Question: Hello, In the 1990's I purchased a Persian fruiting mulberry tree from a nursery called Xotics Tropico on La Brea Ave in L.A. run by a gentleman named Leon of which I would presently like to obtain another of the same variety.I have the tag from it and it has the number 1409640 6-8' (Morus Nigra) also with #1 grease penciled on the end of the tag. Is that exact strain still available after all these years? Shall I go through Leon again to order your tree if you have it? Or do you ship direct, as the tree is fragile and brittle. The previous tree lost it's graft after many years, leaving only a regular mulberry stock. This strain had the finest taste of any berry I have tried on either vine or tree.            Thank You, Michael

Answer: Michael,  yes, we still grow that exact same strain of Persian Mulberry although, at the request of customers, we now graft the tree at a lower height (48") instead of the 5-6 foot like we did in the past.  This allows for easier picking.  We now also offer it grafted at the ground as a "Mulberry Bush" which has proven quite popular - and not just as a children's song.  In addition we also grow the Black Beauty Mulberry (top grafted and bush form like the Persian), the Teas Weeping Fruiting Mulberry, the White Fruiting Mulberry and the most popular Cooke's Pakistan Fruiting Mulberry with good tasting fruit up to 3 inches long.  Mulberries have become quite popular in recent years as more and more people find out like you did that they taste really good.

We do not sell direct to the public and encourage you to contact your local retaile nursery.  For financial reasons, Xotics Tropical has not been able to buy from us the last two years so I do not know if they have any old stock around.  There are a lot of nurseries who carry fruiting mulberries and here are a few nurseries in Southern California who got the top grafted Persian Mulberry this winter: Boething Treeland - Woodland Hills; Ramy's Nursery - Reseda; Western Landscape - Santa Clarita; Green Thumb - Ventura; Louie's Nursery #2 - Riverside; J & J Growers - Riverside; Cherry Vallley Nursery - Cherry Valley; Walter Anderson - Poway.  The wholesaler, Otto & Sons in Fillmore, also distributes it to nurseries in Southern California.

For the Bush form you might check Sperling Landscaping in Calabases or Roxan's Ranch Nursery in Simi Valley.

More information on fruiting mulberries here: Fruiting Mulberries

Ron Ludekens 2-28-2011