Mine can be as cold as 5b. I would rather not take a risk.
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Whatâs your location Robert?
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West of Leesburg VA, near the MD/VA/WV triangle.
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I had one in a pot for three years, but never produced anything. So, I put it in the ground last year and three quarters of it died in the winter. I agree it is a very vigorous grower. Will keep it for 2-3 more years, if it produces nothing, I will let the deer feast on it! I am in Sandy Hook, CT, zone 6b.
Mine really has not taken much damage. I got a little die back from where I cut scions, but the thing puts on like 4-6 feet of growth with no problem. Mine is on itâs own roots which is why I suspect I am not seeing any fruit yet as well. I think itâs on 4th year and itâs like 15 foot after cutting it back last year.
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I planted a 1-inch caliper pakistani mulberry in Spring 2021 and it suffered a complete top death. Later that spring, from the roots it sprang shoots which grew 3 feet before being totally destroyed by deer. I was pretty sure it was a goner since I saw no further activity after summer 2021.
Fast forward to today, I noticed the new shoots growing from the roots again! This tree has some serious tenacity for life. Very much unlike the cherries, plums, apples, and pears trees that decided life wasnât worthwhile anymore for themâŚ
An update for 2022âŚ
1.) Oscar (clear winner, great fruit)
2.) Illinois Everbearing (very similar to Oscar, but missing a bit of flavor and definitely doesnât taste as good when red (not sweet enough))
3.) Pakistan (large sweet, juicy and a bit tender)
4.) Wellington (smaller, not quite as sweet Pakistan, though it is much more productive)
5.) Kokuso (similar to Wellington- mildly sweet, a bit boring, but productive. May be slightly more productive and slightly lower quality than Wellington)
Wellington and Kokuso swapped spots, but are pretty close in the standings IMO. Kind of funny- I was at a rental with a mulberry and mistakenly remembered that the fruit was Kokuso (an easy mistake, as Kokuso and Wellington are both very productive). Even though I ignored most of them (focusing on Oscar), I sampled a few berries and thought âHmmâŚKokuso can be better than I thought. Still not close to Oscar, but maybe I should pick some of theseâŚâ). Then, when I got home, I looked it up and realized that it was Wellington, not Kokuso. So, based on my âblindâ test, Iâm swapping them 
Taiwanese Everbearing falls from the number 2 spot by dying and proving that it is not âEverbearingâ. It was a rather large graft and it seems like the whole thing died. I guess it just means that there is more room for Pakistan on that tree, which was getting shaded by TEâŚ
This year is the 2nd year Iâve been able to sneak more an a handful of mulberries away from the wildlife. I think itâs a combination of taking out many (most, I hope) of the chipmunks and the trees growing enough to produce enough to survive the birds and squirrels. Though a neighbor told me they saw almost 10 squirrels in one of the trees when they were walking by the other day (tree is by the road). And I did scare a chipmunk out of it the other day, so they are still getting eaten at a good clip.
For this reason alone, I may keep Kokuso. It is a very productive tree and Iâm happy if the creatures fill up on it, rather than discovering the more scarce Oscar and Illinois Everbearing.
Wellington serves the same purpose as Oscar, but at a rental property where the tree has both. Wellington is more productive, but inferior fruit.
You can see straw in one of the above pics. At this property, about 1/3 of the front yard doesnât keep a lawn. It has a yellow flower in spring, then all the green dies and it becomes a dust-bowl. So, Iâve added a bit of grass seed to see if I can get something more permanent started.
Geraldi isnât ripe yet- maybe another weekâŚ
Pakistan is a bit later than the others (though not as late as Geraldi), with the first berries ripening today, over a week since Oscar, Kokuso, etc.
The fruit is sweet and juicy/meaty and while I like both Oscar and IE better, I can see why someone who doesnât like any tart in their fruit might prefer Pakistan. Not all that productive though- this is probably 1/4 of all the fruit on the rather large graftâŚ
And then of course, I had to pick some underipe as well. This was from closer to the start of the season, when I wasnât sure how many would escape the wildlife.
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Bob,
Is Silk Hope in your collection?
How well do mulberries (non dwarfing varieties) produce in pots?
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And what about the king of mulberries Morus nigra aka black mulberry?? Could be zone pushing for you but worth a tryâŚ
My two Paks attracted so many squirrels this year that a pair of Cooperâs hawks built a nest in my mango tree. But it was too late. The damage had already been doneâŚi still managed to get a few fruits
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Iâve had one for a number of years (purchased 2012 as âPersian Blackâ from Burnt Ridge) and another at a rental. The one at home died back once (2016 maybe), but it came back. Neither has been all that productive or large (from memory, maybe 6â tall).
I checked it yesterday and meant to include the pic. None of the fruit I saw was ripe yet (or something eats it right awayâŚ). Iâve had a few in the past and donât remember being as impressed as MNâs reputation would suggest.
It seems something munched on the leaves. Maybe Morus Nigra leaves are tastier than the other mulberries, as I donât think any of them lost leaves.
I havenât tried growing a full-size mulberry in a pot for long, but I wouldnât expect it to work very well. I remember a picture @alan posted on Gardenweb (now Houzz) about 10 years ago where a relatively small mulberry had 6â+ long roots. In a post, he also said:
I would say that mulberries have the highest root to top ratio of any species I manage
Well, I did a bit of digging and was able to find some pics, which Alan still has shared.
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my mulberry tree is about 5 years old, itâs a white mulberry of unknown species. it hasnât flowered or fruited at all yet, not once. I may have to pull it and try with another.
the mother tree it was a rooted cutting from has tons of berries.
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I do, hereâs the tree, a closer photo of the leaves, and the trunk. it seems healthy, it was trimmed at the tips last year. it gets mulch and a little fruit fert now and then. the mama is alive and producing in grass in a spot beside a road with no help lol
this was a sucker about 3 feet long when I rooted it. cut from the mama base. there were other suckers too and weâve picked berries from them over the years so I didnât think it could be some other kind of tree
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Correction- a newly grafted seedling also lost the leaves off the new grafts. Looks like something tall came through (tree was 4-5â tall and was eaten to the top), probably a deer.
No, I remember grafting it years ago, but I donât think it made it.
I looked earlier in this thread and I see that youâve grown it and lump it with IE and Wellington, which seems a pretty wide range in acid levels. Where on that spectrum does Silk Hope fall?
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That looks like a female to me i bet it fruits soon. Mulberries frequently switch sex. Worst case scenario you could graft the mother mulberry to thos tree.
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I like Silk hope the best,but only had a few IE,so comparing them is difficult.
My Wellington has decent flavor and has a kind of chewy,almost rubbery texture.
Geraldi was just okay,but could get some sweetness at times.
Reviving this thread, full of useful information for someone starting off with mulberries.
I have a few Oscars and a Kokuso that Iâm planning to put in the ground next spring.
I am still searching for the ultimate Morus Nigra that can withstand the weather here in zone 6b MA. Not sure if this variety even exists. Black Beauty is the closest thing that has appeared on my radar. By the accounts of several reports, it might not even be a M. Nigra. Couldnât find a better forum on the internet to continue my searchâŚ.
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