Re: Love my Mulberry tree!!!

[Dan Kaiser]

My Mulberry tree produces white fruit. They really have little or no taste, but are very sweet. Is this, indeed, a type of Mulberry?

[Pat Kiewicz]

Possibly Morus alba (white mulberry) which can be anywhere from white to red to deep purple when ripe.

M. alba very winter hardy. M. nigra is best for fruit quality (from everything I've ever read) but is not reliably winter hardy in the north.

M. rubra (red mulberry) is a North American native that has unfortunately been nearly eliminated by hybridization/competition with M. alba.

I make jelly with mulberries (black-ripening M. alba) every year.

[Turnagerg]

I would take it out now before it causes foundation problems. A mulberry tree is a beautiful thing in its place... They make a terrible mess in the yard. I planted some two years ago, but in the field away from the house.

[Bonnie Espenshade]

Groundhogs love mulberries too. We have one at the bottom of our lot. The groundhog actually climbs the tree for the berries. Once he fell on his head - it only stunned him slightly. He shook himself and slowly walked away. He puts on a show every year going far out on limbs. We just wait for him to fall again.

[Jen in Chicago]

Darnit!! Lost my first post cause I hit the back button rather than Post msg!! Grrr...

Anyway, no silly, Cedar Waxwings are a really beautiful little bird. They're shaped like a Cardinal but about the size of a Sparrow. They're berry eating birds and they travel in flocks of about 30.

Here's a really good article and a pic (to see the full body shot, click the plus sign under the headshot):

your mulberries, I love them too!

J near Chicago

[Salty Thumb]

Bonnie Espenshade wrote in news: [e-mail]:

have you figured out what that means with regards to weather? :-)

I think a groundhog knocking himself on the head would be worth at least a few extra weeks of summer rain. I wonder if he saw your shadow?

[Pat Kiewicz]

Not just the berries, either. They love the leaves. The whole plant is like candy to them.

The last groundhog that got into the veggie garden (before I reinforced the bottom of the fence) spent the morning eating the mulberry leaves from the shoots I hadn't gotten around to trimming back on one fenceline.