153 



1. MORUS. The Mulberries. 



Trees with leaves 3-nerved at the base; flowers of two kinds on 

 different Isranches of the same tree or on different trees; the staminate 

 in long catkins, calyx 4-parted, petals none, stamens 4, the pistillate 

 catkins short; fruit an aggregate of drupes. 



Leaves softly puljescent beneath 1 M. rubra. 



Leaves glabrous beneath, or vrith a few hairs on the veins or in 



the axils 2 M. alba. 



1. Morus rubra Linnaeus. Red Mulberry. Plate 64. Medium 

 sized trees with short trunks and round heads; twigs at first green and 

 puberulent, soon becoming glabrous and later usually turning gray; 

 leaves ovate or somewhat orbicular, frequently 2-3 lobed, average 

 mature blades 10-15 cm. long, more or less cordate at the base, abruptly 

 taper-pointed, rough and glabrous above and finelj' pubescent beneath; 

 fruit ripening in .June or Julj^ 1.5-3 cm. long, dark purple or nearly 

 black, edible; wood light, soft, rather tough, coarse-grained, and dura- 

 ble in contact with the soil. 



Distribution. — Southern Ontario west to eastern Dakotas, south 

 to the Gulf States and west to Texas. Found throughout Indiana, 

 although there are no records for the extreme northwestern counties. 

 Throughout our area it must be regarded as infrequent. It is only here 

 and there that j^ou find a tree, and I have never seen it where there were 

 even a small number of trees close together. In the northern part of 

 the State it is usually found in a moist well drained soil, associated 

 with trees such as beech and sugar maple, or in lower ground with 

 slippery elm and linn. It has no particular affinity for streams. In the 

 southern part of the State it is found in both rich and poor soils. How- 

 ever, it is most often met with near the base of slopes. 



Remarks. — This tree seldom has a clear bole of more than 3-5m. and 

 is usually a tree about 20 cm. in diameter, rarely as large as 6 dm. in 

 diameter, although there is a record^ of a tree in Georgia that was "7 

 feet in diameter at 3 feet above the ground." 



The wood has been a favorite for fence posts since pioneer times. It 

 transplants easily. The fruit is a favorite with birds and for this rea- 

 son it should be planted about orchards and in woodlots. It is some- 



iGarden & Forest 9:.37.5:1896. 



