AgricultureForest EcologyForest ManagementForestrypediaGeneral SilviculturePlant Taxonomy

Morus alba

Spread the love






Morus alba


Morus alba - forestrypedia.com

A moderately intolerant tree that grows on a variety of well drained, rich soils. It requires a precipitation zone of 750 to 1250 mm/yr or more, and prefers a semi-arid, cool to cold subalpine temperate, sub-tropical winter/monsoon, climate with a temperature range of -10 to 40 C at elevations up to 3300 m.


It will coppice easily, can be grown in mixed stands, is frost hardy, and can tolerate hot draughty conditions if irrigated. It has numerous insects and pest enemies including porcupines, defoliators, powdery mildew, root rots, and die back.


Vernacular


Tut, Mulberry, White Mulberry.


Family


Moraceae


Description


Morus alba - Tut /Mulberry - forestrypedia.com

A medium sized, deciduous tree, 9 to 15 m tall and diameters of 0.6 to 0.8 m. The crown is spreading and rounded.


Leaves The leaves are simple, but varied in shape, 5 to 15 cm long and 4 to 12 cm wide.


Bark The  bark is dark grayish brown with vertical ridges or fissures.


Flowers It is monecious. The male flowers are in 1 to 2 cm long catkin like bunches. The female flower., are in solitary, rounded heads 0.5 to 1 cm in diameter. The flowers are greenish appearing between February and April.


Fruit The fruit is a berry containing 5 to 15 small seeds, 0.7 to 1 cm long. The berries are white to pinkish to purple to red to black. The fruiting period is between March and June.


Reproduction It is reproduced both from seed and by vegetative means. Insecticide treated seed can be stored.


Growth It grows very fast and MAL of 5 to 8.5 ml/ha/yr is not uncommon. diameters of 60 cm are recorded for 15 year old trees.







Distribution


The tree is native to Pakistan, China, Central Asia and Afghanistan. It has been planted in many parts of the world.


Management Implications


This is a good tree for reforestation projects because of its fast growth and value. Also it is as wood important silkworm feed.


Silkworm growers have a tendency to reduce the quality of the wood, by over lopping the branches and foliage, subsequently reducing tree growth.


This is a good farm forestry tree. The sport goods industry’s needs for its wood presents an opportunity for farmers to have a direct link with industrial markets.


Wood Properties


GRAIN: Straight, medium coarse uneven texture.


COLOR: Sapwood is yellowish to yellowish white, heartwood is bright yellowish brown changing tn dull brown with age.


DENSITY: Specific gravity of 0.69 and a calorific value of 5100 kcal/kg.


STRENGTH: Hard, elastic and resilient.


Morus alba Uses


Silk worm food, fodder, fruit, carriages, sports equipment, veneer and plywood, furniture, medicinal (Bark is a veitmifuge and purgative, fruit is a laxative), and shelterbelts. It is also used for numerous medical purposes.


SEE ALSO: Management of Mulberry/Tut (Morus alba) – Species Management


Sources







Naeem Javid Muhammad Hassani is working as Conservator of Forests in Balochistan Forest & Wildlife Department (BFWD). He is the CEO of Tech Urdu (techurdu.net) Forestrypedia (forestrypedia.com), All Pak Notifications (allpaknotifications.com), Essayspedia, etc & their YouTube Channels). He is an Environmentalist, Blogger, YouTuber, Developer & Vlogger.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Translate »