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[Mathew Waehner <waehner@gmail.com>]

Thanks.  I missed the fact that they are "normally" dioecious.  I agree that it looks like a male M.alba x rubra.  Which is good- I'm raising some seedlings and I want more of the rubra genetics.

 

 

On Tue, May 19, 2009 at 10:20 AM, Lucky Pittman <lucky.pittman@murraystate.edu> wrote:

Mathew,
I'd be more inclined to suspect that your 'unproductive' tree is
either a male(staminate) M.alba, or perhaps an M.albaXrubra
hybrid.  M.rubra, in my experience, has very 'rough' leaves - almost
sandpapery, due to the hairs and their irregular surface.
M.alba - http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/Syllabus2/factsheet.cfm?ID=527
M.rubra - http://www.cnr.vt.edu/DENDRO/DENDROLOGY/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=58

Early in our orcharding endeavors, the wife ordered 4 'dwarf'
mulberries - I now suspect that they were just row-run M.alba
seedlings, perhaps from a 'dwarf' selection - 3 of the 4 were fairly
small-statured fruiting females producing tiny unappetizing berries -
even the birds didn't find them especially appealing; the fourth
plant was a very vigorous male that quickly grew to 15 ft before I
chainsaw-pruned it.

Broussonetia papyrifera(paper mulberry), when I've seen it - usually
growing around old homesites, or in older parts of town - rarely
achieves 'tree' stature - they're usually present as a thicket,
rarely surpassing 10-12 ft in height.  I've seen photos of the fruit,
but have never observed, in person, a fruiting female plant.
http://www.cnr.vt.edu/DENDRO/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=340
I do know some folks who've eaten the fruits - my understanding is
that they're nothing like as tasty as a decent mulberry.

Lucky

At 08:39 AM 5/19/2009, you wrote:
>I have several wild White Mulberries, and one similar, unproductive
>tree.  The mystery tree has slightly hairier leaves, but the growth
>habit, leaf structure, and bark are identical to the other
>trees.  This could indicate that it is a native red mulberry, but if
>that was the case I would expect it to produce berries like the
>other trees, since red and white mulberries can cross- pollinate.
>
>Is it possible that it is a Paper Mulberry?  Do they look exactly
>like White Mulberries except for the berries and the leaf
>hairs?  Paper mulberries are dioecious, so it could be a male tree,
>which would explain the unproductivity.
>
>Finally, are paper mulberries good to eat?  The tree does a good job
>preventing erosion, I would consider getting a female paper mulberry
>if they are worth growing.

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