Lawson Dawson is a hybrid.
Although the LD ortet is at least 15 miles from any urban/suburban setting where M.alba seems to predominate, and is surrounded, for the most part, by native M. rubra trees, it undoubtedly arose from seed deposited by a bird that had been feeding in an area where alba and rubra were growing in proximity.
I have one very productive local M.rubra, ‘Harmony Grove’ that I selected and grafted 20 yrs ago. It overhangs a county road and the pavement was stained from the fruit drop. Berries are plump and tasty, but not nearly so long as those of most hybrids. M.rubra fruit on trees in my locale seem to be firmer and slightly less juicy than hybrids like IE or Silk Hope
Sorry for the dumb question, but I went to GRIN (or what I thought was GRIN, there are like 35 different GRIN websites) and I don’t see how I can order cuttings, please advise.
On that score – I’m growing what nurseries in my area call Pakistan mulberries, but I’d love to get my hands on cuttings for DMOR9, Himalayan Red, Skinner, and any other similar varieties. (I’d be happy to pay for them.)
Is there a way anyone knows of to lengthen the fruiting season? My Pakistanis fruit for like three weeks and then all it’s all over until the next year…
Thank you
EM
GRIN is a little tricky to navigate. To request material, you have to be looking at available accessions. There are timing requirements. Generally they only send dormant cuttings.As I understand it, they (esp. Davis) have gotten much stricter about to whom they will send cuttings and for what purpose. If the material is commercially available and youre not actively doing research, your request is apt to be rejected. I think a lot of people were using it as a ready source of free scionwood. Also, i understand their funding has been diminishing
I successfully grafted 4 Varaha onto Russian mulberry rootstock this past spring. One of those are now in ground. I also have Oscar and Kokuso in ground as of June. The Kokuso appears to be dying on me. I have another established potted Oscar. I’m pondering whether to replace the Kokuso with the potted Oscar or one of the newly grafted Varahas.
I have tasted neither, although the Oscars were both loaded with berries when I had them in my garage. They dropped all by end of May, I think because of overwatering. Hoping to taste both varieties next year if all goes well.
Lucile is very transparent and honest. I haven’t tried White Ivory but have tried a number of white/lavender mulberries - Pakistan White, Hunza White seedless, Easter Egg, etc. None of them even come close to a Morus Nigra like Noir de Spain. It does take time to produce and will be quite dwarf. I would also recommend Black Pakistan and Shangri La for your zone. Both are very productive and have different flavor profiles and nicely complement each other.
those would be top of my list if climate allowed. the white and lavender types are good in their own way, but mostly of a sort, IME. I find them much less satisfying, though the better sorts are a good nibble and preferred for drying. Still, they dont hold a candle to a good sweet/tart black fruited mulberry
I have a few different kinds or what appears to me to be different kinds, growing wild about. Some fruit some don’t (female / male). This is one of them, any ideas what variety this is? I was planning on air laying the females and put them in a row with a few males. I do know one thing they grow like crazy and should be very easy to care for.
Interesting find today. A mulberry growing on the edge of the local Walmart parking lot. You just don’t see them around my parts very often, this one must be tough. This is actually the first mulberry I’ve ever tasted! I do have a couple cultivars planted but they haven’t fruited yet. It tasted ok…very sweet with little acid (I actually think it would be tastier with a little more acid) but again don’t have anything to compare it to.
I snapped a couple quick pics but had my 4 year old with me and couldn’t take the time I would have liked to really nerd out. Pretty cool non the less.
good find. makes you wonder if its planted or not. near me, Ive noticed the feral albas can be found here and there. the closer you are to asphalt, the closer you probably are to one. there are a couple of fruit on that one, arent there?
those type of albas root really easily IME. I was just grafting today onto some cuttings I rooted while grafting a bunch of potted rootstock a couple of months ago. They in turn were the prunings of last year’s rootstocks. Most albas will root in as little as a couple of weeks from semi-hardwood. I stripped the tops off of these ones before grafting them and stuck the prunings, naturally
It is completely covered in fruit. Pretty impressive actually. I had considered it being planted, it could be, but it is in a really odd spot in the tree line on the other side of the guardrail. It has half a dozen trunks and is completely untended.
Funnily enough alba is actually now illegal to propagate/sell in Maine. I do have a couple dozen seedlings I started last year as rootstock for my own use.
Correction: alba is on the “watch list” see link below.
So help me rate these mulberries.
I’m going to move Silk Hope to where I currently have Pakistan, I think Silk Hope is producing fruit and I can pick the fruit better from this location. I’m short on space. I did like Florida Giant, but now I just order a White Ivory and another Pakistan and they are just small sticks. I originally thought the other Pakistan died. But I don’t have space for Florida Giant, should I graft Florida Giant to Silk Hope?
I recently got Dwarf Everbearing and Thai Dwarf cuttings. The former are growing great. The latter refuse to break bud. I thought they were dead until I lifted them and saw a few small but healthy roots. It’s been a while since then (though they’re still alive), and to avoid losing them, I dipped their roots in rooting hormone and fertilized with 20-20. Is there anything else I can do?
