On 2014-07-26 09:16:14 +0000, Chris Hogg said:

On Sat, 26 Jul 2014 12:53:50 +1000, Fran Farmer
wrote:

On 26/07/2014 5:29 AM, Pam Moore wrote:
Who has a mulberry tree? I think Sacha does.
I have one in a pot, about 3 feet high, aobut 10 years old.
3 years ago it had 3 fruit. I put it in a bigger pot, no fruit the
last 2 years. This year it has at least 8. I hope the birds don't get
them. I love mulberries. When I could drive I used to go round to
gardens which I knew had mulberries at ripe-fruit time but can't do
that now and the 2 I knew of in my town have gone, sadly.

I have a mulberry. It's about 15 ft tall and I have to fight the birds
to get any fruit. I've read that they can be propagated from winter
cuttings and have been wondering how to do that.

http://mulberrytrees.co.uk/propagation/ Alternatively, use
'truncheons', i.e. substantial twigs or small branches.
This, from http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=642 : "Morus roots
well from larger pieces of wood up to 10cm (4in) thick. In winter,
plant two- to four-year-old ‘truncheons’ straight into the ground in
their permanent positions".

IIRC silkworms prefer white mulberry. I remember reading that early
attempts to get a silk industry started in the UK were thwarted
because they had imported the wrong sort of mulberry trees, but I
can't find any confirmation of that.

On the Monarchy web site there's a passage saying that, in 1609, King
James I ordered the growing of thousands of Morus nigra and that the
story is that, while the worms will eat these leaves, they do better on
Morus alba which doesn't grow so well in this country. I know that
when we were in China we went to a silk factory and I was sad and
rather appalled to see that the worms were boiled!
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk