When we moved into our house a little over a year ago, none of the trees had leaves, so we weren't entirely sure what they were. Then, a few months later, we made the very interesting discovery that our lovely shade trees in the backyard are mulberry trees--two of which are actually fruiting mulberry trees.
We quickly learned about the mess our lovely shade trees give off! Patio stained; purple bird poop everywhere; and berries littering the yard. Instead of focusing on those rather glaring negatives, I wanted to make something fun out of it. So, we looked up how to harvest them and what recipes we could make with them. I'd never had a mulberry before and they're not bad. We quickly discovered that our dog loves them and so does Big Brother!
The harvesting method is a bit unusual--put down a large tarp or sheet and then shake the tree, collecting whatever falls down.
Our first harvest yielded a cup or two (not counting whatever Big Brother ate off the sheet).
We quickly learned about the mess our lovely shade trees give off! Patio stained; purple bird poop everywhere; and berries littering the yard. Instead of focusing on those rather glaring negatives, I wanted to make something fun out of it. So, we looked up how to harvest them and what recipes we could make with them. I'd never had a mulberry before and they're not bad. We quickly discovered that our dog loves them and so does Big Brother!
The harvesting method is a bit unusual--put down a large tarp or sheet and then shake the tree, collecting whatever falls down.
With our first little mulberry harvest, I made quadruple berry pie. Seriously delicious!
So, the time is upon us again for some mulberry "picking"--or maybe I should say mulberry shaking?! And, I'm on the lookout for other mulberry uses/recipes.
Do YOU have mulberry trees? Have any good recipes using mulberries?
oh man! I love berries! But my favorite FAVORITE scent is Mulberry! I always buy mulberry candles, satchels, incense, etc.. Does it just smell AMAZING fresh like that?
ReplyDeleteWe make ours into syrup. Fabulous on ice cream. And in sharab el toot, a Lebanese drink. http://roscommonacres.com/2010/06/how-to-make-mulberry-syrup/
ReplyDeleteThe only problem I have is that I'll send the kids down with a pail and they'll come back purple and only a single berry. Not much I can do with that!
if you want to be really adventurous with them you can also feed silk worms! They thrive off of the leaves....your little guy (big brother) would love watching them grow! We raised them one spring and my boys absolutely loooved it!
ReplyDeleteThe house I grew up in had only one tree when we moved in and guess what? It was a huge mulberry tree. You are not exaggerating about the mess! I always had purple spots all over my shoes. We just picked them off of the tree... at least the ones that didn't fall on their own. We would eat them off of the tree when we were out playing and our two turtles LOVED the mulberries! They had seemingly permanent purple noses & mouths. So cute! The tree also attracted A LOT of interesting visitors that were great to watch. Enjoy!
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