Ruth Nakamura · December 7, 2025
When the Leaves Start Whispering: Recognizing Spider Mite Damage Early What I actually use: The tool that catches mite infestations before they spread across your tree — A quality magnifying loupe on Amazon → That afternoon walking through my grandmother’s backyard left an impression I couldn’t shake. Mulberry trees are deceptively tough — but that … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · December 5, 2025
What’s that fine, powdery material collecting near the base of your branches — and why is the wood just above it dying even though the rest of the tree looks perfectly fine? You’re probably looking at the work of mulberry borers, one of the nastiest internal tree pests you’ll ever encounter. Unlike the insects that … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 29, 2025
Why I Know This Subject I walk past my Pakistan mulberry most mornings on the way to check on the younger stock, and that one tree — now in its ninth year — taught me more about deer behavior than anything I could have read. I planted it without thinking about deer at all. Just … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 27, 2025
Mulberries vs. Blackberries, Raspberries, and Figs: How They Actually Compare Back in early June, a stretch of unseasonably cool nights followed by two days of hard rain kept me watching my ripening fruit more closely than usual. Standing under my Pakistan mulberry that morning, I noticed something that had always been there but suddenly felt … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 26, 2025
A Fruit That Nobody Teaches You to Find Purple stains appear on the sidewalk in midsummer. You trace them upward and spot a tree heavy with what looks like blackberry clusters. But the fruit tastes nothing like what you’d expect — nothing like the berries sold in supermarkets either. That’s because you’ve stumbled onto a … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 24, 2025
Understanding Compact Mulberry Trees Maximizing Harvests in Small Spaces I remember the exact moment I noticed it: the smell of rain-dampened cedar from my deck mixed with something else—that unmistakable mulberry sweetness drifting down from the overgrown tree three houses over. That’s when it hit me that I’d been telling myself for years I couldn’t … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 22, 2025
Most people who plant their first mulberry assume that leaf harvesting is an afterthought—something you do with what falls or if you happen to have extra. That assumption costs you. The leaves, frankly, deserve as much attention as the fruit itself. Over the years I’ve been growing mine, I’ve learned that the foliage holds genuine … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 20, 2025
My opening season tending a mulberry tree on my property turned out to be one learning disaster after another: I let fruit slip through my fingers, the deck took permanent stains, and watching pounds of berries fall and rot beneath the canopy felt worse than missing the harvest altogether. By my third year in, I’d … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 18, 2025
Mulberry leaves will surprise you with what they can do for your body—if you know where to look. Most people grow mulberry trees for the fruit alone, never realizing the foliage holds therapeutic compounds that rival anything in a supplement bottle. For generations, traditional healers across Asia and the Mediterranean have turned to mulberry leaves … Read more
Ruth Nakamura · November 16, 2025
The Pruning Shears That Actually Cut Through Thick Mulberry Canes Without Crushing the Fruit What I actually use: The clean cuts that get your mulberries into the jar, not on the ground — Fiskars bypass pruning shears on Amazon → Harvesting mulberries isn’t just about picking; it’s an art form. I quickly learned that dull … Read more
