Ruth Nakamura Ruth Nakamura · June 25, 2026
It was late April, and my mulberry tree was absolutely exploding with new growth. I was out there with my pruning shears, doing what I do every spring — trimming back the wild branches, shaping it up, trying to keep it from taking over the entire corner of my yard. And suddenly, mid-snip, I stopped … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 23, 2026
The weeping mulberry tree has captured my heart for over a decade. Its graceful, drooping branches create an almost ethereal presence in any landscape, and unlike many ornamental trees, it actually produces delicious fruit. If you’re considering adding one to your garden, I want to walk you through everything I’ve learned about successfully growing and … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 21, 2026
It was late June, and my mulberry trees were absolutely screaming. I’m talking purple-stained hands, a colander overflowing every other day, and a freezer that was already packed with summer projects. I remember standing in my kitchen at 10 PM, staring at a bowl of dark, overripe mulberries that had split on the branch, thinking: … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 19, 2026
Last summer, my neighbor Sarah stood in my backyard with a freshly picked black mulberry in her palm, looking at it like it might bite her. “So what do mulberries taste like?” she asked, hesitantly bringing it to her mouth. “Is it sweet? Sour? Will I regret this?” I laughed because I’ve had this exact … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 17, 2026
The first time I brought in a big bowl of mulberries from the backyard and set them on the counter, I noticed something moving. Tiny, barely visible, wriggling white specks in a few of the berries. I nearly dumped the whole batch into the compost and swore off homegrown fruit forever. But I held off … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 15, 2026
It was a Tuesday morning in late September when I stood in my kitchen, staring at a small glass jar of pale green powder, wondering if I’d made a terrible mistake. Three months earlier, I’d been perfectly happy sipping mulberry leaf tea and occasionally taking an extract capsule. But then I got curious—the kind of … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 13, 2026
If you’re looking for a complete guide to mulberry trees, you’ve found it. I’ve spent over a decade growing 12 different mulberry cultivars in my backyard, and I still remember the moment I first tasted a sun-warmed black mulberry straight off the branch. That single berry changed everything. I ripped out a struggling apple tree … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · June 11, 2026
For months, my mulberry leaf tea was a complete gamble. Sometimes it tasted smooth and grassy. Other times it came out bitter and flat. I had no idea what I was doing wrong — until I realized my old kettle…
Ruth Nakamura · June 9, 2026
Last spring, I was three trees deep into my annual mulberry pruning session when my old hand pruners finally gave up. The blade had gone dull, the spring was weak, and every cut required twice the effort it should. My…
Ruth Nakamura · June 7, 2026
Every mulberry season, I tell myself the same lie: “This year I’ll stay on top of the harvest.” Then July hits, the trees go absolutely wild, and I’m standing outside in the heat with purple-stained hands, picking berry by berry…
