No one knows when man learned to make silk fabric from threads produced by the silkworm. Mulberry or mulberry leaves serve as food for silkworms.

People have been growing mulberries ever since they learned how to make silk. Since then, mulberry has been and is a desired delicacy for people.

Juicy, sweet, healing mulberries are an excellent delicacy. They are also suitable for processing - aromatic, healing wine, juice, compotes, preserves; when dried and fried, mulberries are tasty and healthy. And the harvests are abundant and regular. Harvesting the berries, which ripen over several weeks from late May to July, is very easy - from time to time, shaking the ripe crop onto a tarpaulin, matting or film previously spread under the tree.

The genus of mulberry (mulberry) - Moms has up to 20 species, mostly plants of the tropics and subtropics, and only some species can grow in warm-temperate climates. White mulberry easily tolerates frosts down to 30° Moms alba. This is a fast growing tree with a dense spherical crown, in old trees, often spreading. The bark of the trunk is brown, fissured, young branches are gray-green to red-brown. Leaves on one tree vary in configuration from entire oval to lobed dissected. In summer they are dark green, and in autumn they are straw yellow.
Mulberry is durable - lives up to 200-300 years or more.

It tolerates drought well and has significant salt resistance. It is unpretentious to the soil and therefore is often used for forest reclamation purposes - to stabilize sandy slopes and ravines. Mulberry is no less valuable for landscaping in urban environments due to its resistance to air pollution by smog and dust. It tolerates regular pruning well, often acquiring a weeping, spherical or shrubby form. In landscape construction, it is used for alleys, single and group plantings, and when creating dense hedges.
The berries are white, red and black, from 1 to 5 cm long, reminiscent large fruits raspberries or blackberries.

Mulberries are propagated both seeds and vegetative way, i.e. grafting, cuttings, layering. I managed to master mulberry propagation. Seedlings are sold in spring and autumn. IN at a young age mulberry easily tolerates transplantation.

In the spring, seedlings are planted before buds open or in the fall 1-1.5 months before the onset of persistent cold weather. In advance of boarding sunny place dig holes 50x50x50, fill with fertile soil, humus, sprinkles or compost. Then the seedlings are planted, watering abundantly when planting. The tree trunk circle is carefully mulched to prevent the soil from drying out. In the first two years, the crown is formed. Subsequently, sanitary pruning is carried out - dry, broken branches growing inside the crown are removed.

Over the years, you can apply pruning to the transitional branch in order to reduce the crown, because in nature mature tree reaches a height of 20 m and will be inconvenient for harvesting.

The height is advisable up to 5-6 m. In some years, freezing of young branches is possible, but after pruning to living wood, the tree quickly grows back and restores its former productivity.
Hurry up to plant a mulberry tree on your site, and it will generously give you both thick shade and delicious delicacy for many years.

Children and grandchildren will remember you.

Additional interesting information for mulberry:

By the way: the Colorado potato beetle does not like mulberries - for 2 years I have been planting potatoes in early spring under a film for myself to eat the young ones. And somehow I noticed that there were no Colorado potato beetles on her at all. The neighbors are tormented - they poison them with chemicals, collect larvae, but on my potatoes - no matter what! And I'm sure it comes from mulberry leaves.

We have a mulberry growing on our street with very large leaves. Passers-by sometimes freeze in bewilderment: what kind of tree is this? But when the berries are ripe, the kids sit on the branches like starlings. The berries are large, juicy, sweet.

So, in the fall I collect all the fallen leaves in bags, and in the spring I dig a ditch, put leaves in it, add a little ash and nitroammophoska and cover it with earth. The leaves rot, providing warmth and fertilizer, especially since under the film the potatoes ripen early, tasty, and large. And most importantly - without Colorado.

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Probably everyone knows what delicious fruits mulberries produce, but many mistakenly believe that caring for them requires special skills. We will dispel this myth, because mulberries can be successfully grown in our country, and there is nothing exotic about it.

Necessary conditions for growing mulberries

Planting mulberries and further care the trees behind it are so simple that people call it “a tree for the lazy.” Anyone can grow it on their own plot, and without making much effort. TO environment it is very unpretentious. Even the mulberry, which is grown and cared for in the middle zone, will produce a small but stable harvest every year.

Did you know? Residents of the east consider the mulberry tree to be a sacred tree. A table was placed under it, and the whole family spent time at it. They also made a bed under the mulberry tree. Amulets made from mulberry wood are traditional amulets for women of the East.

Lighting

Mulberries should be planted in places with good lighting, where northern and eastern winds do not blow. If necessary, you can build an improvised defense against them.

Temperature

The tree grows quickly, is resistant to drought and does not suffer even from severe frosts. It can withstand cold temperatures down to -30°C.

Important! During the growing season, frozen annual shoots are quickly restored.

The soil

Mulberries can be planted in 90% of soils. But, of course, it will bear fruit well only on fertile soils that are rich in nutrients and substances. It is strictly forbidden to plant these trees in wetlands and damp lowlands. Most suitable option the soils will become good drainage and high ability to retain moisture. When planting mulberry trees, take into account that they grow over time, so the distance between seedlings should be left up to 6 m.

Did you know? The mulberry is called the “queen of berries,” and the tree itself has been revered since ancient times as the “tree of life.” According to legends, the mulberry tree is endowed with powers that drive away evil spirits. Mulberry also symbolizes hard work and respect for parents.

How to plant mulberries?

Growing mulberry, like any other tree, begins with planting, which is best done in mid-spring, namely in April, before sap flow begins. The second option is mid-autumn before the start of the rainy season.

Important! Gardeners with extensive experience recommend planting mulberries in the fall. Because the plant that survived the winter in early age, will live a long time.

To choose the right place to plant a tree, you need to take into account its preferences. Mulberry, as mulberry is also called, does not like excess moisture, so planting and further caring for it should begin with determining suitable soil. Deposits groundwater should not exceed one and a half meters. The planting pit must be prepared two weeks before planting the tree. Its size directly depends on the root system of the seedling. The tree should not be placed end-to-end in the hole, but freely.

The average pit size is approximately 50cm³. If the soil in which the tree is planted is poor in nutrients , the hole needs to be made wider and deeper so that up to 7 kg of compost mixed with 100 grams of superphosphate can be placed at the bottom. The fertilizer is then covered with a layer of soil.

Its thickness should be such that the roots of the plant do not come into contact with fertilizers. After two weeks you can plant the mulberry tree. Its roots need to be straightened and dug in, shaking the trunk. This is necessary in order to remove excess voids from the soil.

Important! When the roots along with the hole are completely filled, the soil should be compacted and the seedling should be watered with 20 liters of water. When the water is completely absorbed, you need to mulch the tree trunk circle.

If the tree being planted is not yet strong enough, then before planting it it is necessary to drive a support into the bottom of the pit. It will serve as a kind of holder for the seedling. The tree needs to be tied to it. If clay soil is chosen for planting mulberries, then you need to throw broken bricks at the bottom of the hole for drainage. As mentioned above, mulberries are planted twice a year: in spring and autumn.

Planting during these periods is almost identical. But usually in the fall they dig a pit for planting, put nutrients in it and leave it until spring. But in April the planting is completed.

Features of wood care Once the tree is planted, you need to know how to further care for the mulberry. The main thing is to implement abundant watering

tree during the period of active development, especially when the buds are blooming. It is also important to feed the plant.

Pruning rules Like any other tree, the mulberry tree needs pruning. This is best done during periods of rest. The most painless mulberry pruning occurs in the spring. From the end of April to the beginning of May, when the buds have not yet blossomed, two types of pruning are carried out: formative and rejuvenating. The third - sanitary - pruning is carried out in the fall, when all the leaves have already fallen. But the air temperature should not be lower than -10°C. Different types

Important! Mulberries need to be pruned differently. As a rule, the crown of the weeping mulberry is thinned out and the shoots and branches are shortened.

A crown is formed in a stamped mulberry. They leave a long bare trunk, and at the top - a thick sphere-like cap or cascade of branches. The decorative mulberry tree is the most difficult to form. Trunk young tree cleared of branches to a level of up to 1.5 m from the ground. You can let the crown grow naturally. If you want to grow a dwarf tree, then cut the apical shoot at a height of about 1.5 m and form a skeleton of ten branches. Then you will only need to maintain the shape of the crown by cutting off unnecessary shoots. Penetrating branches do not need to be disturbed; they can simply be supported.

When the time comes to prepare the mulberry tree for wintering, sanitary pruning is carried out. During this procedure, all diseased, dead and too weak branches and shoots are cut off. Sanitary pruning is usually not necessary every year.

Soil care

To ensure that the mulberry gets sick less and is not attacked by pests, the tree trunk is treated with fungicides and insecticides for preventive purposes. It is better to do this in early April, while the buds have not yet woken up, and in October at the end of the growing season. Good remedy against diseases and pests - this is Nitrafen.

In the spring, it is better to treat the tree and add seven percent urea to the soil. It will destroy all pathogenic elements and insect larvae that are buried in the soil and in the bark of the mulberry tree. The plant will also be fed with nitrogen fertilizer, which is so necessary for the mulberry this season.

In order for mulberries to adapt to severe frosts, they need to be watered from spring to mid-summer, only when the weather is dry. Afterwards, watering should be stopped. If spring is rich in rain, then it is not needed. At the same time, the mulberry tree needs to be fed. In early spring Fertilizers with a nitrogen component must be added to the soil, and in the summer - with potassium and phosphate.

How to prepare mulberries for winter?

The mulberry tree is prepared for wintering already in mid-autumn by bending the branches to the ground. This procedure will not be difficult, since young mulberries are quite flexible. But since the mulberry grows quite large, in the future it is better to place the skeletal branches horizontally, and bend only the young branches.

For the first three years, it is advisable to wrap the trunk and main branches with covering material in several layers. It depends on the severity winter frosts. Then you need to throw it on the tree, spreading poison under it for winter rodents, which can greatly harm the tree. To prevent winds from blowing away the protective coating, it must be weighed down with something heavy, for example, pipes, boards or bricks. You need to remove the mulberry cover in May, when the spring night frosts end.

If you do not take into account the bending of young branches and manipulations with protective coating, then caring for a mulberry tree and preparing it for wintering is no different from the usual agricultural practices of apple trees.

Did you know? There is one beautiful legend about the beginning of silk production associated with the mulberry tree. Princess Xi Ling Shi was resting under a large mulberry tree when a cocoon fell into her cup of tea. In the hot drink, it unraveled into shiny threads with iridescence. This is how China acquired one of its main secrets: the small, inconspicuous silkworm caterpillar that lives on the mulberry tree is a source of valuable material from which almost priceless fabrics can be made.

When and how to harvest?

The mulberry produces its first fruits already in the third year. Only the berries are still small. They become larger after another five to six years. But there are ways to speed up this process. In the spring, you need to graft a shoot from the mother tree onto the seedling. Harvesting mulberries is the greatest pleasure, because you don’t have to climb a tree. When the berries ripen, they fall off on their own. On the ground under the tree you only need to spread a thick fabric, for example, spunbond. Mulberries are very juicy and sweet and can reach 5 cm in length. It all depends on the variety.

Mulberry propagation

The mulberry tree reproduces both by seeds and vegetatively.

Seeds

Mulberry propagation by seeds is the easiest way for all types of this tree. You just need to take a handful of berries of the chosen variety, put them in a container and leave them in the sun to ferment. Then you need to mix the seeds well in water and drain the water with the empty shells. Then add water again and pass through a fine mesh strainer. Then wipe and rinse again. Repeat until only clean seeds without pulp remain.

Afterwards, they should be dried well and placed in a paper bag and stored in a dry place until the beginning of spring. 45 days before sowing, moistened seeds should be placed on a shelf under the freezer for stratification or kept in water for three days. Mulberry seeds should be sown to a depth of 1 cm in the brightest place. The future mulberry should be watered frequently, but not overwatered.

It is also worth making sure that the young plant is not destroyed by spring frosts. The first shoots must be protected from direct exposure to UV rays. Dense plantings must be thinned out at the fifth leaf stage. Thick ones are left in place for growing until the age of two years. The characteristics of the mother plant are not transmitted by seeds when propagated. Such seedlings are used for grafting varietal mulberries.

Did you know? The appearance of paper in China was also facilitated by the mulberry tree. It was its bast, which is located under the tree bark, that was used to create paper.

Cuttings

How else does mulberry reproduce? The best way reproduction in summer period- This is cuttings. At the beginning of summer, cuttings with two or three buds are taken from a healthy shoot of this year. The lower leaves need to be removed, and half of the leaves should be left on the rest so that the cuttings can continue to grow and develop.

A standard garden on a site consists of the usual fruit and berry trees: apple trees, pears, cherries, plums... Planting mulberries will help to dilute the “Ukrainian set” and please the children. This is a unique plant that can leave a lot of childhood memories: climbing a tree in search of something tasty, mom screaming because dark spots on clothes...

A row of white or black mulberries looks great as a colorful border behind a fence. The mulberry tree is an excellent living shield from the neighbors' gaze.

Determining an approximate date

Optimal time for planting mulberries– mid-spring (April) or early autumn (September-October), before the rainy season. Most often, mulberries are planted in the fall; until spring, our climate perfectly tests the plant for resistance to changeable weather conditions. If it survives the winter, it will have another 200 years to live, provided that the owner of the yard does not get tired of the overgrown mulberry.

For lovers of everything extraordinary and also for owners of small areas, planting will suit weeping mulberry. Also held in autumn. The choice of the exact planting date is made by the owner of the yard - as time permits:)

Mulberry planting rules

Before you start planting a mulberry tree, it is important to prepare pits for young growth. It is best to dig holes in advance and give them a chance to stand. The depth of the planting pits is from 70 cm, as long as the root fits freely in a straightened state. Fertilizer is placed at the bottom in the form rotted manure or compost. The flavoring composition is sprinkled on top with a small ball of soil or soil mixed with minerals (optional). Fertilized soil increases the chance of tree survival.

Further planting of mulberry seedlings comes down to standard procedures: carefully insert the young plants into the hole, dig in and water. It would not hurt to tie up a young plant if its column is too thin. To secure the garter, drive a stake into the excavated pit in advance using a sledgehammer (a board 5 cm thick is perfect).

The technology for planting mulberry seedlings is simple. This just begs the question: where to get the young animals? The answer is simple. There are two options here: grow it yourself or buy it on the market.

There are two ways to produce mulberry seedlings at home: grow a tree from seeds or try to germinate cuttings. And now, in order:

• Planting mulberry seeds. This is a rather lengthy process, but effective. Seeds require stratification for several months at a temperature of 0...+5°C. “Seeds” that have overwintered in the refrigerator perform well. Sowing is done in a greenhouse in mid-April. Planting mulberries this way will give results in the fall; the sprouts will reach 40 cm in height. Plant seedlings on permanent place Residence is better after 1-2 years.
• Planting mulberry cuttings. Less effective method production planting material(average survival rate 10-20% depending on the conditions created). Leaves are cut in half from shoots about 15 cm long, after which the “branches” are lowered into water for 10-12 hours. Next, planting mulberries involves moving the cuttings into a special soil (a mixture of earth, peat and sand in a 2:1:1 ratio). To obtain full-fledged seedlings, it is important to maintain the temperature within +22...+30°C, and acceptable humidity - from 95%.

The original shape of the mulberry (spherical, weeping) is achieved exclusively by grafting this variety onto the trunk of another plant. It is not possible to obtain a ready-made seedling from seeds or cuttings.

We will be happy to plant mulberries for you. Our experienced employees will not only be happy to give you their labor, but will also take on the task of digging through manure and compost. In addition, gardeners with many years of experience will help to plant any cutting so that it takes root with 100% probability.

The main mistakes of amateur gardeners

Planting and growing mulberries is a great option for lazy people :) The tree does not require special care and can grow almost like a weed. But there are times when the owner of a mulberry ceases to enjoy his miracle tree: it bears fruit poorly, fades, or even does not bear berries at all. This is due to the mistakes of a novice gardener.

Let's look at the main failures in mulberry planting and let's try to avoid them:

• Morus ( Mulberry tree) is a sun-loving plant. Don't skimp on space and give it a place with good lighting.
• If mulberries are planted on waterlogged or saline soil, the plant is unlikely to germinate quickly and bear fruit. Dry sandy soil is suitable only if mineral fertilizers are constantly applied.
• The plant has two sexes. Of course, the male one does not bear fruit. You will be able to find out how “female” your tree is only after 4-5 years, when the first berries appear (or not). Therefore, when growing your own seedling, you need to be prepared for disappointment in the future. To get fruit from the very beginning, it is better to purchase a young plant that has already produced its first vitamin-rich offspring.

And remember: planting mulberries guarantees a supply of berries for an entire generation. After all, a mulberry tree can live up to 300 years, depending on the variety. We wish that your plant is accepted and turns out to be a woman! :)

Planting mulberries video

Branch with fruits of varying degrees of maturity

Not many people know that growing mulberries and caring for them in the middle zone and the Moscow region is becoming common and commonplace. Every year there are more and more fans of this beautiful and useful plant Mulberries (also called mulberries) are planted as a supplier of delicious berries, for decorative purposes, to create shady corners and hedges.

Gardeners are attracted, first of all, by the opportunity to obtain a harvest of aromatic and healing berries. Those who have tried them at least once will definitely want to have one beautiful plant in your own area. It is especially pleasant that the mulberry tree bears fruit regularly and produces abundant harvests.

Very beautiful. The branches covered with shiny berries are delightful, its carved leaves and spreading crown are decorative.

Unpretentiousness and plasticity are another advantage. Some enthusiasts grow mulberries in Siberia. Growing and caring for it have the same recommendations as for middle zone, but it is advisable to limit yourself to bush forms and carefully cover the root system for the winter, which is most susceptible to frost.

Botanical description

At home (in Transcaucasia, Central Asia, China), the mulberry tree reaches large sizes- up to 15-20 meters high. When growing mulberries in central Russia, you can get a plant no higher than 5 meters. Quite often it is cultivated as a shrub.

More than one and a half dozen species of this plant have been described. In our conditions, two varieties are usually used: and white. For the Moscow region and the central zone, it would be preferable to plant white mulberries, since this variety tolerates cold better and has larger and sweeter fruits.

Interesting facts: These two species differ not in the color of the berries, as one might initially assume, but in the color of the bark. Any of the varieties can have light or dark colored berries. It also has softer leaves, which are a favorite delicacy of the silkworm, which actually gave this plant its name.

It is preferable to have 2-3 plants on the plot so as not to wonder why the mulberry does not bear fruit. The fact is that the mulberry is a dioecious plant and the absence of a pollinator plant may be the reason why the fruits do not set. Although this plant can sometimes form berries without fertilization.

Features of mulberry cultivation

To plant seedlings, you should choose a bright place, protected from the north wind. Mulberry is unpretentious to soil conditions and grows well even in poor soils. But it does not like nearby groundwater; it is advisable to avoid such places. After planting, the mulberry begins to bear fruit in the 7th year if the plant is grown from seeds. The seedling obtained by grafting will bear its first fruits in 3 or 4 years.

Landing

How to plant a mulberry so that it takes root better and feels good in the future? This needs to be done in the spring, but landing pit should be ready in the fall. Bush forms are placed at a distance of 2-3 meters. Trees are planted no closer than 5 meters from each other. This most important advice for planting standard mulberry: plants planted in close quarters develop poorly, their branches become bare, the yield decreases and the decorative effect decreases.

The roots should be carefully spread on a mound made in the center of the hole, sprinkled with earth mixed with humus and a small amount complex fertilizer (Matchbox per seedling). The soil is carefully but thoroughly compacted and watered abundantly. After watering, you can add a little soil and be sure to mulch the surface.

Attention! Mulberry roots are quite fragile!

Crown formation

This procedure is especially important in the first years of development young plant. Mulberry pruning is aimed at ensuring that the plant takes on the appearance desired by the owner. By greatly shortening the shoots, you can give the mulberry tree the shape of a bush. In order for the plant to develop in the form of a tree, it is left with a main trunk and several skeletal branches on it, evenly spaced.

After 5-6 years of growth, the mulberry itself regulates the development of its crown; the branches that thicken the crown die off on their own. The gardener can only cut them off in a timely manner.

Sanitary pruning of trees is carried out once every 3-4 years. The preferred time for it is late autumn. As a last resort, transfer this procedure to early spring. When pruning is carried out late in spring or summer, young shoots may not ripen and subsequently freeze.

Plant care

An amazing feature of our guest from the southern regions is her unpretentiousness. Sometimes it is called a plant for the lazy. Careful care of the mulberry is needed only in the first years of its development. Water is an essential requirement for young plants until they are fully developed. root system. A strong plant requires minimal attention and practically does not need watering, reaching deep soil horizons with its roots.

For the first three years, the mulberries are not fed, since the fertilizers added during planting are quite enough for the developing mulberry tree. How to fertilize mulberries in the future? A mature plant needs fertilizing only if the soil on the site is too poor. Usually limited standard scheme: early in the spring, nitrogen fertilizers are applied to the tree trunk circle, and potassium and phosphorus fertilizers are applied at the end of the season. After adding mineral fertilizers, the soil surface is mulched with compost or humus.

Reproduction methods

Mulberries can reproduce using most known methods: root shoots, layering, cuttings, grafting, and seeds. Each of them has its own merits.

• The simplest and easy way- use of root shoots. But in this case, there is little planting material.
• You can speed up the formation of young shoots by making layering or cutting cuttings. When and how is it better to plant mulberry cuttings? Summer - optimal time for obtaining green cuttings and their rooting. Remove 2-3 from cut shoots bottom sheets, leaving 2-3 top ones (shortening them by half). Cuttings placed under film in a moist substrate take root in about a month. Semi-lignified cuttings will need one and a half times longer for this. Completely lignified shoots take root with even greater difficulty; this will require the use of special root formation stimulants.
• The most common way to obtain seedlings is to grow mulberries from seeds. Their germination rate becomes higher after stratification. To do this, moistened seeds are kept in the refrigerator for about one and a half months. You can carry out natural stratification by sowing seeds in the ground on the eve of winter. An important advantage of seedlings obtained from seeds is their greater stability and better acclimatization. The disadvantage of this method is the late entry of young plants into fruiting.
• Mulberry grafting allows you to get the first harvest of fragrant berries much earlier. In addition, grafting on one standard different varieties the plants achieve a delightful result: the openwork foliage is enchanting various shapes and the colors and kaleidoscope of colorful shiny berries complete the effect!

Advice. It is better to take white mulberry as a rootstock, which is a more resistant form.

What can be grafted onto mulberries? Of course, there are a wide variety of varieties, differing in the shape of the crown, the cut and color of the foliage, the color and taste of the fruit. And even grapes are grafted! To do this, in the peripheral part of the trunk mother plant drill a hole into which the young shoot is threaded grapevine. They exist together for some time, then the grape branch grows together with the mulberry.

Possible difficulties

A relatively new culture for central Russia, fortunately, it rarely gets sick. Most common reason damage - freezing. Branches and root systems that have not fully matured are susceptible to it. Protecting the latter is relatively simple; just throw it in trunk circles hay or spruce branches. The plant tolerates freezing of some branches painlessly, quickly recovering in the spring.

Mulberry, also known as mulberry, mulberry tree, comes from Transcaucasia. In our country, it is cultivated in two types: white and black, or rather, black-violet) mulberry. These names are determined not by the color of the berries, but by the color of the bark of mature trees.

White mulberry is used to feed silkworms; it is sweeter than black mulberry.

Mulberry cultivation

Mulberry fruits resemble raspberries in appearance, and are popularly called berries. Their taste ranges from sickly sweet to sweet and sour. Used raw and dried, suitable for homemade preparations (jam, syrup, jelly, marshmallows, candied fruits). When dry, they can be stored for a long time.

Known and medicinal properties mulberries. An infusion of ripe berries is used as a diaphoretic, and leaves as an antipyretic.

Mulberry is a heat- and light-loving plant. Tolerates drought, urban conditions, even proximity industrial enterprises. In a harsh, snowless winter, the above-ground part (unripe branches) may freeze. But its roots are more frost-resistant, and trees are easily restored due to root shoots and preserved under the snow lower parts branches. White mulberry more winter-hardy, can withstand frosts up to 30 degrees.

The advantage of mulberry is its ability to be pollinated by the wind and not depend on the presence of insects.

The mulberry tree begins to bear fruit at the age of 6-8 years. Its flowers are dioecious and bloom at the same time as the leaves. Female flowers dense, erect, masculine - in the form of drooping earrings. Mulberry trees are capable of self-pollinating, but produce greater yields when grown in group plantings.

Mulberry grows on any soil, except swampy, with close groundwater. But it is very responsive to fertilizers, especially organic ones. It bears fruit better on fertile soils, in an open sunny place, protected from cold winds.

Without pruning, mulberries can grow up to 10 m tall. Pruning begins with a seedling, shortening it to 1.5 m so that side shoots begin to grow.

Mulberry propagation

Mulberry propagates by seeds and cuttings. For planting, you can use freshly picked first ripened fruits. They are immediately sown in a schoolyard or in boxes of soil. The seeds germinate in 7-10 days and by autumn they produce shoots 30-40 cm high.

You can sow the seeds in November - early December in a bed with loose soil to a depth of 2-3 cm. In the spring they will sprout, they need to be pruned, and in the fall they should be transplanted to a permanent place, deepening them in the same way as they grew in the schoolhouse.

It is more difficult to propagate mulberries from cuttings. Cuttings are taken from annual growths in the fall, after leaf fall. Store in damp sand in the basement until spring. In the spring, when the snow melts, cut cuttings 15-20 cm long and treat their ends with growth stimulants (according to the instructions).

Growing mulberries from cuttings.

Then they spill clean water and dropped off at school with fertile soil, vertically, deepening to the top bud. Leave 2-3 cm above the soil. The cuttings are watered and covered with film on the arcs or spun-bond. Care is normal, but without excessive moisturizing.

Rooted seedlings are planted in a permanent place at 3-5 years of age. The planting depth is the same as in the school. The soil is mulched with organic matter. Water only in dry weather.

IN southern regions Mulberries have been known since the time of Catherine II, who contributed to the development of sericulture in the south of Russia, incl. on the banks of the Volga. Significant areas were sown with white mulberry seeds to feed silkworms (silkworm caterpillars).

And now interest in this plant has not disappeared. It is grown on city streets, in courtyards and on summer cottages. It's not only fruit crop, but also decorative. It looks good in alleys and forest plantations. It easily tolerates pruning and can be given the desired shape.

Watch a video about growing mulberries: