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  • Claymango
    Senior Member
    • Mar 2015
    • 220

    OT: What are the best tasting Mulberry Varieties out of the Morus Alba and Nigra

    Since my recent visit with a wonderful friend here on the forum, I've become extremely obsessed over this new Alien Fruit and I'm currently doing Recon on the best varieties??? So far with a bit of Google digging I've come up with these top 5 varieties:

    Noir De Spain
    Pakistan
    Cookes select Pakistan (Anyone know the difference?)
    Black Beauty
    Morus Alba (White)

    Can anyone chime in on the best tasting of all of these listed and others you personally like?
  • strudeldog
    Senior Member
    • Feb 2015
    • 1557

    #2
    Probably any Nigra would be tops, and some folks think all Nigra are the same. Unfortunately many of us don't have the climate for them. My Black Beauty is leafing out but smaller than it was 2 years ago when I put in ground. I have had 2 Pakistan freeze out here in zone 7. One that is good tasting but not in Nigra Top-tier league but is small and bush like is Girardi dwarf. there are a couple close spelling of it. Most mulberry with exception of Nigra get larger but this one seems to be staying around 6 foot as an option for the space challenged here. Below are pics at noon today. Note the close nodes as it is a true dwarf. Close nodes= lots of fruit on a compact plant. If anyone wants to trade some interesting fig material for Mulberry. I think I have the following cuttings in fridge. Illinois Everbearing, Girardi Dwarf, Shangri La, Middleton,
    Kokuso No. 20, Wassica. Very Limited on a couple.



    Attached Files
    Phil North Georgia Zone 7 Looking for: All of them, and on and on,

    Comment

    • Altadena Mara
      Veteran
      • Mar 2015
      • 678

      #3
      My first, last, and always favorite mulberry is the Black Persian (morus niger) . The nigers are as sweet as the albas but with a more complex and rich flavor. It also has a touch of acid like a real berry which takes it to the level of perfection for fruit. The seeds are so small you hardly notice them, unlike blackberries. It doesn't develop a great flavor until it’s completely black, perhaps even over ripe with the slightest hint of fermentation like a great wine. It only fruits for a few weeks and turns everything it touches purple. The purple squashed fruit ruins clothes, gets tracked everywhere and the stains last a long time. Every critter in the neighborhood comes to enjoy the feast but there’s enough for all. The trees are sold grafted on a rootstock which keeps them at a reasonable size for fruit picking. My thirty year old plus tree blew over a few years ago and it is propped up at an angle, but I refuse to let it go, have planted another Black Persian next to it.
      Black Beauty (morus niger) stays small and bush-like, around four feet so far in my yard, and has a similar flavor to the Black Persian. The few first berries on my tree were smaller than on the Black Persian.
      Both the Pakistan Mulberry (Morus alba) from Dave Wilson’s Nursery and the Pakistan Cooke’s Selection are long, sweet, and juicy. They are ripe NOW before the cherries start the seasonal stone fruit parade. But they lack an acid or rich flavor and are almost bland when compared to the Black Persian. There isn’t much difference in flavor from the red stage to the black. The Wilson mulberry is a little more furry of the two with the mouth feel of a caterpillar. The Cooke’s Selection is fatter and slightly shorter. Both will give a second crop in the fall here in SoCal. The Mulberry Australia from Top Tropics is similar to both of them in taste and form but stays green when ripe so doesn't stain. It fruited for the first time last fall. (https://toptropicals.com/cgi-bin/gar...d=Morus_hybrid)
      My new mulberry trees, Shangri-La and Kokusa, have fruit on them for the first time, but aren’t ripe yet. The trees hardly grew at all last year and people post that they stay small.
      The picture below shows the Cooke's Selection on the left and some older Wilson Pakistanis on the right. Often they're longer when fresh but I ate all the ripe ones today and found these three on the ground. I'll post some better pictures later.

      You may only view thumbnails in this gallery. This gallery has 1 photos.
      Mara, Southern California,
      Climate Zone: 1990=9b 2012= 10a 2020=?

      Comment


      • SeattleFigs
        SeattleFigs commented
        Editing a comment
        wilson pakistani is that what most pakistan look like? i think i read lecooke selection was supposed to be best. how would u compare flavor or productive?

      • venturabananas
        venturabananas commented
        Editing a comment
        Last year was my first growing the LE Cooke version (grafted on the Wilson version). To me, the fruit quality was basically the same, but the LE Cooke version was more productive. I don't know if that was just happenstance, or a real and lasting difference between the two. But I'll find out eventually. At this point, if I had to choose between the two, I'd get the LE Cooke version.

      • SeattleFigs
        SeattleFigs commented
        Editing a comment
        ok great to here i see alot of pakistan for sale online but not the le select. im looking for that so i can compare.
    • Claymango
      Senior Member
      • Mar 2015
      • 220

      #4
      Thank you so much guys, Mara your feedback is Clutch!!!!

      Based on your reviews it seems Cookes Pakistan is the best of the 2 Pakistans so I will be getting it instead... I will probably look to graft other Alba varieties such as the King Shatoot White Mulberry along with other Varieties.

      Also I'll be placing an order with Whitmans Farm for a Noir De Spain which Lucille the owner vouches is the best of all the Nigras... I love that lady over there!!! Will probably attempt to graft other Nigras onto it as well... I have read there is a general sensus among Mulberry gurus that many of the Nigras are mostly the same in terms of flavor with many believing they originated from sports of the standard Nigra Trees.

      Comment

      • Altadena Mara
        Veteran
        • Mar 2015
        • 678

        #5
        I’ve been waiting weeks for the other mulberries to ripen.
        The Korean Mulberry had a mild, bland, sweet taste and was identical in flavor to the Pakistani mulberry. It had no acid taste at all. It’s the acid, full on berry taste that makes the Persian mulberry the best, but they’re not ripe yet.
        This is the third year the bushy Black Beauty in a pot has made these tiny mulberries that are so small they dry up and disappear. They seem to small to eat. The Black Beauty in the ground had no berries at all, again.
        Shangri-La has an unripe red berry a little smaller than the Korean so I might get to taste it this year.
        In the picture, the Kokusa Korean Mulberry is on the left and the Black Beauty ones are on the right.

        You may only view thumbnails in this gallery. This gallery has 1 photos.
        Mara, Southern California,
        Climate Zone: 1990=9b 2012= 10a 2020=?

        Comment


        • Claymango
          Claymango commented
          Editing a comment
          Mara my black beauty also makes tiny berries which also have small non enjoyable seeds in them as well...I'm hoping the taste is better this year. Nothing has compared to that Pakistani you let me try.
      • HarveyC
        Veteran
        • Feb 2015
        • 656

        #6
        I have Morus alba 'Oscar' which is "pretty good" and a couple of M. nigra which haven't given me much fruit yet. My favorite is DMOR009, I think (forget the species name off hand right now). It is productive and the flavor has become addicting. I honestly have been thinking if I should plant a lot of these trees because I like the fruit so much, though I think that is probably an extreme response.
        My fig photos <> My fig cuttings (starts late January) <> My Youtube Videos

        Comment


        • HarveyC
          HarveyC commented
          Editing a comment
          DMOR009 at Wolfskill is Morus Macroura, though it had previously been labeled as something else. I learned that a long time ago USDA would give (at least sometimes) a fancy aluminum tag when they distributed cuttings and our Sacramento CRFG chapter's chair has a tag on his tree with the former species name. Jenny at Davis reclassified it.

          By the way, USDA is having the annual mulberry and stone fruit tasting at Wolfskill on May 23rd at 10am.
      • Altadena Mara
        Veteran
        • Mar 2015
        • 678

        #7
        Harvey, how does one take part in the annual mulberry and stone fruit tasting at Wolfskill? Can people just show up, or is an invitation required? It sounds like a lot of fun.
        Mara, Southern California,
        Climate Zone: 1990=9b 2012= 10a 2020=?

        Comment

        • lilfiggy
          Member
          • Feb 2015
          • 941

          #8
          Okay guys need a little help. Rogue deer ate my nutured from sprout mulberry tree and I want to replace it with something delicious. Will pay for adoption fee. LOL Joyce

          Comment

          • mav
            • Apr 2018
            • 1

            #9
            hello, i'm from Oregon which type would you recommend? also, where can one get DMOR009 ? Are you guys selling mulberry cuttings?

            Comment


            • Altadena Mara
              Altadena Mara commented
              Editing a comment
              Not everyone has luck rooting cuttings. I'm batting zero trying to air layer and rock layer my Australian mulberry tree.
              Several nurseries have their spring sales going now on remaining fruit trees, even mulberry trees, in stock. You'll be eating mulberries sooner, faster from older rooted trees.
              You might want to post your question to Facebook group "Mulberry Growers Usa".
          • FruitTreeAddict
            • Nov 2017
            • 3

            #10
            I am in Central Florida. My Shangri-la is bland. I do like the Pakistan but it is an acquired taste, if you are used to the dwarf everbearing taste. The dwarf everbearing and Illinois everbearing are my favorite so far. I have Black Beauty and Persian fruiting but I did not care for the taste. No fruit on my Oscar and one from Hawaii, they called it Maui Mulberry. I also have one the nursery called a white mulberry (nothing to do with fruit color) I love this one too, it tastes like the dwarf everbearing but it is a big tree and not a bush. To me the dwarf everbearing tastes like a blackberries without the seeds. Where can I get a DMOR009? Also I have 3 Pakistan Mulberries. Dave Wilson Nursery, L.E Cooke & Raintree and they are all exactly the same for me fruit size and taste although L.E.Cooke was the first to fruit.

            Comment


            • FruitTreeAddict
              FruitTreeAddict commented
              Editing a comment
              I wrote this 2 years ago and my trees were young so I want to update. Shangri la is a delicious fat super sweet mulberry about 1 1/2” long. It is so weird that the first year if fruited the fruit tasted terrible and I was going to dig it up but gave it another year. It originated in Naples Fl but here in central Florida it gets leaf spot really bad but still produces pretty good in the spring. Black beauty and Persian fruiting both Nigra varieties at first did not taste good but now they are DELICIOUS. They have a completely different taste profile from other mulberries. They are slow growing and don’t do super good here but still they are growing and I get a handful of berries each spring. I believe they are both the same variety they taste the same to me and grow the same?
          • crademan
            Veteran
            • Aug 2017
            • 763

            #11
            Welcome to Our Figs, FruitTreeAddict. May I suggest that you start a new topic to introduce yourself (please click on the forum of your choice & there's a New Topic button on the upper left)? More members will want to welcome you.
            Christine (Waddell, AZ Zone 9b) Wishlist: All my fig wishes have been fulfilled by OurFigs members. Thank you!

            Comment

            • grasshopper
              Fig Phenom
              • Jul 2017
              • 4147

              #12
              I thought Morus Macroura is Pakistan or Himalayan. How do you get the trees to fruit? I have a black beauty which is growing slowly but surely but doesn't look like it wants to fruit this year.
              Dallas, TX 8b
              Wish list: Irene's Black Greek

              Comment

              • ramv
                Fig Phenom
                • Apr 2017
                • 3279

                #13
                Morus Nigra Black beauty ripened one so far. What an intense flavor!
                I still have several to look forward to.
                You may only view thumbnails in this gallery. This gallery has 2 photos.

                Comment

                • JonathanSF
                  Member
                  • Feb 2019
                  • 30

                  #14
                  Originally posted by Claymango View Post
                  Since my recent visit with a wonderful friend here on the forum, I've become extremely obsessed over this new Alien Fruit and I'm currently doing Recon on the best varieties??? So far with a bit of Google digging I've come up with these top 5 varieties:

                  Noir De Spain
                  Pakistan
                  Cookes select Pakistan (Anyone know the difference?)
                  Black Beauty
                  Morus Alba (White)

                  Can anyone chime in on the best tasting of all of these listed and others you personally like?
                  I have Cookes selection Pakistan. Not sure if I know the difference, because I only have the LE Cookes version to compare against. But it sure is very yummy. I look forward to eating those all the time. It's a winner.

                  Black Beauty does have an intense flavor, but tastes funny to me. Has some strange bumble gum like candy taste. It's so different tasting than the Black Persian that it stands out, but not in a good way for me, others might be into that kind of flavor. I don't like it very much in my SF climate. This thing needs to get grafted over. By the way, my Black Beauty is authentic. It comes from LE Cooke. I trust the LE Cooke brand a-lot, they have really good trees.

                  Black Persian - Wow, this is strong tasting and very good. Only bad thing in my foggy climate, I tend to get it to mold quickly if I leave it on the tree too long, so I tend to eat it as soon as it turns ripe, and not a week later.

                  Alba White (too sweet, and flavorless for my taste. I might as well be eating raw sugar).
                  Last edited by JonathanSF; 03-16-2019, 12:11 AM.

                  Comment


                  • FruitTreeAddict
                    FruitTreeAddict commented
                    Editing a comment
                    If you can grow them in your zone black beauty and noir de Spain would be the best tasting and Illinois Everbearing is also delicious. I have Cooke’s Pakistan, Dave Wilson Pakistan and one from Burntridge and all 3 are the same. Dave Wilson tree produces the most.

                  • SeattleFigs
                    SeattleFigs commented
                    Editing a comment
                    do you habe any le cooke pakistan mulberry cuttings to trade?
                • JonathanSF
                  Member
                  • Feb 2019
                  • 30

                  #15
                  Originally posted by Claymango View Post
                  Thank you so much guys, Mara your feedback is Clutch!!!!

                  Based on your reviews it seems Cookes Pakistan is the best of the 2 Pakistans so I will be getting it instead... I will probably look to graft other Alba varieties such as the King Shatoot White Mulberry along with other Varieties.

                  Also I'll be placing an order with Whitmans Farm for a Noir De Spain which Lucille the owner vouches is the best of all the Nigras... I love that lady over there!!! Will probably attempt to graft other Nigras onto it as well... I have read there is a general sensus among Mulberry gurus that many of the Nigras are mostly the same in terms of flavor with many believing they originated from sports of the standard Nigra Trees.
                  After growing Black Beauty, which is also an Nigra, and comparing it to my Black Persian, I can't agree that they taste the same, nor close on this one. Maybe this is the exception? I have only 2 Nigras to compare. I just grafted my Nior D Spain right now. I will let you guys know if that tastes like the Black Persian to confirm that statement.

                  Comment

                  • snowjunky
                    Junior Member
                    • Oct 2017
                    • 12

                    #16
                    Originally posted by FruitTreeAddict View Post
                    I am in Central Florida. My Shangri-la is bland. I do like the Pakistan but it is an acquired taste, if you are used to the dwarf everbearing taste. The dwarf everbearing and Illinois everbearing are my favorite so far. I have Black Beauty and Persian fruiting but I did not care for the taste. No fruit on my Oscar and one from Hawaii, they called it Maui Mulberry. I also have one the nursery called a white mulberry (nothing to do with fruit color) I love this one too, it tastes like the dwarf everbearing but it is a big tree and not a bush. To me the dwarf everbearing tastes like a blackberries without the seeds. Where can I get a DMOR009? Also I have 3 Pakistan Mulberries. Dave Wilson Nursery, L.E Cooke & Raintree and they are all exactly the same for me fruit size and taste although L.E.Cooke was the first to fruit.
                    How did the Maui mulberry turn out? Is it bigger, tastier or more productive than Shangri-la?

                    Comment

                    • cuckoo4cocopuffs
                      Member
                      • Apr 2019
                      • 53

                      #17
                      I don't have much experience eating mulberries. But I have had the rare honor of eating a noir de spain ripe from lucille whitman at whitman farms. I live close enough that I was able to visit and eat straight from the tree in August. It was very impactful, sweet and tart and juicy. No seeds detected. It was like a great blackberry with no seeds at all. If I had room for a large tree, I would go with a noir de spain for sure. But I happen to luckily live in a mediterranean climate that is suited to noir de spain thriving.

                      Comment

                      • trustyfarms
                        Veteran
                        • Oct 2019
                        • 591

                        #18
                        Illinois Everbearing is my favorite so far as it starts to wake up late spring after the chance of frost has passed and has sweet large fruits.
                        South Carolina 8B
                        Wishlist: De la Roca MP, Vincenzo, Rigato del Salento, Corallo, Swiss Black Cherry
                        http://trustyfarms.square.site Trusty Farms on Etsy/eBay

                        Comment

                        • AZFiggy
                          • May 2021
                          • 4

                          #19
                          Hello, does any one have any updates on Maui or does any one else have Himalayan or Valdosta? I have a 15 gallon Nigra that I bought recently locally and a 1 gallon Noir de Spain from Whitmans Farm. The 15 gallon I bought locally is supposed to be from old L.E.Cooke stock but doesn't have a label so i'm not sure which variety it is.

                          Comment

                          • sc4001992
                            Senior Member
                            • Jun 2019
                            • 282

                            #20
                            Here's what I grow in CA, I have not had fruits from Persian mulberry yet but the graft is huge so I will be getting many fruits to do a taste comparison with my others:
                            - Shangri La
                            - Black Pakistan
                            - White Pakistan
                            - Australian Green
                            - Red Himalayan
                            - DMOR9
                            - Black Beauty
                            - King White, Shahtoot
                            - Thai Dwarf
                            - Maui
                            - Silk Hope
                            - Sangue e Latte
                            - Tice
                            - Persian
                            - Contorted
                            - Kokuso

                            So far here's the best tasting for me:
                            - Australian Green/White Pakistan
                            - Sangue e Latte
                            - Black Pakistan

                            I have not tasted the Persian, Maui, Black Beauty, and Kokuso yet from my tree. Also my Red Himalayan and DMOR9 have not had enough fruits to do a good comparison on them.

                            If you want to buy some cuttings, I sell on the Tropical Fruit Forum (TFF), or just send me a PM for more info.
                            Last edited by sc4001992; 10-17-2021, 02:26 PM.
                            Fullerton, CA

                            Comment


                            • SeattleFigs
                              SeattleFigs commented
                              Editing a comment
                              Sangue e Latte can you tell us more about this variety? photos?
                          • Alastair
                            Senior Member
                            • Apr 2019
                            • 401

                            #21
                            Why is it that nurseries almost always neglect to specify what variety their M. nigra trees are? By comparison, M. alba trees are almost always differentiated by variety.
                            Sebastopol, California. Zone 9a
                            The best time to plant a fig tree was 80 years ago. The second best time was 50 years ago. Oh well.

                            Comment


                            • DrDraconian
                              DrDraconian commented
                              Editing a comment
                              Probably because more than half the time their 'morus nigra' trees are not true nigra's. If it produces a black berry and isn't an otherwise named variety, a good number of places will simply call it a nigra. I still get pissed at all the supposedly good nurseries that continue to claim that Dwarf Everbearing is a morus nigra, which it most emphatically is not. As is true in the fig world for many mislabeled figs, the blame probably can be traced back to Agristarts, which I believe propagates these as tissue cultures and sells them to nurseries around the country. If they mislabel it, every other nursery that resells the plants will simply use the name/description that they've been given by Agristarts.
                          • sc4001992
                            Senior Member
                            • Jun 2019
                            • 282

                            #22
                            Here's some photos of the Sangue e Latte. This mulberry is from Italy, fruit is about the size of Shangri La, color is beautiful as you can see. The taste is unique and I put it up on the top 3 in flavor. Here's my best tasting from the ones I have tasted so far. Next spring I should be able to compare the Persian:

                            1. Australian Green/White Pakistan/Shahtoot
                            2. Sangue e Latte
                            3. Black Pakistan
                            4. Tice

                            The Sangue e Latte is relatively new here in US. Don't ask me for buy/trade on this one, still to rare.









                            Last edited by sc4001992; 10-19-2021, 04:34 PM.
                            Fullerton, CA

                            Comment

                            • Carld
                              Junior Member
                              • Aug 2019
                              • 27

                              #23
                              I have dozens of mulberries. My current list of established trees is:
                              . Shangri la
                              . Oscar
                              . Black pakistan
                              . Clone 10 pakistan hibrid
                              . Madeira mulberry
                              . Several nigras (AGM, king james/chelsea/regina/german unknow/several portuguese unknowns and a +200y old nigra at least)
                              . Gerardi dwarf
                              . White pakistan/saharanpur
                              . Wellington
                              . Neapoli
                              . Yugoslavia
                              . Rupp's Roumanian
                              . Illinois everbearing
                              . Sangue e latte
                              . Portugal
                              . Lavendel
                              . Bistrica
                              . Moldovan Pink
                              . Sugar cube
                              . Gelso nero
                              . Gelso rosso
                              . Gelso Bianco
                              . Black Italian
                              . Pink
                              . Several black large fruiting and white fruiting unknown/unnamed cultivars from all over europe, some i named them my self. Lol
                              . Boninensis
                              . Several weeping fruiting mulberries, one of these with large fruits
                              . Charlotte Russe / mojoberry mulberry / morus rotundiloba
                              . pretty sure i am forgetting a few more cultivars.. lol


                              recently acquired also himalayan red from Cyprus, himalayan from turkey, purple mulberry from turkey, Australian Black/yediveren, taiwan long mulberry, Shandong mulberry, Shelly mulberry.

                              No doubt the number 1 for taste is my old nigra, followed by all other nigras I have, then gelso nero and black italian (might be the same..), the Portugal mulberry, then white pakistan, then Black pakistan. But this might change over the years.
                              most of these trees are between 3-5 years old and might change when they mature more

                              Comment

                              • MARCO
                                Veteran
                                • Oct 2021
                                • 914

                                #24
                                I recently got some cuttings for Oscar Mulberry from FruitTreeAddict (who I see posted above). It was recommended to me for zone 6b in southern MA. Is this a good variety?
                                Marco - MA zone 6b
                                Marco's 2nd Annual Sale (December 11-21, 2023): https://figbid.com/Listing/Browse?Seller=MARCO

                                Comment

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