Bryce has been super generous with spreading cuttings around and I am really curious to know how far it and wide it has gotten. I know it takes a few years before varieties become more widely available. Has this variety spread further than the US?
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Iām curious to know who likes it. Most reports Iāve heard have not been good.
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I have it and donāt like it.
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I have a story to tell here.
Iām a crazy mulberry collector from Russia (its northern part). In 2019 Iāve bought some cuttings at eBay, which were marked as Oscar mulberry. But they came from Thailand, and you knowā¦ locals have lots of local varieties, thus why do they grow and sell Oscar?
Anyway. That variety appeared to be insanely cool. It gives fruits just at any growth since its first days (like being grafted or so). Berries have great taste even at home growing. Iāve put it to my garden (zone 4, even 3 before nowadaysā warmth) and I dunno if it manages to overwinter here (we have up to -30 degrees of Celsius and even less). The plant is dwarfish, easy to root and looks great. It has leaves of middle size, not as big as āmacrophyllaā variety, and all of them have same shape, no āmittenā shape or āfig-leafā shape, with an elongated end of leaf. If what Iāve read about M. rubra x alba (it should have bigger cylindrical berries and elongated leaf end) is correct, than my āOscarā can be such a hybrid.
Anyway, I guess it can be the same variety. If I remember correctly, it came from Thailand too, and can have American roots too. Can anyone please watch my vid to see if my plant reminds Worldās Best? Or Oscar? Or probably anything else? It is in Russian, but thereās nothing to understand thereā¦ just watch. 56. Oscar ŠæŠ¾Š“ Š·Š°ŃŠøŃŠ¾Š¹. Š£ŃŠ¾Š¶Š°Š¹ Š² ŠæŠµŃŠ²ŃŠ¹ Š³Š¾Š“ ŠæŠ¾ŃŠ°Š“ŠŗŠø ŃŠµŠ»ŠŗŠ¾Š²ŠøŃŃ! - YouTube
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Really, why was that?
Had a look at the video. Iām no expert but it looks great!!!
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I have two guesses. First, they just wanted to sell to those who were in search for Oscar 
But second guess is that they really had Oscar from somewhere and were propagated it. But the problem is that as I have seen here, Oscars sometimes have lobed leaves, not only whole. My plant has only whole leaves without any fingers.
Oooh, I wish it can survive here.
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Pluses: extremely productive. And quite early. Quite large in size.
But the flavor is just not there. It feels like eating a wild mulberry. Of all the mulberries Iāve grown or tasted, this comes in dead last.
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Wow! Interesting. I wonder if there are regional differences that may account for lack of flavor.
fingers crossed
I would think Worldās Best would be bushier than your tree.
@Jah, Definitively worldās best is not the same as Oscar.
I have Oscar from a proved source, leaves are quite typical and telling
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OK, so my āThaiās Oscarā is neither Oscar, nor Worldās best. No matter, because it either survives our winter (to -30F/-35C) or not. If it does, it deserves a new name, possibly related to bears and balalaikas (kiddinā).
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Balalaika Mulberry. I like it
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Thatās about what I expected. Maybe if I can pull down the water level the taste will improve. Iāll find out this spring.
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Never manage to get my hand on worlds best, but Iāve heard itās quite productive but not as tasty. Maybe in different locations, soils, weather, the taste differs a bit
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IFM,
Performance of various mulberry cultivars can vary from place to place.
An old (now deceased) fruit/nut-growing friend in Flint, MI said that Illinois Everbearing was the worst mulberry heād grownā¦ but it was my best(now surpassed, IMO, by Silk Hope). He sent me HIS favoriteā¦ one heād purchased as āPakistanā, but it most definitely was notā¦ it was just so-so, certainly not up the the level - in taste or productivity - of IE, in my orchard.
Similarly, āWellingtonā mulberry generally gets good reviews; but here, it is not significantly better than any āwildā M.alba seedlingā¦ not worthy of even bothering to pick a berry, unless nothing else is ripe at the time.
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Exactly my experience, as well, Carld.
Iāve often wondered if my Wellington was mislabeled, as Iād always seen good reviews of fruit quality.
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IE here is my best taste mulberry too. I like that is not ripe all at the same time. I can pick and enjoy fresh mulberries for 1 and 1/2 months. Mulberries growing in less water and sunny area can intensify the flavor.
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