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White Mulberry (Morus alba L.)

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Summary
Range
Similar Plants
Uses
Relatives
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Photos

Photo © Scott Loarie, Public Domain.

↑Summary

A tree native to northern China; introduced in North America, where it is widely considered invasive and hybridizes with the native red mulberry.

↑Range - Expand

Legend	Color
Introduced
Introduced or Not Present

This tentative map is based on our own research. It may have limited data on Canada and/or Mexico, and there is some subjectivity in our assignment of plants as introduced vs. expanded. Read more in this blog post.

Although this plant occurs somewhere in each of these regions, it may only occur in a small part of some or all of them.

↑Similar Plants

Red Mulberry (Morus rubra)
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Hairy Crabweed (Fatoua villosa)
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↑Uses

Historically, this species was introduced in an attempt to establish a silk industry, as its leaves are the preferred host of the silk worm. See Connecticut’s Mulberry Craze for a history of the attempt in Connecticut. The attempt was largely unsuccessful, as the silk produced was more expensive and lower quality than silk from Asia, and did not compete favorably on the global market.

The fruit is edible, but usually only eaten casually, as it is sweet but often bland.

The plant is also used in medicine.

This species can be used for wood, and has many desirable properties, but it is not commercially harvested for lumber because of the tree's small size. See more on mulberry in the wood database.

Closely related to, and hybridizes readily with the native red mulberry, Morus rubra.