Mulberry (Morus), or mulberry tree, is the main representative of the Mulberry family. Grows in temperate and subtropical conditions. Wild plantings of mulberry are found in Africa, Asia and North America.
The plant is valuable because of the delicious juicy fruits that ripen in the place of the inflorescences. In addition, mulberry is decorative and has beneficial properties. Plant raw materials are used in industry. The silkworm butterflies, which are responsible for the production of silk fabric, feed on the leaves of the mulberry tree.
Description of the tree
Mulberry has a wide crown of branched shoots. The height of mature trees ranges from 10-15 m. Young saplings in the first years of life maximize the crown and foliage. In one place, trees can grow for a long time. There is even mention of bicentennial and 300-year-old copies.
Branches are covered with brownish bark, which cracks over time. It begins to flake off only in old trees. Shoots are overgrown with oval leaves with a petiole base. The arrangement of the leaves is alternate. Outside and inside, the leaves are lined with relief mosaics and veins a tone lighter than the leaf blade itself. The borders are jagged, the underside is light green. The size does not exceed 15 cm.
With the arrival of April or May, small flowers form on the shoots. The stamens, showing heads from the center of the bud, gather in tiny spikelets, similar to ruffled panicles, which hang from long stems. There are monoecious and dioecious plant species. The latter include both male trees, incapable of bearing fruit, and female seedlings.
Inflorescences are pollinated by insects, pollen is also carried by the wind. Upon completion of budding, berries are formed with a diameter not exceeding 5 cm. They look like drupes, tightly pressed against each other. Drupes are attached on short legs. The color of the fruit varies from red to dark purple. There is even a white drupe. The taste of berries is sweet with sourness, reminiscent of a blackberry. The aroma is strongly pronounced. Although mulberries are not very popular, they can be eaten. The height of the tree and the size of the berries are determined by the climatic characteristics of the area where the crop is grown and the type of soil. The southern garden dwellers bring the best harvest.
Mulberry cultivation
Mulberries are grown by seed and vegetative methods. Landing arrangements will not take much time.
For sowing, freshly harvested seeds are suitable, which are pre-dried, peeled and sent to the ground in the autumn or spring. The preparatory stage of the seed is the condition of stratification. If the material is sown before winter, the seeds will be hardened in their natural environment.For planting in the spring, they are kept in a refrigerator for 4-6 weeks. When the soil is prepared, the seeds are poured into the grooves and sprayed with a growth promoter.
The mulberry growing area should be well lit. Dig grooves to a depth of at least 3 cm and distribute the achenes evenly. Cover with an earthen layer on top and mulch immediately. When the sun's rays warm up the soil, the first shoots begin to appear. Care activities include watering, weeding, fertilizing and weeding. In a few months, the seedlings will be ready for transplanting. The distances from one bush to another are maintained from 3 to 5 m, which will allow in the future to avoid the plexus of the crowns of neighboring trees. Mulberry seedlings bear fruit in 5 years.
The seed method of growing does not allow preserving varietal characteristics. The more common method is vegetative propagation.
Rooting cuttings
Cuttings are harvested in the summer. Choose green shoots with several leaves. The length of the cuttings is 15-20 cm. They are planted in greenhouses in holes dug up to a depth of 3 cm. The remaining leaves are almost halved. Rooting is faster if the soil is kept moist at all times. Some gardeners install an automatic water spray in their greenhouses, which creates a specific microclimate for the plants. In September, the roots of the plant will grow back enough and acquire shoots. They are transplanted to the site in the next season, when the seedlings get stronger.
Root offspring
Trees tend to produce root growth over time, which is used by gardeners to propagate crops. Half-meter seedlings are carefully dug out so as not to disturb the root structure, and transferred to another place. Young bushes will develop much better if you shorten them by a third.
Vaccinations
Gardeners often plant cultivated trees and shrubs on the stock. This is the name of the plant to which you want to graft the required variety. All branches are preliminarily cut on it. On a scion containing a pair of buds, sections are made obliquely. Then the sections are connected and both seedlings are wrapped with a special tape. As a rule, the splicing of mulberry varieties takes several months. When the process is successfully completed, the tape can be removed. In the grafted variety, the lower branches are cut if they begin to form.
Planting and caring for mulberries
Mulberries quickly get used to a new place if planting is postponed to a later autumn period. As soon as winter is over, the shoots will build up in mass. However, it is also allowed to carry out spring planting of mulberries, when sap flow has not yet begun through the canals of the trees. If the choice is made in favor of nurseries, here it is better to give preference to plants that have reached the age of four, which have yielded fruits.
Mulberry loves sunlight and does not tolerate drafts. The substrate must be breathable and have good fertility. Sandstone or saline soil types inhibit the plant and prevent it from developing. Poor soil types are enriched with organic matter and mineral fertilizers, for example, superphosphate.
Watering
More intensive watering is organized at the time of budding and maturation of drupes. However, excess moisture adversely affects the taste of the fruit, which becomes watery and tasteless. In July or August, trees are watered only if there is a prolonged drought.
Top dressing
Several times mulberries are fed with nitrogen fertilizers. When the season is already declining, phosphorus and potassium compounds are added to the site. To provide the roots with air access and good nutrition, the soil around the trunk circle is weeded.
Pruning
Spring maintenance of mulberries includes pruning broken and deformed branches. In the case when the purpose of growing mulberries is to obtain a harvest, it is necessary to form a bushy crown in order to simplify the collection of berries.Pruning is usually painless. Shoot recovery takes little time. Thinning and rejuvenation of the crown is a prerequisite for the full growth of the tree.
Diseases and pests
The culture is practically not susceptible to disease. However, planting mulberries in low-lying damp areas often leads to infection with powdery mildew, brown spot and bacteriosis. The danger to the leaves is the mulberry mushroom, the destruction of which is achieved by spraying the vegetative parts with fungicidal preparations.
Trees are also attacked by harmful insects. Mulberry leaves and fruits attract spider mites, American white butterfly and mulberry moth. You can stop their spread with regular insecticide treatments. Prevention begins in early spring.
Types and varieties of mulberry with photo
As for the classification differentiation, information in botanical sources is still different. Some of them mention only a few dozen species of mulberry tree, while others claim that there are about two hundred species and varieties of mulberry.
Black mulberry (Morus nigra)
The branches rise above the ground to a height of more than 10 m. The crown is covered with lush ovoid leaves. Ripe elongated drupes are sweet in taste. The varieties of this type include:
- mulberry Kherson - a frost-resistant plant with low spreading branches and juicy large drupes;
- The Black Baroness endures the winter. The berries ripen early and have a sweet and sour taste;
- Dark-skinned - a tall mulberry tree with black fruits;
- Staromoskovskaya mulberry has a spherical crown and bears fruit with medium-sized purple drupes.
White mulberry (Morus alba)
Mature trees are tall enough, covered with a layer of brown bark. Leafy branches. The size of the leaves is about 10-15 cm. The shoots that yield the harvest are shorter than the vegetative branches. White mulberry belongs to the group of dioecious plants and blooms in mid-spring. The fruits ripen in June when the weather is favorable. The shape of the berries is complex and is presented in the form of drupes up to 4 cm long, cylindrically pressed against each other, painted in white or pink. It is the sweetest of all mulberry varieties. Distinguish:
- mulberry Golden with vegetative parts of the same color;
- White honey has a spreading head of shoots and bears fruit with snow-white sweet "blackberries";
- Victoria is a medium-sized mulberry tree with juicy large berries 5 cm long;
- Weeping mulberry is valued for its decorative effect. The stems look drooping. The height of the tree does not exceed 5 m.
Red mulberry (Morus rubra)
Demonstrates frost resistance. The origin of the species begins in the corners of North America. The plant is quite compact, but the crown still takes up a lot of space. The wide leaves grow in dyne from 7 to 14 cm. The color is saturated green. Fruit ripening occurs in July. Bard drupes are small and sweet and tasty.
Useful properties of mulberry
The overgrowth of the tree contains many useful biologically active components. Mulberry fruits normalize the digestive and choleretic processes in the body, increase blood pressure and blood sugar.
Green drupes are also useful for those who have intestinal problems. Ripe fruits make the stool thinner. Decoctions are prepared on the basis of berries. They have a calming effect and help people with insomnia. Mulberry infusions charge the body with vigor and improve well-being after hard physical labor.
Not only mulberries have medicinal properties. The foliage and bark of the mulberry tree are also used to make medicinal concoctions that are effective expectorants. The green parts of the plant lower blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
Contraindications
Mulberry should be used with caution in the presence of individual intolerance to substances. Otherwise, allergic reactions may occur. Overeating berries causes diarrhea.
