Which type of mulberry is this?

Pauly3

Pauly3 says:

Hello I bought this mulberry as a 'king James' mulberry three years ago. every other mulberry I see has much smaller, darker and glossy leaves.

Is there an online source that shows all the species and compares their leaves?

An arborist friends tells me mine is a hybrid and not likely to have anything to do with the old King James mulberry in the Physic Garden in Chelsea, which is how it was sold.

He says it was merely sold as the 'King James' name

cheers

See original post

 

pansyface

IF IT WAS SOLD BY A REPUTABLE COMPANY AS "KING JAMES I" THEN THAT IS WHAT IT SHOULD BE.

I HAVE ONE AND I CAN'T SAY THAT THE LEAVES ARE PARTICULARLY DARK. MORE A SORT OF PEA GREEN.

HERE IS A LINK TO SOMEONE WHO HAS A LOVE OF MULBERRY TREES. MAYBE YOU COULD CONTACT THEM WITH A PHOTO OR TWO AND ASK THEIR OPINION.

http://locations.sprouting.org/list?filter0=1

Invicta2

Look like Black Mulberry leaves. Mulberry leaves can be quite variable, some rather like Lime tree leaves, others like Figs [they are related to Figs]. The White Mulberry tends to glossier leaves than the Black mulberry.

pansyface

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, HERE IS A PHOTO OF MY KING JAMES I MULBERRY TREE.

THOUGH, OF COURSE, I MIGHT BE DELUDED. BUT AT LEAST THAT IS WHAT I THOUGHT I WAS BUYING.

Pauly3

Here's my query. a friend planted a plain mulberry at the same time and there looks like this. note these leaves are half the size of my King James's leaves 

hence my query, how to ID a mulberry from it's leaves. what is there mulberry a Wellington? a AGM? or ????

nutcutlet

So much depends on growing conditions. I should think it's near impossible to tell one from t'other as with many cultivars.

Unless you buy from a reliable source that can confirm the tree has been grown from cuttings/graftings from the original cultivar. No chance. Add in the fact that some suppliers don't know or care about the origins and may be selling seedlings from a named cultivar ( a seedling is never the cultivar however much it may look like it), then the chances reduce even more.

Tell your friend it's not a hybrid, hybrids are a cross between two species. The named varieties are all cultivars Cul(tivated) var(ieties) of one species, Morus nigra. 

Pauly3

I took a little trip and went to see the supposed father tree at the Chelsea Physic Garden. the black birds were enjoying themselves and leaving the evidence too

Last edited: 10 August 2016 17:40:31

pansyface

THANK YOU FOR THAT. THOUGH I FEEL JUST A LITTLE MORE CONFUSED THAN BEFORE NOW. YOUR PHOTO OF 13 JULY SHOWS LEAF SHAPES VERY SIMILAR TO YOUR CLOSE UP OF THE CHELSEA TREE WHEREAS YOUR LONG DISTANCE SHOT OF CHELSEA LOOKS QUITE LIKE MINE.

AS NUT SAYS, THERE IS A LOT OF VARIATION.....

pcoles

I've just seen this,  It's a black mulberry, Morus nigra.  The leaves on new growth / young shoots are unlike the leaves on mature branches. They are more like the leaves of the white mulberry, are deeply indented and typically have three to five lobes. You might find some useful information here:
www.moruslondinium.org.  There are relatively few varieties of M. nigra and these mostly differ in the size and shape of their fruit. The tree in Chelsea Physic Garden may have been grown from a cutting of a James I tree, but is not a 17th century tree, There are few, if any, of these in London.  Syon Park and Charlton House are likely candidates. White mulberry leaves vary enormously from one variety / species to another and are usually glossy, rather fine, not hairy underneath and are the preferred food of the silkworm.

Last edited: 11 December 2017 21:13:58