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Like a berry on a tree, swinging softly in the breeze. Will the Blue Jay and the Red Bird eat my pie before it can be? Dear Mulberry Tree, I love you, but your wine stain brings me to my knees.
Mulberry Trees
The Mulberry Tree is loved by silk worms, birds and humans alike. As you can see below, the fruits resemble black berries more than fruit that we typically expect from a tree. According to Dave's Garden Plant files the tree is from the Moraceae, which simply means the Moray (Mulberry) family. The ripe fruit is used in jams, jellies, pies and wines. In the picture show below, the black-purple fruits are ripe while the others are in various stages of ripeness.
Photo by Thaumaturgist
There are many variations of Mulberry Trees, including trees that produce berries as large as a man's thumb. Most of the Mulberry Trees that I have seen in Oklahoma produce fruit only about a third as large, slightly larger than the smallest fruit in the picture above. Some trees produce a dark purple fruit, while others produce a reddish color fruit. Another variety produces an off-white fruit. Notice the main picture in the article (also repeated below); this showcases both the dark purple and the white berries. The red and dark purple berries taste like medium (not strong) flavored black berries. By this, I mean that the fruit is not as tasty as most berries. I have heard that different types of Mulberry Trees have more flavorful berries. The white berries, although not as attractive to birds, are "honey" sweet.
Photo by Ikz5ia
Beware if you choose to plant a purple or red Mulberry Tree. Not only does the berry itself stain, but droppings from a bird that has snacked on Mulberries will stain as well. You should plant the tree away from driveways and walking paths. The same stain that causes such headaches is a natural red and/or purple dye. I have not tested the strength of the dye but I am considering extracting some of the color while still using the berries. I believe that the berries would make wonderful shades of purple and pink to spark up foods, soaps and baskets.
I have heard that the Mulberry fruits pack some potent anti-bacterial and fungal fighting natural compounds, as do most fruits. I have also read that the leaves, fruit and bark of the Mulberry Tree all have been used for medicinal purposes. However, I have also read that the leaves and unripe berries may have slight hallucinogenic properties. Some people report that they have allergies to the Mulberry pollen and/or to the berries.
Mulberry trees are quite adapatable to many gardening zones and conditions. My mother remembers trees with large Mulberries growing in Upstate New York. They also grow in Oklahoma. I have seen Mulberry Trees flourishing in soil that other plants hate. They grow in partial shade and in full sun, although the ones in full sun seemed to produce more berries. One tree that we saw while showing houses about 6 years ago was the largest Mulberry Tree we have ever seen; it must have been about 80 feet tall. Most of the other Mulberry Trees have been significantly smaller. I have been thinking about experimenting with growing a Mulberry tree espalier since the berries resemble typical vine fruits.
My mother and I transplanted a Mulberry Tree years ago. We thought the tree was dead, but we talked to it, commanded it to live, blessed it and prayed for it. The tree lived. Although it is not very tall, it has produced berries for many years. Since that time, I have heard that large cuttings of the Mulberry tree will root nicely.
My mother usually gives us some of the harvest of her tree, since at the moment, I no longer own a Mulberry Tree. This last winter, after a horrible Oklahoma ice storm, I was forced to throw out the thawed 2007 crop of Mulberries, which I had frozen. Try some Mulberries added to any of your favorite pies or cobblers or make some wonderful Mulberry Jam. This fruit grows without a lot of extra care and you'll be delighted to say that the berries in your pie were grown in your garden.
If you don't care to harvest the fruit yourself you might want to consider planting a Mulberry Tree in an out-of the way area for free bird food for your fine feathered friends. If you look closely, hidden among the branches of a Mulberry Tree, you might catch a glimpse of a Mocking Bird, Cardinal, Blue Jay, Robin, Finch or another bird nestled among the branches, enjoying a delicious snack of Mulberry Pie without the crust.
Mulberries are a wonderful addition to your garden. May your Mulberry Trees grow well and produce tons of fruit for you and the birds to enjoy.
The photo to the right above, is by Thaumaturgist.
The pictures shown here are all from Dave's Garden plant files. Thank you to both ikz5i and to Thaumaturgist for the use of their wonderful photos. These photos, and the Mulberry Tree design created by me, are all copywrited.
About April Campbell
Writer, Realtor(r), Speaker, Accountant, Gardener, Teacher, Sign Language Interpreter, Friend.
Posted by SDakotavicki (from Sioux Falls, SD) on July 2, 2008 at 11:50 PM:
Just moved to the new house that has a 30 ft or so tree. Extremely heavily fruited. I have harvested about 4 gallons each nite for a week and they are still coming! (by harvest I mean lay out sheets and shake the branches). I wash then freeze them single layer on a cookie sheet, then fill freezer bags so I can pour out what I need. Does anyone have a great jam or syrup recipe you would share with me? Or any other one we would enjoy? I have berries coming out my ears. Yippee!
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on July 3, 2008 at 1:17 AM:
SDakotavicki,
Congratulations! That many berries would cost a bunch! Isn't it nice to just gather them from a tree? LOL
There were a couple of interesting "recipes" on this link, although not syrup or juice recipe. I think another link had some also, I will look another time.
I want to try both of the recipes...there is one in the first message and one in the last message (at least the last message currently):
Posted by jvdl1 (from Englewood, FL) on April 14, 2008 at 4:24 PM:
My 13 yr. old tree fruits 3 times a year, the branches get so heavy with berries they touch the ground, best tasting fruit I ever ate, even my dog picks them off the low branches.
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Subject: Mulberry Trees
Posted by YardBurd (from Perkinston, MS) on April 3, 2008 at 3:04 PM:
Where can I get one? They grow wild in FLA. and I've tried to root cuttings. No go. Can someone tell me the best way to go about aquiring a Mulberry Tree and what to do with it once I get one? Thanks, Yardburd Ally
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Subject: Mulberry: My bane
Posted by Deus (from Grimsby
(Canada)) on March 31, 2008 at 8:51 PM:
I've had a mulberry tree in the front yard my whole life. I always loved that tree; I used to pile grass up under its overhanging branches and make a little fort when I was a kid. I've always loved the fruit during the summer.
However, the things just won't die. There are dozens on the property now, growing in places that I really don't want them, like a foot away from the trunk of an ancient cedar where I can't dig it, or IN THE ASPHALT of the driveway. They are horrible to dig out, and if you miss a piece, it will grow again. If you just cut it, the stump will throw out dozens of branches just to spite you. Cutting those branches off brings to mind the myth of the Hydra... more grow back in their place. The only thing I hate more is the wild grape vine.
Gardeners beware... if you think it's all fun and delicious fruit, just wait until the animals start spreading the seeds around. It could become one of your worst enemies.
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Subject: Mulberry Tree
Posted by wormfood (from Lecanto, FL) on March 24, 2008 at 9:33 PM:
I have a fruitless mulberry. I didn't know they got that big. But I definately want a fruited one planted in the back yard, way back. My neighbor has some black plastic garden material laid out under his Loquat and covered with dirt. When the seedlings sprout, no matter how big, they just pull right up because the roots grow along the top of the plastic. May be a solution to the seedlings of the Mulberry. Then stick 'em in a pot and place them in your front yard with a $5 sign on them.
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Subject: Beside the driveway.
Posted by DaddyNature (from Atlanta, GA) on March 24, 2008 at 6:28 PM:
Yes, indeed, do not plant one near your home or driveway. I have an old one (not planted by me) and the birds make a mess. Also, the trees pop-up everywhere....
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Subject: Let the fruiting begin!
Posted by nakedgardener (from Fort Lauderdale, FL) on March 19, 2008 at 12:29 AM:
We have so many other fruiting trees on our property that when I first laid eyes on our 25 ft Mulberry tree, I figured I would just leave them for the birds. It's a lot of work to move the ladder around the dense vegetation under the tree, but then I tasted them...my mouth is watering just thinking about them. The reward is so great, I don't hesitate to jump on that ladder! And there's enough for the birds to eat their fill too.
I discovered these wonderful individual graham cracker pie crusts from Keebler. I pile the Mulberries as high as I can and stick it in the toaster oven until it's reduced to a heavenly pie (20-25 minutes) The fragrance that fills the house is unbelievable.
We have no issues with volunteers or staining, the only thing I don't like about our tree is having to wait for the pie to cool.
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on March 19, 2008 at 12:59 AM:
Isn't it wonderful that the tree gives you enough to eat and enough to share?!?
That is a wonderful idea...I'm going to have to try that. YUMMMMM! Thanks for the pie recipe. My husband loves pies. I don't like white flour and oil and salt pie crusts so the graham cracker crusts are my idea of a great pie also. I'd like to try making some of that pink custard mentioned in the other thread also.
Thanks for reading and commenting. I just love reading all the comments.
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Posted by jvdl1 (from Englewood, FL) on March 24, 2008 at 1:00 PM:
Love those mulberries, I get 2 or 3 crops a year in S/W Fla.The grand kids can't wait to get at them.
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Subject: Love them
Posted by MitchF (from Oklahoma City, OK) on March 18, 2008 at 4:38 PM:
One of the great trees we plant just for the fruit, for ourselves and the birds to enjoy. A great tree with a little thought in planning - thank you for the wonderful article.
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Posted by soapwort243 (from South Milwaukee, WI) on March 18, 2008 at 8:48 PM:
I agree. I LOVE them. They are a delicious berry to eat right off the tree! I planted one in my back yard.
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Posted by cedarnest (from Northeast, NE) on March 18, 2008 at 10:15 PM:
Love them too : ) One of my most cherished trees on our property.We are planting another this spring.Quite the songbird magnet. Wonderful article Aunt_A : )
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on March 19, 2008 at 1:07 AM:
Mitch F: Thanks so much. I see you've another article. I'll have to click in tomorrow to read it. Very true about the thought in planning! Unless, of course, you don't mind pink and purple stains on the carpet and car and everywhere else.
soapwort243: Aren't they great?!? Do you have the white, red or purple? We are thinking about moving in the next 3 years so I hate to plant another tree here that I will end up leaving. However, it will feed the birds for me for as long as it stands, so maybe I will plant it anyway.
cedarnest: What color are you planting? You are right, the birds are really drawn to the Mulberry Tree. Thanks for the sweet comment.
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Posted by soapwort243 (from South Milwaukee, WI) on March 19, 2008 at 5:37 PM:
Aunt A- They're great! The one I have is called an "Illinois 21 Mulberry" The tree doesn't get as tall as other mulberries. It boasts of having the sweetest, best tasting berries. They are the dark purple. I never tasted the white ones.
yes- they stain, but they're worth it. :)
I really look forward to them!
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Posted by Mrs_Ed (from Whiteside County, IL) on March 24, 2008 at 8:37 AM:
When I was a kid, we lived in the country and had a HUGE white mulberry near the house. The fruit was very yummy and the shade of the tree wonderful. I remember the downsides were that the raccoons would visit the tree at night and fight. If you've never heard that event, it is quite something. It's like snorting PIGS. The tree was near my bedroom so this was pretty annoying!! The other bad thing was at the end of the fruiting season, the yard smelled horrible. And of course, those scrub trees in the fence line are tenacious!!
As an adult, I've recently taken up bird watching and would really appreciate having a specimen tree like this again.
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Subject: That tree's days are numbered
Posted by ic_conifers (from Iowa City, IA) on March 18, 2008 at 3:10 PM:
We have a large (25 foot) mulberry tree planted near our property line. It was planted several owners ago and while I would NEVER plant a mulberry tree, I do enjoy watching the birds gorge themselves in summer on the berries. I feed sunflower seeds all year, but the birds sure do rush to eat as many berries as they can when they are ripening. I talked to the neighbor to see how he would feel about me cutting down the tree (I would much rather have something I WANT - like a magnolia or conifer) in that spot, but he was strongly opposed. I assumed he would want it down, as the property line is already over-crowded, but I guess the lesson there is never assume.
So, the tree gets to stay for now. If we put an addition onto the back of our house, though, that tree is coming down. Or, if our dogs (2 corgis and a collie) catch on that the berries are edible, I am going to axe it. I had to move a sunflower feeder because my dogs discovered how tasty those leftover seeds are and it cause some gastrointestinal distress I would rather not relive. They left the berries alone last summer, but that is no guarantee they won't catch on this year.
Elizabeth
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Posted by Kelli (from Los Angeles (Canoga , CA) on March 18, 2008 at 6:14 PM:
There are mulberry trees lining many streets around here. It seems that they must have been very popular in the 1950s. These never produce any fruit. Is there a fruitless variety or are they male and female on separate plants.
I've heard that in some places it is against the law to plant mulberry trees because so many people are allergic to the pollen.
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on March 19, 2008 at 1:16 AM:
ic_conifers: Sounds more like the tree is "foe" than "friend" for you. Just think of all the money you've saved on bird food. :-) When people ask what you've done for the earth, you can mention "The Bird Food Tree". I'm surprised that the sunflowers caused so much distress. Guess the sunflower seeds are more for people and birds then dogs. I just love Magnolia trees, too. Oklahoma lost a lot of beautiful Magnolia tree limbs in the Great Freeze of December 2007. It was sad to see those beautiful trees so broken and battered. I could stand and smell a lemon Magnolia flower for hours; totally intoxicating!
Kelli:
I'm not sure about the fruitless variety but I wouldn't be surprised. Too bad that people are allergic to so many natural things.
Thanks for commenting Kelli and ic_conifers.
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Posted by ic_conifers (from Iowa City, IA) on March 19, 2008 at 9:27 AM:
I'm really undecided on whether my tree is friend or foe! I think it is more the quantity that my dogs consumed than the sunflower seeds themselves. The feeders are fairly large and very well-visited! No worries, though, I just moved them out of the fenced part of teh yard. I purchase fifty pound bags of seed for $17 at my local grocery store, so I'm not sure that the fruit bearing season of the mulberry tree led to measurable savings : )
I've seen fruitless dwarf varieties - weeping fruitless mulberry trees are popular around here. They are beautiful little trees. I don't know about fruitless full sized mulberry trees, but modern horticulture is amazing, so it would not surprise met at all!
Elizabeth
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Subject: Argh! Mulberry trees!
Posted by LTilton (from Glen Ellyn, IL) on March 18, 2008 at 11:50 AM:
How I hate them! Mulberry seedlings sprouting up everywhere, tenacious as buckthorn, so hard to pull out!
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Posted by roybird (from Santa Fe, NM) on March 18, 2008 at 12:54 PM:
I'm with you! We have two big ones in our back yard. We didn't plant them; they were here. They make a huge mess and don't stop the birds from eating our other fruit. For my high desert area, however, they are excellent shade trees.
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on March 19, 2008 at 12:44 AM:
Sounds like you voted for "foe".
:-)
Thanks for commenting. They do make a mess!
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Posted by daigu (from Spicewood, TX) on March 24, 2008 at 8:40 AM:
The house we now occupy has two medium sized red Mulberry trees. Every year we are overwhelmed by seedlings popping up. They are like Goldenrod, propagating by root extensions that go as far as 40 yards from the two trees. We spend our summers pulling up and chopping seedlings. If yoyu miss one and let it get over about two feet it has to be dug out and then removed. The trees never fruit in our dry climate and the wood is useless as either firewood or decoration. Truly these are monumental Trash Trees!!
DON'T PLANT ONE....you'll be sorry.
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Posted by docgipe (from NORTH CENTRAL PENNSY, PA) on March 24, 2008 at 8:51 AM:
I tried for years to achieve success by actually planting purchased White Mulberry trees. Alas after years of failures for unknown reasons the birds planted one in the middle of another jungle I wished I had not ever started. Years later I discovered my jewel and then proceeded to blast away the competing jungle that did in fact provide the cover crop for both the birds and the Mulberry. It is like Grand Central Station in New York for the birds when the fruit is present. We settled finally for the purple which most wish they might have never known. The fruit is ninety nine percent for the birds. We make one pie a year. I have seen our yellow beakers (starlings) with rose colored beaks. Hogs they are but all of us have enough to go around every year. Yes my dirty old garden hat has a few purple dimples on it too.
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Posted by scottsmom (from Bath, PA) on March 24, 2008 at 9:37 AM:
Don't forget how hard it is to wash your light colored cars after you've unknowingly parked under one of those trees!
Or, worse yet, when you don't park under the tree but the bird sitting above your car has feasted on the fruit in another part of town!
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Posted by docgipe (from NORTH CENTRAL PENNSY, PA) on March 24, 2008 at 11:14 AM:
Guess this comes down to the phrase.............One man's gold is another man's junk. If I should change my mind the Mulberry still can not stand up to a chainsaw.
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Posted by KansasRose on March 24, 2008 at 12:03 PM:
Mulberries are common in my area of Kansas...most trees were planted by earlier homesteaders on the farms we now live on. I have fond childhood memories of picking mulberries for my pet racoon to eat (I never loved them myself). Older ladies tell me that mulberries are the perfect companion to gooseberries in pies and jams. The blandness of the mulberries tones down the tartness of the gooseberries.
My best mulberry memories are of my son when he was four or five, bringing a stepladder out to the big tree next to our chicken house, so he could stand on it to reach more berries to pop in his mouth. He was almost always barefoot so he went around with purple feet for a few weeks each summer. I would never get rid of that tree!
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Subject: Purple Feet!
Posted by critterologist (from Frederick, MD) on March 18, 2008 at 10:51 AM:
Thanks for a great article! We've got a couple of mulberry trees in back, and I love them. They're not well situated for picking lots of fruit, so the critters get most of it, but I stand under the low branches and snack to my heart's content. I also go barefoot out back a lot, so during mulberry season, the bottoms of my feet are bright purple! That really amuses the neighborhood kids... LOL
You mentioned mulberry jam rather than jelly... do you just throw the whole fruit into your jam, stems and all? Those little stems are hard to remove -- I usually just eat them along with the berries.
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on March 19, 2008 at 12:54 AM:
Critterologist:
So welcome...thanks for the comment. Thanks for keeping the critters alive. You could tell some of the little ones that you turn into Barney the purple dino sometimes. :-) LOL. I can just imagine those purple feet.
I just have something against jelly, I think. Mom always taught us that there was something almost unimaginable about making jelly. She made Blueberry Jam, Current Jam, Apple Butter, Peach Jam, Strawberry Jam and Green Mint Jelly (and maybe a few other Jams, too). Mom always taught us to eat the peel and not waste the fiber (ugh...waste the fiber...too funny...didn't mean to make a play on words). Sometimes I just use kitchen scissors and cut the stem off close. I don't make big batches of anything...but my VitaMix beats it all up together anyway. Gotta love the VitaMix. I have to buy a new plastic container for the wet ingredients because I used it so much, I tore it up.
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Posted by critterologist (from Frederick, MD) on March 19, 2008 at 1:31 AM:
I'm pretty anti-jelly, myself... never saw the sense in throwing all that "good stuff" away! But I'm not fussing with trying to remove all those bitty stems. If the stems don't add a bitter flavor or anything as it cooks, maybe I'll give it a try!
If I catch them at just the right time, there are a few branches that I can spread a drop cloth under to catch ripe fruit shaken from the tree. But I'm battling poison ivy back along that little fence row of trees, so I don't care to get right in there under the tree, LOL. Besides, as you said, the critters need to eat feast, too!
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Subject: Bright pink custard! :)
Posted by chrissy100 (from Sydney
(Australia)) on March 17, 2008 at 11:50 PM:
Oh yes the Mulberry ...my grandmother (mother of 12) used to make a white custard then stir in the mulberry juice from the stewed ones she was preparing for mulberry pie.This white custard would turn the most amazing hot pink colour.Later it was Mulberry Pie for desert covered with bright pink custard (no fridges in those days so ice cream was out) ...well we thought she was the most clever nanna anyone could ever have had.It was all the more special because we scooted up the big old mulberry tree (there were seven of us kids) and picked them ...well we did pinch one or two ...if we got the juice on our clothes mum would scold us and then rub the stain with green squished mulberry to get the stain out out. Large families and mulberries go together ...these days I only grow the green shatoot mulberry so I don't have purple stains everywhere ...they are about 5" long and turn a sort of green honey colour when ripe, these are just yummy and can be dried like raisins.Still I can still taste those wonderful berries from nanna's garden though ...thanks for the memories!
chrissy
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Posted by angele (from Elephant Butte, NM) on March 18, 2008 at 2:06 AM:
I enjoyed reading your Mulberry Tree article so much. Lovely writing style!
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Posted by Lindawalkabout (from Holden, MO) on March 18, 2008 at 10:57 AM:
When I was a kid my sister and aunt who was a year older then I decided we were going to make wine out of Mulberry all in one day. Gosh we never even tasted wine , but we were going to make wine just the same. We ended up with purple cover hands, clothes and lips. We didn't get a buzz from our day old Mulberry wine but we sure had fun making it : ).
I have a few wild growing Mulberry trees along the edge of the woods.
But the one I like most is close to the garden but far enough away to not cause problems. I have a sitting place under it, well untill the berries are are all gone that is :/ I call it "Tea Under The Mulberry Tree"
Great artical, i'm saving it in my journal in my tree catagories , thanks
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Posted by cathy4 (from St. Louis County, MO) on March 18, 2008 at 11:02 AM:
Our mulberry tree was one of my favorite trees to climb when I was young. We rarely had fruit, but i sure remember the one year we did. The birds would sit on the gutters of the house and "drop" purple stains all down the white paint. I thought it was funny until I had to help paint the house that fall.
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Posted by frankford (from East Lansing, MI) on March 18, 2008 at 12:42 PM:
I have fond memories of picking various mulberries as a small child in South Bend, Indiana. We had both white and purple types volunteer in yards and open fields. The white ones seem to have the sweetest taste.
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Posted by darius (from Marion, VA) on March 18, 2008 at 2:23 PM:
My memories are of a pre-pubescent time, climbing a medium sized mulberry tree on a Tidal Sound in NE North Carolina on the way home from school. 50+ years later I still remember the taste!
Thanks for the article!
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on March 19, 2008 at 1:29 AM:
chrissy100: Wow...I love it. I'm going to have to try making some custard or pudding bright pink. That would be just lovely on the top of a Mulberry Pie. Or maybe I'll take the new fashioned way and buy some Frozen Whipped Topping and stir in the Mulberries. Fun! Thanks for the wonderful story and the idea. I've never heard of rubbing "the stain with green squished mulberry". Very interesting! I think I'd like to try growing that green shatoot mulberry. Thanks.
angele: Thanks for the sweet words; very kind. Glad you enjoyed it.
Lindawalkabout: LOL !!!!! Guess you couldn't hide your Mulberry Wine Adventure.
:-) "Tea Under the Mulberry Tree": Now that sounds like a title for a book or a poem. Are you an author? Thanks for the sweet words; glad you liked the article.
cathy4: Guess you really got to experience a truly natural experience with Natural Food Coloring...with such a powerful berry you'd think the food industry would have tried to replace that Artificial Red Food Coloring with some Mulberry.
frankford: Yes, they are almost like 2 totally different berries that happen to have the same shape.
darius: So welcome; I'm glad to give so many memories to people all over the world. You've just gotta love Dave'sGarden !
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Posted by Lindawalkabout (from Holden, MO) on March 19, 2008 at 5:50 PM:
No author here Aunt_A, lol , just a gardener that likes to take a break once in awhile under that Mulberry tree by the garden. Only thing I have to watch out when the berries are on and the birds are eating. I don't want the wrong kind of lumps in my tea if you know what I mean : (.
I am so glad you did this artical, I didn't know about the white Mulberries and that green ones take the stain out. And all the other things that members shared. Thanks again
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Posted by chrissy100 (from Sydney
(Australia)) on March 19, 2008 at 8:31 PM:
Just popped in to say (in case I was not clear on it) the green mulberries were the unripe fruit on the same tree not another variety.
Also wanted to say that the green shatoot can be grown in warmer conditions and the fruit was dried like dates for food in the Arabian countries. The juice used for colouring is from poached mulberries the more you reduce the syrup the deeper the colour ...yummy!
Happy gardening
chrissy
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Posted by girlgroupgirl (from Atlanta, GA) on March 19, 2008 at 8:49 PM:
I love mulberries, but down here in Georgia, the best mulberry tree is someone elses, lol. They can really re-seed themselves if left in a garden situation.
My friend has a neighbor with a huge tree that grows over her property. Every year when the mulberries are ready she calls me and I bike over with some old sheets. I lay them under the tree, shade it and then bag all my fruits.
When I am done I prune as much of the tree as I can reach and go home to make my mulberry syrup and other delicious treats!!
girlgroupgirl
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Posted by paulineristeau (from Warren, MI) on March 25, 2008 at 2:53 AM:
Remember as a child picking mulberries with my mother at the old sheep farmers house on the back road : ) A wonderful memory of time spent with mom, priceless . Now I have a purple mulberry in my back yard I love. I just pick a bowl full of mulberries ,wash them good then squash em pour em into the bottom of a pan stir up a quick batch of drop biscuts to drop on top then put sugar with a bit of cinnammon on that and bake until lightly brown. YUMMY , Great if you pick the berries the night befor than make it as a coffee cake substtute in the morning .
Thanks for the memories .you brought tears to my eyes(happy tears).
Thank you
Pauline
