How do you recognise White mulberry (Morus alba)?

Leaf

Mathieu Menand, Tela Botanica · CC BY-SA 2.0

White mulberry

Morus alba L.

Family: Moraceae

8 to 15 m tall

Planted as a street tree and in gardens, also naturalised in the south

Flowering: April – May

Full sun

Hardy, to about -20°C

❓ How do you recognise this plant?

White mulberry was planted by the million in France from the 16th to the 19th century to feed silkworms, for which it is the only food — the rise of silk farming, notably in the Cévennes, owes everything to this tree. White mulberry has fruits that stay white to pinkish even when ripe and paler bark, whereas black mulberry produces fruits that turn black when ripe.

🍃 Leaves

Deciduous, ovate, glossy, toothed, the historic food of the silkworm

🌸 Flowers

Small, greenish, inconspicuous, grouped in catkins; monoecious or dioecious depending on the individual

🍎 Fruits

Elongated false berry, white to pinkish when ripe, sweet but only mildly tart

🪵 Bark

Grey, cracking slightly with age

🗺️ Distribution

Native to China; widely planted in France, notably in the south where it was grown for silk farming

🐝 Value for pollinators

Mainly wind-pollinated, little interest for pollinators

✂️ Horticultural uses

Tree historically planted to feed silkworms, also planted as a street tree for its shade

⚠️ Possible toxicity

Ripe fruit edible; unripe fruits and leaves may cause mild digestive upset

🌱 Known cultivars

'Pendula'

The cultivar 'Pendula' has a characteristic weeping habit, with branches cascading down to the ground, totally different from the upright habit of the type species.