Mulberry Trees

Mulberries

What's so good about Mulberry trees?

I have a small plot of land for my little garden. The down side is that there is a big monsoon drain beside it . Sink holes were inevitable, no matter how many times I refilled to seal them with rocks and earth, the holes kept appearing, due to heavy rain pours that washed the soil away and caused some earth movements.

April 2019- holes were found beside the drain next to my garden

 Apart from heavy rain pours,  reptiles like monitor lizards  love digging holes into the soil near the drain to nest. 

This is our new neighbor. A monitor lizard. I have named him "Harry".

 He looks about 3 feet long, at least. I hope not to see him too often. 

This photo was taken by my son. 

Look at "Harry", enjoying his sunbath!😎

One day as I was searching for information on how to manage soil erosion, I came across an article written by Pharma Innovation  showing the ecological values of the Mulberry trees.

What amazed me was the tree has been used for years by many, for their fruits as superfood, and their leaves to release oxygen into the environment and their deep root system to manage soil erosion.

Whether or not it's true, I just need to find out by planting them or I will never know.

I have also read a few articles from different writers to give me a wider view of Mulberry trees.

In one article it says the trees can absorb about 4000 kg of carbon dioxide and release about 3000 oxygen to the environment each year. I am not good in science but from what I understand is, it's a good thing. All trees help improve air quality to our environment.

They have strong deep root systems which help to hold the soil and manage soil erosion. 

Another article wrote that the roots of Mulberry trees release a chemical which may kill the rats and keep them away from the garden, though it did not go into detail of how it is so.

A few articles advised to plant the trees in river sides and slopes because the strong root system that holds the soil well, also conserve water in the soil to prevent soil erosion. So I thought, this may help in my sink holes near the drain. Instead of letting the hole gets bigger, I had better get going to do something about it before they get worse. And I feel that planting Mulberry trees maybe the best option. Not only is it inexpensive but by having those trees, they can give ample shade to my garden.

Rows of Mulberry trees at KOKOL HAVEN RESORT

Last new year eve, I was on a holiday to KOKOL HAVEN Resort which is up the hills of 2,400 feet height, I noticed the owner of that resort planted so many mulberry trees along the slope. Could it be that it does help manage soil erosion and land slide?

Not only Mulberry roots benefit the soil but their edible, delicious, sweet sour, dark blackish red fruits are super food. The leaves can also be made into tea that has traditional medicinal properties. 

They are very nutritious fruits which has a lot of Iron, Vitamin C, Anti oxidants, and have been linked to lower cholesterol, blood sugar and cancer risk.

Many have made use of the fruits to make Mulberry pie, soup, liquor, smoothie drinks, or just eat raw as fruit itself. 
Looks like it's a God given plant. 

November 2020

More Mulberry trees were planted along the side of the pathway beside the monsoon drain near my garden.

My 1st mulberry tree planted since 2019

Unripe green young fruits

Sign of fruits ripening soon - changing from red to blackish red. They looked like Raspberry. 

Look at this bunch! Clusters of Mulberries!  Aren't they beautiful?  I was so excited when I saw them fruiting for the first time 😂. 

This was taken in November, Christmas is coming and these red fruits made the tree looked so "Chrismassy"!

Mulberry are not a fussy plant and could grow easily in all kinds of soil, in pots and grounds with full sunshine. 

Year 2019 - I  bought a RM12 mulberry nursery plant from local market. Those selling in the market were matured enough to plant direct to the ground.

Dec.2019 - From the market to the soil.

The next day, I was happy to see it was adjusting well to the soil under the hot sun and grow well on moist well drained soil.q

 One of my Mulberry trees at the entrance of my pathway. 

This photo was taken early in the morning of December.

Beautiful morning, isn't it? Clear blue sky and a tree with mulberries hanging all over like a Christmas Tree😂.

Freshly plucked Mulberries from my garden.

 Those with half red and half black fruits has a mixture of sweet and tangy taste. If it's completely red, it's sour but if it's dark blackish reds then it's sweet. Depending what you want. I want to try the Sweet and Tangy!😁

 Mulberries juice

they are easy to make.

Blend the fruits with a cup of cold water for a minute or two at high speed.

If you like Mulberries Smoothies, add a few ice cube to blend together.

A very refreshing morning breakfast juice!

The next day, I plucked another batch of Mulberries ( 500 gms) from my garden.

One of my friends advised to make Mulberry Jam. 

I asked them to share some tips about the recipe but none of them has done it before😅 .

 So I went into google and Utube to find out more. I was excited but skeptical about it at the same time because this was my first homemade jam! I  came across "give recipe" by Zerrin and Yusuf from Turkey. The recipe was so simple and easy to follow. I decided to follow their recipe using only 3 ingredients- Mulberries, sugar and lemon juice. The jam turned out well.

Those who are interested to know how to make the jam can click on the above "give recipe".

Mulberry Jam

Successful Mulberry jam

Using sterilized bottle will keep the jam longer in the fridge.

My morning breakfast 😂

Toast bread with my homemade Mulberry Jam and a cup of hot tea!

Tea Time 

 Cracker biscuit with homemade mulberry jam and fresh cream. Yummy!

What about the leaves? Is it edible?

Some research claimed that drinking Mulberry Tea, 3 times a day in long term, helps to lower bad cholesterol and triglycerides and good for those with hypertension and type 2 diabetes. 

I plucked some leaves, dried the washed leaves in open air.

When the leaves are dried and dehydrated, they can be made into tea leaves.

Mulberry Tea in a unique strainer

A cup of Tea with fresh Mulberry leaves

A friend shared a recipe on how the leaves were boiled together with bones, red dates and black bean to make soup which the magazine claimed, is good for the knees of the elderly. But I have not try that yet.

References

The wonder of the mulberry trees

Root system of mulberry

Journal of pharmacognosy and phytochemistry

The Pharma Innovation Journals

Mulberry: An ideal plant for sustainable development

Mulberry for environment protection

All you need to know about Mulberry

Benefits of Mulberries

Super food

Mulberry Leaves

Black Mulberry

Mulberry Jam without Pectin