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Trader Mulberry (Bundle of 2)
$89.99
Reliable shipping
Flexible returns
Ripening
Will it finish before your first hard freeze?
Check it on the Ripening Map (opens in a new tab)At a glance: Trader Mulberry is a mulberry tree rated hardy to zone 3 in our ratings (winters to -40°F), and needs no pollination.
| Hardy to | Zone 3 to 9. A bare number means the whole of zone 3, colder half included (winters to -40°F). Our notes have it taking -44°F. Find your zone with our cold hardiness calculator. |
|---|---|
| Pollination | No Pollination Needed. Trader is a female tree that fruits without a male, so one tree is enough. The berries have few or no working seeds. Bloom group is our estimate from the variety's origin and relatives. Pollination Charts. |
| Good for | Feeding wildlife (9/10), fresh eating (7/10), pies and baking (6/10), jams and jellies (6/10), juice and sweet cider (6/10), wine (6/10). Scores are our own 1 to 10 ratings; 8 and up makes our Best Of lists. |
| What you get | Bare root, 2-3 ft. Shipped or picked up in Missoula in spring, roots wrapped in moist sawdust. Guaranteed to bud out. |
Overview
We’ve combed through a fair bit of info on Trader Mulberry by Dr. Jim Walla, who released this variety in 2015. Trader is perhaps the most cold-hardy named variety (some debate with Northrop), as the original tree survived -44°F near Oriska, North Dakota.
A Hardy History
The history of Trader is quite fascinating. It was brought over from Germany by the Trader family when they immigrated to the U.S. in 1882. The original tree is still in North Dakota, having borne fruit for over 140 years. According to Walla, he believes this to be either pure Morus alba, or largely alba with a small amount of M. rubra, as its cold hardiness supports this—considering rubra is much less cold-hardy.
Fruit Production & Flavor
It will produce an abundance of large, sweet, glossy black fruits throughout the entire summer. The berries are very small the first year and don’t set very heavy fruit in the first few years. The fruit size should increase every year after it first bears, going from 1/2” to 1 1/2” several years later. The fruit is excellent for fresh eating, preserves, and juice/wine. Poultry and livestock love both the fruit and the leaves.
Growth Habit & Hardiness
Can be grown as a multi-stemmed shrub, as a single-trunk 35' tall tree, or much shorter if summer pruned. Will begin fruiting at only 3 years, and will produce for a century or more! Walla observes that this tree could potentially be grown in zone 3a, but he does not know of any currently growing that cold. Safe to say this is hardy to Zone 3b, or -35°F.
Spring 2027 Stock Details
These trees come in the 2-3 ft size.
Photo Credit: Jim Walla
Shipping restrictions: state invasive plant law
White mulberry (Morus alba) is a listed invasive plant whose sale, distribution, and import are prohibited in Ohio (OAC 901:5-30-01) and Indiana (312 IAC 18-3-25). As noted above, ‘Trader’ is understood to be pure or predominantly Morus alba, so we cannot ship this tree to Ohio or Indiana.
Also restricted in: Wisconsin, where Morus alba is a Restricted species under NR 40 with an exemption only for male (non-fruiting) cultivars, which does not cover a fruiting selection like Trader. We do not ship this tree to Wisconsin.
Orders placed to a prohibited state will be cancelled and refunded.
Questions we get about Trader Mulberry
How cold hardy is Trader Mulberry?
We rate Trader Mulberry hardy to zone 3, which means winters down to about -40°F. Our notes have it taking -44°F. Our ratings come from real winters at our two Montana sites and from trusted growers across the North, not from a catalog average.
What is Trader Mulberry good for?
Our top use scores for Trader Mulberry are feeding wildlife (9/10), fresh eating (7/10), pies and baking (6/10), jams and jellies (6/10). Anything scored 8 or higher makes our Best Of lists.
What arrives, and when does Trader Mulberry ship?
A dormant bare-root plant, roots wrapped in moist sawdust with a vapor barrier, shipped or picked up in Missoula in spring. Sizes offered: 2-3 ft. We guarantee our plants bud out. Stone fruits can be slow, so if one still has not budded out by August 15, write to us and we credit you for the following spring.