Red Mulberry
The red mulberry is native to the United States and bears fruit that are eaten by birds, mammals, and humans alike (though please remember that foraging is against the law in all New York City parks, including Central Park). The leaves provide food for the larvae of two butterflies, the mourning cloak and the red admiral. This species readily hybridizes with the non-native, invasive white mulberry.
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Leaves
3-5 inches long, alternate arrangement ; simply oval shape to roughly disk shaped; sharp, saw-like edges; highly variable (no lobes or can be dissected into lobes); green above with rough scabrous texture, pale fuzzy underside -
Fruit
Resemble blackberries, mature in summer -
Flower
1-2 inches long, small, pale green, hanging in catkins -
Bark
Gray-brown and quite irregular; long, scaly ridges; younger trees orangish when wet
