Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera)

[satish phadke]

A Moraceae family member often considered as a weed. Large number of trees are seen on Pune university road; near agriculture college; fergusson college road etc. One tree which was seen flowering today 4th Jun 2008 opp.University Pune.
Satish
Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera, syn. Morus papyrifera L.)
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SATISFIED http://satishphadke.blogspot.com/

[vijay kiyawat]

is it called paper mulberry because the stalks are used for making handmade paper? i saw in south africa mulberry stalks being soaked and beaten for making paper by hand. whether it was paper mulberry or the other type is not known to me.
-vijay kiyawat

[J.M. Garg]

As per the link http://www.plantoftheweek.org/week257.shtml, inner bark is used for making paper.

 

Here are some extracts from Wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_mulberry

The Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera, syn. Morus papyrifera L.) is a tree in the family Moraceae, native to eastern Asia. Other names include Halibun, Kalivon, Kozo, and Tapacloth tree.

It is a deciduous tree growing to 15 metres tall. The leaves are variable in shape (even on the same branch), unlobed ovate cordate to deeply lobed, with lobed leaves more frequent on fast-growing young plants; they are 7-20 cm long, with a rough surface above, fuzzy-downy below and a finely serrated margin. The male (staminate) flowers are produced in an oblong inflorescence, and the female (pistillate) flowers in a globular inflorescence. In summer, the pistillate flower matures into a red to orange, sweet, juicy fruit 3-4 cm diameter, which is an important food for wild animals. The fruit is edible and very sweet, but too fragile to be commercialised.

During the months of February until April proximity to this tree can contribute to severe pollen allergy. In Islamabad, Pakistan the pollen count goes as high as 40000 per m³ causing severe problems for residents.

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