Creative Woodworks & crafts 2005-01, страница 51

The above photos show the differences in the bark of red mulberry (left) and white mulberry (right).

The bark of red mulberry is reddish dark brown, scan , vviih ihe

tips of the scales curling and peeling off. Paper mulberry ^ §§HHHHHR-: Broussonetia papyrifera) is native to Asia, where, in the past,

the inner bark was soaked and pounded into a fabric that was Red and white mulberry male and female flowers can be on used as paper as well as cloth. This variety has also been plant- separate trees (dioecious) or on different branches of the same ed in the US as windbreaks and ornamentals and has become tree (monoecious), which is mostly true for the other species, naturalized in manv locations.

These photos show red mulberry leaves from a top Mulberry fruit serves as food for birds and many other species of

view (left) and a bottom view (right). wildlife, but it is mostly the fruit of the black, red and white that

are used by humans. The black is the sweetest, the red is nearly Like sassafras, mulberry leaves may have several different as sweet but a bit tart, and the white is more tart than sweet, shapes, but unlike sassafras, mulberry leaves arc rough on the However, individual trees can vary considerably. In fact, the top surface and hairy or velvety underneath (except for white color of ripe fruit on the white mulberry can range from white to mulberry, which is hairless). They are broadly oval and sharp nearly black. Almost all varieties have been used in desserts and, pointed, 3" to 5" long with toothed margins, and may have two as is typical with any fruit or vegetable that contains natural or three lobes. Regardless of the variety, they all feel very sugar, have been fermented into an alcoholic beverage, coarse.

continued on page 52 Creative Woodworks & Crafts January 2005 • 51