From Eat the Weeds
and other things, too
by Green Deane
Mulberry Express
Ripening “red” mulberries
Mulberries:
Glucose-controlling hallucinogen
I used to get a lot of dates using mulberries.
Not
to sound sexist, but most women like men who can cook. And when the
mulberries were in season I would ply a young lass or two with mulberry
pie or sorbet explaining this was a delicious concoction
unavailable anywhere else, kind of like me ….hint-hint,
wink-wink. It worked so well that every season (before I owned my own
land) I would scout out available mulberry trees and ladies and plan to
match them up for gastro-amorous intentions. Now I own a
highly-productive mulberry tree… and the romance is still
working.
Mulberries, in my case, Morus rubra (MOE-russ RUBE-ruh)
are full of life. One spring I trimmed my mulberry and used the
branches for stakes. They rooted and grew. Not one to get in
nature’s way I dug them up, gave them to a friend, and they are
still growing.
Unripe red mulberries, young leaves edible cooked
Mulberries
are native to North America and also introduced. Their berries are
extremely healthy, and other parts of the tree have medical uses as
well. The berry is used in pies, tarts, wines and cordials. Cooked,
such as in muffins, they are much like blueberries in flavor. The Black
Mulberry and Red Mulberry, the latter native to eastern North America,
have the strongest flavor. The Asian Mulberry, naturalized in urban
areas, is edible but a clear distant third in taste. Mature fruit of
all are packed with reseveratrol. Unripe fruit and mature leaves have a
white sap that’s intoxicating and mildly hallucinogenic. White
Mulberry tea quite popular in Japan. White Mulberry
leaves are also the sole food source for the silkworm (Bombyx mori, named
after the Mulberry genus Morus).
The worms are edible cooked but not that tasty.
Mulberry
leaves can help regulate blood sugar levels, and reportedly play a role
in losing weight by controlling sugar cravings. They are also is a
source of Vitamin C and carotene. Mulberries have anthocyanins which
are edible pigments commonly called antioxidants. Young leaves cooked
are edible.
The Mulberry Shaped Portion of Greece.
Green Deane’s family is from south of Sparta, about tow-thirds the way
down the peninsula, The Mani.
As for the name, Ruba is red. Morus
is a bit more involved. A Babylonian story later incorporated
into Greek mythology attributes the reddish color of the mulberry fruit
to the tragic death of lovers. The Greek god Moros, who drove men to
their fate, arose from that and where we get the English word, through
Dead Latin, “morose.” Contemporary Greeks call
the mulberry Mouro and southern Greece, Peloponnese, is often called
Mora because it is roughly shaped like a mulberry leaf.
At one time the Paper Mulberry was grouped with other mulberries, and
is closely related, but is now called Broussonetia papyrifera
(broo-soh-NEE-she-uh pap-ih-RIFF-er-uh.) Its fruit
is
edible and it can grow into a very large tree. Here in the South,
it’s a linden-like tree that often defies identification.Its young leave are also edible when cooked, however, they
are
chewy.
Nutritionally,
the mulberry berries area powerhouse: They’re low in
saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, high in Vitamin C, Vitamin K,
iron, dietary fiber, riboflavin, magnesium and potassium, about 4.5
carbs per 100 grams, 120 calories. Mulberry leaves
are
consider animal food if not intoxicating to people. But young leaves
are edible cooked, boiled or stir-fried. Fresh mulberry leaves are
71.13 to 76.68% moisture, 4.72 to 9.96% crude protein, 4.26 to
5.32% total ash, 8.15 to 11.32% Neutral Detergent Fiber
(NDF),
0.64 to 1.51% crude fat, 8.01 to 13.42% carbohydrate and 69 to 86
kcal/100 g for energy. Ascorbic acid ranged from 160 to 280mg/100g
β-carotene from 10,000.00 to 13,125.00 μg/100 g, respectively.
Iron, zinc and calcium ranged from 4.70-10.36 mg/100 g for iron,
0.22-1.12 mg/100 g for zinc, and 380-786 mg/100 g, for calcium.
The following recipes from Living
off the Land and Wild
Edibles by the late Marian Van Atta, whom I knew some 35
years ago:
Marian van Atta
Mulberry Pie:
One baked 9″ pie crust. 4 c. Stemmed mulberries. 1/4 c.
Cornstarch. 3/4 c. Sugar. 1/2 c. Water. 2 T. Lemon or Lime juice.
— Add sugar to mulberries in a saucepan. Mix cornstarch with
water. Add to berries. Add juice. Cook over medium heat until mixture
thickens and juice becomes clear. Pour into bake pies shell. Cool and
serve.
Mulberry
Vinegar:
In a large bowl, place 3 quarts clean mulberries. Mash and pour 3 cups
of boiling-hot white vinegar over berries. Cover with a towel and for 3
days, mix fruit with a wood spoon. Strain juice trough jelly bag. To
each cup juice add one cup sugar. Boil together for 5 minutes. Pour
into sterilized jars and seal. When ready to use, pour 2 T. Mulberry
vinegar in an 8 ounce glass. Fill with water and ice.
Mulberry Sauce:
To four cups of mulberries add 1 1/2 c. Brown sugar, 1 t. each of
cloves and allspice, to mashed berries. Bring to boil. Simmer until
thick stirring often. Bottle and seal.
Green Deane’s
“Itemized” Plant Profile
Identification:
Mulberries are fast-growing but rarely exceed 40 feet, easily trained
to be short and easy to harvest. Leaves alternate, simple,
often
lobed, toothed on the edge. The fruit is about an inch long changing
from white to red to dark purple or black. Reminds one of a long
blackberry, will stain your fingers purple.
Time of year:
Fruits in late spring, what ever that might be in your climate.
Environment:
Likes moist soil and prefers hardwood forests. However, in Florida they
frequent abandoned truck farms and other fields. Often are found
growing by hotel and apartment complexes parking lots, and roadsides.
Method of
preparation:
Out of hand or for anything one would use a blackberry, strawberry or
blueberry for. Young leaves of any of the mulberry species
cooked,
though they can be tough.
Green Deane's
Disclaimer
Information
contained on this website is strictly and categorically intended as a
reference to be used in conjunction with experts in your area. Foraging
should never begin without the guidance and approval of a local plant
specialist. The providers of this website accept no liability for the
use or misuse of information contained in this website.
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Black Mulberry Page
Red Mulberry Page
White Mulberry Page
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