Does anyone have a good source for mulberry scion/cuttings?  Or does anyone here have any they would be willing to sell me?

I have never had a mulberry in my life and from what I have read it seems like a good all around first fruit/tree is the Illinois Everbearing.  I am open to different opinions on that though.

Thanks,

Matt

What zone are you in? Some mulberries can survive down to zone 4 but others need higher.

My first taste of a mulberry must have been a wild type or a seedling because it was insipidly sweet and a little mushy. In more recent years I acquired a Pakistan and what a spectacular fruit!

I have a weeping mulberry that is still dormant. I could send you some cuttings of that if you want.

I always forget to add my zone.  I am in 6a/7b depending on how and what map you look at.

Would you say the weeping mulberry produces good fruit?  I have read good things about the Pakistan (don't they produce larger fruit?) but don't recall much about the weeping mulberry.

Thanks!

My weeping hasn't produced fruit yet, but I was told the fruits are similar to others. It's really more of a "conversation piece" tree for a garden. If you want loads of good fruit I would go with Illinois Everbearing in your zone. 

In my neck of the woods i like silk hope for productivity and taste.I have never tasted Pakistani but have heard it is very flavorful,it will suffer a little in the winter in 7b.I also have a Greek heirloom mulberry that is super sweet and tasty that roots more readily than any other i have tried.I am rooting about 40 cuttings of the Greek now and i see root growth.I would be happy to send you a rooted tree for postage once they get stronger.

Grant 

Nate - Since I am trying to determine whether or not I like mulberries to begin with I'll probably pass on the weeping mulberry for the time being.  I did look them up though and they look very nice.  I can see how they would be a conversation starter.

Grant - PM'd you 

I've got the Pakistani mulberry and have been very happy with it.  It's mildly sweet, in a very refreshing way when it's still on the light pink side.  If you're looking for something that's going to be a very striking flavor, I don't think you're going to get it in a fresh mulberry (although they can be very sweet when dried).  Oscar Mulberry is supposed to be good as well.  Mulberry tree's can get to be pretty huge, grow fast, and also can stain alot -so there may be some locational considerations.  I think both varieties are available in a bush form too.  If you've got plenty of room, it's a nice tree that will give a good abundance of fruit without much work.

"King white" is another excellent variety- long like pakistan but white fruit and very sweet if thats what you're into.  They can even be eaten when greenish yellow.

Try to find a real black mulberry (Morus nigra). It’s much more flavorful than the white or red mulberry (M. alba, M. rubra). But don’t choose your tree only based on the color of its fruits. White mulberries can actually have dark fruit! The Pakistani is another species (M. macroura). It's more frost sensitive.

I grow 2 different black mulberries. One has small but very tasty fruit. The other one has large berries, also of very good quality. Mulberries are one of my favorite fruits.

I grow Several Mulberry cultivars. A Good mulberry is one of my favorite flavors. A  great balance of sweet and tart. I don’t care for ones that are Sweet only.  Morus Nigra species  are  pretty much accepted as the best, but as Timo eluded to many folks and some nurseries  incorrectly state Nigra only based on fruit color. The problem with Nigra is that it doesn’t grow well in many areas including mine. The Humidity in the southeast doesn’t agree with it. I still have a small Nigra Black Beauty alive but it’s smaller than when I initially planted it. I lost a couple other Nigra prior. I have lost 2 Pakistan to cold here in zone 7b. It’s a large fruit and taste is nice but there are others I prefer, but I will likely try to plant or graft it again.  

 On propagation  some cultivar cuttings seem to root fairly readily and others are very difficult  or it seems at least for me.  Most I found most graft pretty easy but I a couple I obtained failed. I think there are some graft issues  between species and you will see some conflicting info on how many species exist and what species  some mulberry are.

Thanks for all of the great information.

The staining is something that I am aware of and I don't think there will be an issue where I am.  I get the impression it is probably best to try a couple of varieties (as with figs) to see which I like best.  It will hopefully help that mulberries seem to grow fast and bear early.

It doesn't sound like the Pakistan variety will work too well where I am.  Are there any other suggestions aside from above or should I just get the ones mentioned and try them out?

Thanks!

A White Persian might work in your area, the tag on the one I got this year says they are hardy to zone 6. Haven't tried to fruit but I hear good things about the nursery selected cultivars. They are supposed to be on the sweet side with less acid.

Can you graft? and have access to mulberry root stock?   I.E. would probably do good in your zone.  It doesn't seem to fruit heavy in my area, but has a few fruit over a long period of time. Aggressive grower and the fruit will be out of reach unless you really prune heavy and likely more than once a year.  It's supposedly a rubraXalba cross I like the taste a good grazers tree. I gon't grow Silk Hope but supposed to be similar and more productive in Southeast, but the person I know growing it has been disappointed. I have only gotten a few I.E. to root after 100s of attempts. Many times I get some minimal roots then they die. Shangri La, Middleton, Kokuso No. 20  I have had better luck rooting.  The tree I really like is Girardi dwarf spelled couple different ways been very productive with nice decent fruit. A true compact dwarf with fruit in reach. I never even got it to attempt to root however. If you want to try I.E.  I could  send sticks but like I said I have had limited luck. One good source for mulberry is Lucille at Whitman farms if you want an established tree 
http://www.whitmanfarms.com/category/allplants/edible-plants/mulberries/

I've had about a 25% overall success rate rooting mulberries the trick is use a deep pot, rooting hormone, and a sandy potting mix. The cuttings should be 6-8 inches long. stick several cuttings per pot and leave 1 bud per cutting above the soil. stick the pot in the woods and cover the soil around the cutting with leaves or pine needles up to the exposed buds. water every other day if there hasn't been rain and you'll get a few to root in 3-4 weeks but leave them alone until winter and repot once dormant. Shangri La mulberry is by far the easiest to root for me with success rates hovering around 50%. the same method works for hazelnuts but for anyone with an existing tree may want to air-layer as a method of propagation as the success rates are around 90-100%. if anyone wants to swap some mulberry cuttings or any other plant material please feel free to email me at ediblelandscaping.sc@gmail.com I grow a little bit of everything and always looking for new things.