482 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



[No. 5 



mens having sometimes measured more than a 

 foot in breadth, and fifteen inches in length; their 

 upper surfaces are convex or curled, and of a deep 

 and beautiful shining green. The fruit which 

 was unknown even in France till 1830, is long, 

 black, and of appearance sufficiently beautiful, its 

 flavor good, being intermediate between that of 

 the red, and that of the black mulberry; its pro- 

 duce is abundant. 



This mulberry differs from all others in the pro- 

 perty which the roots possess of throwing up nu- 

 merous flexible stalks; the great length which 

 these stalks acquire in a short space of time; and 

 the facility with which it is propagated (rom lay- 

 ers, or even from cuttings; also from the remarka- 

 ble size which the thin, soft, and tender leaves, 

 speedily acquire, and the promptitude with which 

 they are renewed. 



The silk which the worms form, from the food 

 afforded by this plant, is not only of superior 

 quality, as has been abundantly proved in France, 

 but the cocoons are of unusual size. The leaves 

 from their extraordinary dimensions, being gath- 

 ered with important economy of labor, and of 

 time; and from their superior nutritious qualities, 

 they are preferred by the insects to all others. 



This mulberry should be cultivated .in hedge 

 rows, and never suffered to rise higher than seven 

 or eight feet. But a tew years are sufficient to 

 raise considerable fields of them in full vigor, suf- 

 ficient to support an immense number of silk- 

 worms; and regular plantations can be speedily 

 formed, by planting the shrubs at the distance ol 

 from six to eight feet asunder; a space sufficient 

 for the extension of the branches— sufficient also 

 lor cultivation, and for the greater convenience of 

 gathering the leaves. So greatly is this last ope- 

 ration facilitated, by the flexibility of the stalks, 

 and the very superior size of the leaf, that as we 

 are assured by M. Perrottet, a child is sufficient 

 forgathering the food for a large establishment of 

 silkworms. 



The introduction of this plant from Asia is due 

 to M. Perrottet, Agricultural Botanist, and tra- 

 veller of the Marine and Colonies of France. It 

 was brought by him to France in 1821, in that 

 vast collection, and variety of productions, which 

 he had, during thirty-four months, procured in the 

 seas of Asia, or gathered on the coast, or in the 

 lands of Guiana. 



From Manilla, the capitol of the Phillippine 

 Islands, whither it had been brought by the Chi- 

 nese as a tree of ornament, as well as of eminent 

 usefulness, it was introduced by M. Perrottet into 

 the Isle Bourbon, and from thence into Cayenne 

 and France. At a later period it was sent from 

 Cayenne to Martinique, and from France to Gau- 

 daloupe; also to Senegal; the numerous plants 

 which are already disseminated in the divers cli- 

 mates of Africa, of America and Europe, have all 

 been produced by the two individual plants which 

 were brought by M. Perrottet from Manilla. At 

 first, its cultivation in France was confined almost 

 exclusively to the royal gardens, that its trial and 

 dissemination might be thus rendered the more 

 effectual throughout every department of the 

 country. The Morus Multicaulis, according to 

 M. Perrottet, will be readily acclimated, inasmuch 

 as it originated in a country analogous to that of 

 France; it appeared neither to suffer from the ex- 

 cessive cold of the northern, or the intense heat of; 



the intertropical regions, as the plants in the go- 

 vernment gardens of Cayenne, had acquired dur- 

 ing eight months a truly remarkable develope- 

 ment, being clothed at that time with leaves of ex- 

 traordinary size; those also, which were cultivated 

 in Senegal, although planted in an arid soil, and 

 situated beneath a scorching sky, exhibited an ap- 

 pearance sufficiently satisfactory; yet in all re- 

 spects, they had acquired less developernent than 

 those which were planted in the humid climate of 

 Guiana. 



M. Poiteau, in the Annales d'Horticulture, has 

 stated down to 1830, "that by the information 

 which we receive from all quarters, this mulberry 

 is destined to replace the common white mulberry, 

 every where, for nourishing silkworms." "This 

 mulberry has not suffered in the least, from the 

 rigors of the last severe winter." 



At New York, on Long Island, this mulberry 

 had endured unprotected the rigors of seven win- 

 ters, and the very extraordinary winter of 1831-2 

 which destroyed so many trees hitherto deemed 

 hardy, even to the root. Yet in our climate,* 

 there are many kinds of trees which require pro- 

 tection during the first winter, though they may 

 never need it afterwards. Such are the young 

 seedling plants of but a single summer's growth, 

 of the cherry, plum, pear, the quince and white 

 mulberry. All which require to be taken up in 

 autumn, and laid slanting in earth, their bodies be- 

 ing in part protected by soil. For all these spe- 

 cies are liable to be killed occasionally to the root 

 by the first winter, or to be utterly destroyed by 

 being thrown out by frost; yet in the second win- 

 ter it is far otherwise; their roots becoming strong, 

 and firmly established, the well ripened wood ot 

 the second year, and the wood of two years' 

 growth, becomes indestructible by any but extra- 

 ordinary winters. The same precautionary mea- 

 sures should in northern climates, be taken with 

 the young plants of this mulberry so valuable — 

 the layers of but a single summer's growth, which 

 are separated in autumn. 



The vegetation of the Morus Multicaulis, par- 

 ticularly in a rich and humid soil and protected 

 situation, is extremely rapid and luxuriant, and 

 prolonged to a late period in autumn, or till the 

 tender and yet vegetating tips of the twigs are 

 checked by frost. These extreme ends will gene- 

 rally be lost, as they always are of the common 

 white mulberry, when young. 



Jonathan H. Cobb, Esq. of Dedham, author of 

 the excellent "Manual on silk," has tried them for 

 several years, and in a letter dated 1834, he con- 

 firms the latter remark, and adds "but that we 

 shall be able to rear it here, is decided beyond a 

 question." Mr. Joseph Breck a distinguished 

 botanist of Lancaster, from very critical observa- 

 tion of 100 trees which were set out on the place 

 of S. V. S. Wilder, Esq. in Bolton, late in the 

 spring of 1833, in a cold, springy soil, and north- 

 ern exposition — seems persuaded from an ex- 

 perience of one winter, 1833-4, and from careful 

 observation, that they may be even hardier than 

 the common white mulberry, as they appeared to 

 suffer less than some hundreds of the latter of 

 three or four years' growth which stood beside 

 them. Of any extraordinary results from a win- 



New England.— Ed. 



