One of my goals with my garden is to have a continuous harvest year round. This is possibly where I live, but the type of harvest changes throughout the year. Here are my first fruits, White Mulberry (Morus alba) and Goumi (Elaeagnus multiflora). The mulberries are sweet, with a slight fig flavor. The goumi fruit also sweet with a little tartness. Neither plants produce ripe fruits all at once, so the harvest really only amounts to a small daily treat.
Showing posts with label Morus alba. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morus alba. Show all posts
Thursday, May 14, 2015
May Fruits
One of my goals with my garden is to have a continuous harvest year round. This is possibly where I live, but the type of harvest changes throughout the year. Here are my first fruits, White Mulberry (Morus alba) and Goumi (Elaeagnus multiflora). The mulberries are sweet, with a slight fig flavor. The goumi fruit also sweet with a little tartness. Neither plants produce ripe fruits all at once, so the harvest really only amounts to a small daily treat.
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Mulberries: Two foods, one tree.
The Mulberry is a great addition to the permaculture garden or food forest, it's fast growing and provides two edible foods. The fruits, being the first edible, can vary in flavor from species to species and cultivar to cultivar. Because Mulberries can either be dioecious (plants are either male or female) or monoecious (male and female flowers on same tree) it may be a gamble to grow a mulberry from seed.
Out of the more common mulberries Morus nigra is considered superior to Morus alba in regards to the flavor and size of the fruit. The fruit contains anthocyanins, resveratrol, vitamin C, vitamin K, B vitamin complex, zea-xathin, beta-carotene, iron, potassium, manganese, and magnesium. Resveratrol has a wide range of benefits, from reducing inflammation and LDL cholesterol to helping to prevent Alzheimer's disease and insulin resistance.
The second edible crop from this tree are the leaves. They can be used to make a tea, or cooked and eaten like many other greens. They are great protein source, about 15% to 28%, with 15 amino acids. The leaves contain calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin C, beta carotene, chlorophyll, fiber, and quercetin. The leaves also contain Gamma Amino Butyric Acid, which can help to lower blood pressure, as well as 1-Deoxynojirimycin, which may help to control blood sugar levels.
Mulberries are not picky plants, they seem to do well on minimal care. My white mulberry puts out fruit in April and May, whereas the black mulberry fruits in the summer to early fall. By planting both you can have a nice long harvesting season.
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| 'Illinois everbearing' Fruit |
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