pruning goes, you can perform light pruning when trees are young to help create a strong framework of branches. With a mature tree, you should only prune to remove dead or damaged wood or crossing limbs, since the wounds caused when removing a major branches are slow to callous. Be careful when pruning your tree, mulberry trees have milky sap which can causes skin rashes in some people.
Also on Gardening Solutions
- Florida's Edible Native Plants
More from UF/IFAS
Revised September 2021
By Gina Marzolo, graduate student of agricultural sciences, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, , August 2016.
Edited by Dan Lee, communications specialist – College of Agriculture, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, August 2016.
Introduction
Mulberries are the fruit from mulberry trees, which are in the Moraceae family. The three most common commercial mulberry species include white mulberry (Morus alba), black mulberry (Morus nigra), and red mulberry (Morus rubra) all having multiple cultivars (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997).
White mulberry is native to eastern and central China; red mulberry is native to areas of the central and eastern United States; and black mulberry is native to western Asia (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997).
Mulberry fruits range in size and length, but most resemble the size of a blackberry. Depending on the variety and ripeness, mulberries can exhibit an extremely sweet flavor to a tangy sweet flavor (McNatt, 2019). Fruits from black mulberry are said to have the best flavor with an equal blend of sweet and tart. The name of the mulberry species does not necessarily reflect the color of the fruit: for example, fruit from white mulberry can be white, lavender or black, while fruit from red mulberry can be a deep red color to almost black (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997)
Marketing Channels
Depending on the species, mulberries in the United States ripen during the spring or summer season. White and red mulberries are usually ready for harvest by late spring, whereas black mulberries do not ripen until mid to late summer (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997).
Mulberries are a very delicate fruit. For this reason, they have been lacking as a commercial commodity. However, U.S. demand for fresh mulberries is increasing, especially by high-end restaurant chefs in California, and the price received for mulberries can be as high as $10 to $15 per pound (Avakian and Martin, 2016). Fresh mulberries are best sold locally through farm stands, farmers’ markets, specialty grocery stores and/or restaurants.
Mulberries are a familiar fruit for many people from the Middle East, Central Asia, the Caucasus and the Far East, thus possibly a niche market for the crop (Bahrampour, 2010) (“What is Niche Marketing?” – Penn State Extension, n.d.).
Another marketing opportunity with mulberries could be advertising their nutritive benefits. Dark-hued mulberries are rich in anthocyanins. Anthocyanin pigment is common in a variety of fruits and vegetables that contain a red, purple or blue color such as blueberries, blackberries, red cabbage and eggplant (Butelli, et al, 2016). Research has shown that anthocyanins have many health benefits, such as anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties, and properties that can aid in lowering diabetes risk (Pojer, et al, 2013).
Selling an intriguing variety such as Pakistan mulberry (Morus macroura var. Pakistan) can also pique customers’ interest. Pakistan mulberries are longer than most mulberries, and their skin is firmer, thus easier to transport and package. They exhibit a deep red to almost black color and have a tremendously rich sweet flavor (Karp, 2020).
Mulberries can also be dried, frozen, or processed to add value. Mulberries have been processed into products such as baked goods (cakes, cookies, pies, etc.), jams, juice, paste and pulps, syrup, and wine (Karp, 2020).
Production
Generally, mulberry orchards have been in production not for their fruit, but for their foliage. In nature, certain insects are host specific, meaning that they only feed on a specific type of plant. This is the case with silkworms (Machii, 2002). Rearing silkworms has been a practice for millenniums and is called sericulture. The current top countries growing mulberry trees for sericulture are China, followed by India and Japan (Singhal et al, 2010). White mulberry trees were initially introduced into the United States for sericulture, but that commercial venture did not pan out (Wyss, 2010).
Mulberry leaves are also favorably palatable and easy to digest by herbivorous animals, thus many countries (especially Latin American countries) use the leaves as the main forage for goats, sheep, and rabbits as well as a supplement in forage for cows (Sánchez, 2002).
The commercial production of mulberry trees for their fruit has only been considered within the last two decades (Singhal et al, 2010) (Machii et al, 2002). Mulberry trees take approximately 10 years to produce fruit from the seedling stage; however, propagated or grafted varieties could produce fruit sooner (Doxon, n.d.).
Exports/Imports/United States Consumption
For the 2015 market year, the United States imported almost 3.4 million pounds of frozen mulberries valued at $2.6 million. The two main countries providing frozen mulberries were China closely followed by Chile (“Fruit and Tree” – ERS, 2021).
There is currently no United States export or import data available on mulberries reported through the United States Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS, 2021).
Management
Mulberry trees can be monoecious (male and female flowers on the same tree) or dioecious (all male or all female flowers on separate trees). However, it must be cautioned that stress can cause a mulberry tree to switch sex. Therefore, purchasing dioecious mulberry trees is a safer bet for fruit production, as they also do not require cross-pollination for fruit set (Doxon, n.d.) (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997).
White and red mulberry species grow in a natural tree form, although pruning can increase fruit production. Black mulberry tends to grow in a shrub form and thus needs to be trained as a tree (Doxon, n.d.).
Mulberry trees are very drought tolerant; however, irrigation is recommended to prevent premature fruit drop, especially during drier seasons (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997).
Currently, the most common method of harvesting mulberry is by physically shaking the branches to release the fruit. There is the potential of mechanical harvesting by using machines that shake the tree, similar to those used in harvesting tart cherries for processing (“Mulberry” – UnCommon Fruit, 2013).
Mulberries can be grown in many different areas of the United States. One of the major considerations when starting any fruit tree orchard are the plants required chill hours and frost concerns. Mulberries require approximately 400 chill hours to induce flowering (number of hours between 32 to45 degrees Fahrenheit) (Jones and Costello, 2007). White mulberry and red mulberry species can both tolerate subzero temperatures, with white mulberry being able to withstand temperatures as low as -25 degrees Fahrenheit. Black mulberry is the least cold tolerant of the three species and will be damaged below subzero temperatures (“Mulberry” – CRFG, 1997).
Financial
There are currently no mulberry enterprise budgets available due to mulberry being a minor fruit crop.
Sources
Avakian, T. and Martin, E. (2016). What it’s like to eat at the best restaurant in California, where a meal will cost you $310 a person, Business Insider – Finance.
Bahrampour, T. (2010). In Washington, mulberry trees offer many immigrants a taste of home, The Washington Post.
Butelli, E., Licciardello, C., Zhang, Y., Liu, J., Mackay, S., Bailey, P., Reforgiato-Recupero, G., and Martin, C. (2016). Retrotransposons Control Fruit-Specific, Cold-Dependent Accumulation of Anthocyanins in Blood Oranges, Plant Cell, 24: 1242-1255.
Doxon, L. (n.d.). Mulberry pruning and the bearing of fruit, SFGate.
Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) – Global Agricultural Trade System (GATS), USDA, 2021.
Fruit and Tree Nut Data USDA Economic Research Service (ERS), 2021.
Karp, D. (2020). Market Watch: Deliciously strange Pakistan mulberries, Los Angeles Times.
Jones, K.S., and Costello, L.R. (2007). Selecting fruit, nut and berry crops for home gardens in San Mateo and San Francisco counties, University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
Machii, H., Koyama, A., and Yamanouchi, H. (2002). Mulberry breeding, cultivation and utilization in Japan, Animal Production and Health Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
McNatt, C. (2019). Mulberries sweet, but beware trees’ dark side, The Orange County Register.
Mulberry, California Rare Fruit Growers (CRFG), 1997
Mulberry, University of California Integrated Pest Management Program, 2016.
Pojer, E., Mattivi, F., Johnson, D., and Stockley, C.S. (2013). The Case for Anthocyanin Consumption to Promote Human Health: A Review, Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 12: 483-508.
Sánchez, M.D. (2002). Mulberry: an exceptional forage available almost worldwide!, Animal Production and Health Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is niche marketing?, Penn State Extension, 2016.
Wyss, B. (2010). Connecticut’s Mulberry Craze, Connecticut Explored 8(3).