White Mulberry (Morus alba)

Details

Family: Moraceae

Native to eastern and central China.
Introduced into America for silkworm culture in early colonial times.
Considered a trashy or weed tree in many parts of the country including urban areas. Needs full sun and also adequate space.
Named for the color of its buds, rather than the color of its fruit. The fruits are edible by wildlife and birds, but the wild white mulberry fruits are not normally eaten by humans.
Leaves are uniquely shaped. They are variously lobed even on the same tree. Some of the leaves are mitten-shaped, while others have multiple lobes, and some may not have any lobes.

For more information, visit these sites:

https://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_moal.pdf

http://www.oplin.org/tree/fact%20pages/mulberry_white/mulberry_white.html

woods

LEARN MORE about the Woods on the Ariel-Foundation Park main site!

Credits

A special thanks to the students of the Field Botany class at Mount Vernon Nazarene University who wrote the reports on the various kinds of trees found in The Woods. These students include Chandler Cook, Grace Hall, Emily Kauble, Keith Kitchen, Madison Lotz, Kevin Maurer, Christina Norcross, Caroline Phillips, Dakoda Ramsey, Jacob Schott, Emily Smith, and Katelyn Stone.

All photos linked in this Learning Station courtesy of D. Mosher, Mount Vernon Nazarene University.

Appendix I

Plant surveys were done by the Field Botany class at Mount Vernon Nazarene University during the fall semester of 2016. A summary of the class surveys for woody plants and herbaceous plants is available.