Mulberries

Mulberries are a group of deciduous trees in genus Morus, in the family Moraceae. The 10-16 species in the genus are native to warm temperate and subtropical regions of Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas, with most species native to Asia.

Mulberries are fast growing when young, but soon become slow-growing and rarely reach more than 10-15 m tall. The leaves are alternate, simple, lobed with serrated margin. The fruit is a multiple fruit, 2-3 cm long. The fruits are initially white, or green to pale yellow with red edges, then change to red, or dark purple to black when ripe. The ripe mulberries are edible, sweet flavor, and are widely used in pies, tarts, wines, and cordials.

The fruits of the black mulberry, native to southwest Asia, and the red mulberry, native to eatern North America, have the strongest flavor. The cultivar, white mulberry, has young fruit which are green, and white when ripe. This white mulberry is also sweet but has a mild flavor compared to the red variety.

Mulberries can be grown from seed, but it is easier to use large cuttings which root easily, even though seedling-grown trees are generally of better health and shape.

Mulberry is believed to have medicinal properties and the presence of anthocyanins in the fruits hold potential use as a dietary modulators of mechanisms for various diseases, and as a natural food colorant.