Moraceae

Mulberry Family

Texas Mulberry

FAMILY: Mulberry family (Moraceae) – Morus genus.

SPECIES: Texas, littleleaf, or sandpaper mulberry (Morus microphylla Buckley).

TO UTILIZE AS FOOD: Texas mulberry fruits taste absolutely delicious. In addition, the young leaves and shoots are edible after cooking. The fruits are reddish-black and look like raspberries. Despite the name, the trees are not limited to Texas. They can be found in riparian habitats across southern New Mexico and Arizona. The fruits are pleasantly sweet and not too tart. They ripen in late spring or early summer, when the desert really starts to heat up. Texas mulberries drop soon after maturity, so timing is important. Just one tree can provide a wealth of fruits. Not all the fruits mature at exactly the same time, so revisiting the same tree a few days later will likely furnish additional fruits. In years of plentiful rainfall, the harvest can be impressive. Fruits turn from light green to red and finally to black when fully ripe. They taste best when black, but red ones also taste good. Seeds inside range from barely noticeable to hard like those of raspberries. Texas mulberries come with little stalks attached. Removing the stalks is easy, but unnecessary. They don’t cause any problems. Unripe fruits contain milky sap and should not be eaten. Overall, Texas mulberries are an excellent wild food.

IDENTIFICATION: The Morus genus is represented by 4 species in the United States, of which only Texas mulberry (M. microphylla) is currently established in the Southwest. A few other species may settle in cultivated areas or homesteads.

Description of Texas mulberry (Morus microphylla): FORM thornless shrub or tree up to 7 meters tall; deciduous; dioecious; LEAVES simple; alternate; petioles up to 15 mm long; blades 3-7 cm long and often with finger-like lobes; margins toothed (serrate); surfaces rough like sandpaper; FLOWERS inconspicuous, unisexual, and arranged in clusters; male and female flowers on different trees; both genders with 4 sepals and 0 petals; male flowers with 4 stamens; female flowers with superior ovaries and 2-branched styles; FRUITS multiples (fruits developing from multiple flowers) raspberry-like, dark red to black at maturity; HABITAT canyons from Texas to Arizona; blooming April to May.

REFERENCES: Texas mulberry (Morus microphylla): leaves Couplan (pp. 63-64); fruits Couplan (pp. 63-64), Moerman (p. 158), and many others.