WeRead Powered by ReaderPub
West Virginia Trees cover

West Virginia Trees

Chapter 78: RED MULBERRY
By A. B. Brooks
Open in WeRead

Explore more books like this:

Nature/Gardening/Animals

About This Book

A practical field guide to the native and introduced trees of West Virginia, providing keys based mainly on leaves and fruits, concise family and species descriptions, and detailed line drawings for about 101 native species. It organizes trees by botanical families, gives brief flower notes, a glossary of terms, and suggestions for identifying specimens; occasional introduced species and shrubs are noted. The bulletin emphasizes simplicity for non-specialists, offers measurements and habit descriptions for each species, and includes administrative prefatory material. Its aim is to aid lay readers and students in tree identification and to encourage local interest in forestry.

RED MULBERRY

Morus rubra, L.

Form.—Height 15-25 feet, diameter 10-20 inches; trunk usually straight, short, bearing a rounded crown.

Leaves.—Alternate, simple, 3-6 inches long, nearly orbicular in outline, or with 3-5 lobes, coarsely serrate, dark green and usually slightly rough above, paler and hairy beneath.

Flowers.—May-June; monoecious or dioecious; the staminate in dense spikes 1-2 inches long; the pistillate arranged in the same way but in shorter spikes.

Fruit.—July-August; very small drupes aggregate in a dense cylindric cluster about 1 inch long, blackish when ripe, sweet, juicy and edible.

Bark.—On trunks, brownish-gray, roughened by narrow ridges.

Wood.—Light, soft, tough, coarse-grained, very durable, light orange color.

Range.—Massachusetts to Florida, west to Kansas and Nebraska.

Distribution in West Virginia.—Found in scattered growth throughout the State.

Habitat.—Grows best in rich bottoms, but is found scattered with other hardwoods in various locations.

Notes.—The Mulberry is easily distinguished in summer by its irregular leaf forms and peculiar fruits. It is not important as a lumber tree, though the wood is attractive and durable.