Mulberries, Huzzah!

Julian9EHP said:

I always wanted to live in a house with mulberries in the
back yard. I am, they are, and it's mulberry season! So I
guess I'm going to have to process the ones I picked
tonight right away, first thing in the morning.

E. P.

How's your car looking this morning? Mulberry season was
always accompanied by large purple splotches all over the
vehicle, clothsline, kids toys.... ;-) maxine in ri

Julian9EHP said:

I always wanted to live in a house with mulberries in the
back yard. I am, they are, and it's mulberry season! So I
guess I'm going to have to process the ones I picked
tonight right away, first thing in the morning.

E. P.

Ha-ha-ha-chooo! They outlawed new mulberry plantings in my
city due to "large pollens" which aggrevate allergies. I
always nibbled on them as a kid in Missouri, but they
don't seem to be flavorsome enuf to me nowadays to
preserve. Edrena

maxine in ri said:

Julian9EHP said:

I always wanted to live in a house with mulberries in
the back yard. I am, they are, and it's mulberry season!
So I guess I'm going to have to process the ones I
picked tonight right away, first thing in the morning.

E. P.

How's your car looking this morning? Mulberry season was
always accompanied by large purple splotches all over the
vehicle, clothsline, kids toys.... ;-) maxine in ri

And lots of birds fighting over the berries....

gloria p who had two of the trees outside the bedroom window
when we lived in Ashaway RI

Quoted message said:

From: maxine in ri [email hidden]

Quoted message said:

How's your car looking this morning? Mulberry season was
always accompanied by large purple splotches all over the
vehicle, clothsline, kids toys.... ;-) maxine in ri

The mulberries are in the back yard, my [mother's borrowed]
car is in front.

But there is *one* small problem . . .

E. P.

Thanks, people. But there *is* one problem.

We live in an old house, which had long been poorly kempt.
My DH had our extention run a soil sampling. The lead in the
soil is 800 parts per million: the toxic level is greater
than 400 ppm. No mulberries for us. 🙁

People can make the earth sick.

E. P.

Julian9EHP said:

Thanks, people. But there *is* one problem.

We live in an old house, which had long been poorly kempt.
My DH had our extention run a soil sampling. The lead in
the soil is 800 parts per million: the toxic level is
greater than 400 ppm. No mulberries for us. 🙁

People can make the earth sick.

E. P.

Contact your extension agent again. When I asked about
raspberries growing near the road, my agent looked up the
distribution of lead in plant parts and found that while the
roots and stems had moderate levels, once the berries had
been washed well, they had no detectable levels of lead.

I know mulberries are tree-ish, but it would be worth
looking into for you.

maxine in ri

(Julian9EHP) said:

The mulberries are in the back yard, my [mother's borrowed]
car is in front.

But there is *one* small problem . . .

In MY yard the problem is purple bird [censored] all over
everything. (G) If you haven't cooked with mulberries
before, you do know to immerse them in water to flood out
the little bitty bugs, don't you? But no biggie if you
don't; they're very small. LOL!! And you know that the stem
goes all the way through the fruit, right? Just checking.
(G) Mulberries are a PITA to work with, IMHO.

Connie
*****************************************************
My mind is like a steel...um, whatchamacallit.

Quoted message said:

From: [email hidden] (ConnieG999)

Quoted message said:

In MY yard the problem is purple bird [censored] all over
everything. (G) If you haven't cooked with mulberries
before, you do know to immerse them in water to flood out
the little bitty bugs, don't you? But no biggie if you
don't; they're very small. LOL!! And you know that the stem
goes all the way through the fruit, right? Just checking.
(G) Mulberries are a PITA to work with, IMHO.

Mulberries are a democratic fruit, despite their history.
(They aren't native to America -- look up who introduced
them, and why.) In childhood they were in everybody's back
yard, and nobody minded if you took a handful. Some kids
think they're poisonous.

Difficulty . . . well . . . My mother had a friend who let
us pick her apples from the trees. They were _always_ wormy
and/or bruised, needing peeling and processing. My childhood
reaction was Yuck! Now I realize that anything free is a
gift, and if work is the only fee, I am still blessed.

E. P.

(Julian9EHP) said:

Now I realize that anything free is a gift, and if work is
the only fee, I am still blessed.

I have to agree. My mulberries came with my property, and in
the 30 years I've been here, they've grown to gigantic
proportions. A PITA they are, but you're right, I enjoy them
tremendously. Huge, sweet, succulent berries for the taking
- and NO briars!

Connie
*****************************************************
My mind is like a steel...um, whatchamacallit.

ConnieG999 said:

(Julian9EHP) said:

Now I realize that anything free is a gift, and if work
is the only fee, I am still blessed.

I have to agree. My mulberries came with my property,
and in the 30 years I've been here, they've grown to
gigantic proportions. A PITA they are, but you're right,
I enjoy them tremendously. Huge, sweet, succulent
berries for the taking
- and NO briars!

Connie
*****************************************************
My mind is like a steel...um, whatchamacallit.

When it comes the time, have a pro take out the tree. Green
Mulberry will eat up chainsaw blades like cast iron. Even
the stump is practically impervious. My ol' whiskerface says
its the wood most pallets are made of because its strong,
light and durable. Edrena

The Joneses said:

When it comes the time, have a pro take out the tree.
Green Mulberry will eat up chainsaw blades like cast iron.
Even the stump is practically impervious. My ol'
whiskerface says its the wood most pallets are made of
because its strong, light and durable. Edrena

It's also an excellent wood for barbecuing (NOT grilling).

I've never seen a mulberry pallet in my life.