How to Grow Mulberry (Shahtoot) at Home From Winter Cuttings
Mulberry (Shahtoot, Toot) is the easiest fruit tree to propagate in this whole series: a pencil thick winter cutting pushed into soil roots more often than not. The harder part is knowing which mulberry you are cutting from, because white, black and the allergy causing paper mulberry all get called “toot”, and only two of them are worth growing. Learning how to grow mulberry at home mostly comes down to that one choice.
Before you start
- Best start: hardwood cutting from a tree whose fruit you like
- Years to fruit: fruiting varieties from cuttings often within two to three years; black mulberry can take far longer
- Pot: at least 50 cm (20 inches) wide and deep, about 60 to 100 litres
- Sun: six to eight hours
- Take cuttings: December to February, while leafless
- Harvest: March to May in the plains
Prefer to listen? This post as a 4 min video · Watch the video
Telling white from black fruit, and what dried toot is good for, is covered in white vs black mulberry. The leaf tea question lives in mulberry leaf tea. This page, part of our Kitchen Garden section, is purely about growing a fruiting tree.
First: which mulberry are you planting?
White mulberry (Morus alba) gives sweet white or purple fruit and grows very fast. Black mulberry (Morus nigra), the long, intensely flavoured Shahtoot, grows slowly; the RHS notes black mulberries often take around eight years to fruit. Paper mulberry (Broussonetia) is a different tree altogether, the one blamed for Islamabad’s spring pollen misery, explained in our pollen calendar. Do not plant it. Some fruiting mulberry trees are male and give pollen but no fruit, which is the strongest reason to take cuttings from a tree you have seen fruiting.
Cutting, layering, grafting or seed?
| Method | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Hardwood cutting | Plant | Easy, free, and copies the parent exactly |
| Air layer | Plant | Reliable for black mulberry, which roots less easily |
| Nursery plant | Plant | Ask if it was grown from a fruiting tree |
| Grafting | Maybe | Useful for named dwarf types; white and black graft together poorly |
| Seed | Skip | Slow and may be a non fruiting male |
Hardwood cuttings, step by step
- In December to February, choose last season’s shoots, pencil to finger thick, from a tree with good fruit.
- Cut 15 to 20 cm lengths with three or four buds, a slanted cut at the bottom just below a bud and a flat cut at the top. TNAU’s sericulture guide uses exactly this size.
- Push two thirds of each cutting into a 6 to 8 inch pot of half sand, half soil. Several cuttings per pot is fine.
- Keep just moist in a bright spot without harsh sun.
- Leaves appear in two to six weeks in spring, but leaves are not roots. Wait until roots show at the drainage hole before moving it.
- Pot the best one into its large home before the June heat or wait until the monsoon.
Plant six, keep two
Rooting is never 100 percent, and a cutting that leafs out in February can still collapse in May because its leaves outran its roots. Root six cuttings in one wide pot, keep it in light shade through the first summer, and only separate the two strongest in July. A drink bottle with the bottom cut off, placed over a cutting, keeps humidity up in dry Multan or Delhi air.
Pot size and soil
Mulberry grows big and quickly, so ground planting is natural. In a pot, the RHS recommends at least 50 cm wide and deep with a soil based mix; for us that means two parts garden soil, one part compost, one part sand, as in our potting mix guide. Mulberry likes slightly acidic to neutral soil and dislikes salty patches. Keep a potted tree to about two metres by pruning.
When to plant in each zone
| Zone | Take cuttings / plant | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Karachi | Dec to Feb; plant Jul to Aug | Grows fast; fruit set may be lighter in mild winters |
| Multan, Sukkur, Bahawalpur | Dec to Feb | Fruits in spring before the worst heat |
| Lahore, Faisalabad, Delhi | Dec to Feb | Classic toot country |
| Islamabad, Peshawar | Jan to Feb | Excellent; plant fruiting types only |
| Hills | Feb to Mar | Fine below heavy snow belts; fruit later |
Watering through the seasons
- February to April (flowering and fruit): keep pots evenly moist; dry spells drop young fruit.
- May to June, 45°C: daily in pots, every few days in the ground for young trees; mulch thickly.
- Monsoon: water only when dry.
- December to January: leafless and resting, water sparingly. Mulberry handles frost nights.
Feeding and pruning
Scratch in compost in February and again after harvest. The RHS suggests an organic liquid feed every two weeks for pots in the growing season; plain compost tea does the job. Prune only while leafless, between leaf fall and mid winter; the RHS warns mulberries bleed a lot of sap if cut at other times. In a pot, shorten long shoots to a few buds each winter, which keeps the tree small and producing.
Why is my mulberry not fruiting, and why are leaves yellow?
A tree that flowers but never fruits may be male. Young black mulberries are simply slow. Too much shade, or heavy nitrogen feeding, gives leaves instead of fruit.
| Sign | Cause | First response |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow leaves, soggy pot | Overwatering | Improve drainage |
| Pale new leaves, green veins | Iron shortage in alkaline soil | Compost, a little sulphur in the mix |
| White fluffy insects on shoots | Mealybug | Hose off, soap spray |
| Brown spots on leaves | Leaf spot in humid weather | Remove fallen leaves, prune for air |
| Fruit vanishes | Birds | Net small trees |
Harvest signs
Black types are ready when fully dark and soft; white types when plump and sweet, often still pale. Fruit does not ripen after picking. Shake branches over a clean sheet, as the RHS suggests; the stain on clothes and floors is permanent, so pick in old clothes.
You or a neighbour gets spring hay fever: plant only a known fruiting mulberry, never paper mulberry, and keep pollen producing male trees away from windows. Unripe green mulberries and the milky sap can upset the stomach and irritate skin, so teach children to eat only ripe fruit. Read the full label and wear gloves and a mask if you use any chemical spray, and keep children and pets away until it dries. A big tree pot is heavy; check the roof.
Grow it or skip it?
Plant it almost anywhere in Pakistan and North India; it is free to propagate and fast. In a pot it is a maybe, because it wants to be big. Pair it with quick crops from our first five plants guide.
Mulberry growing questions
How to grow mulberry at home?
Root a winter hardwood cutting from a fruiting tree, plant it in full sun with good drainage, water steadily during spring fruiting, and prune only while leafless.
Can mulberry be grown in pots?
Yes, in a pot at least 50 cm wide and deep with yearly winter pruning. Dwarf fruiting types suit pots best.
How long do mulberry cuttings take to root?
Usually several weeks in spring warmth. Leaves come first, so wait for roots at the drainage hole before transplanting.
What is the best time to plant mulberry in Pakistan?
Take and plant cuttings from December to February while trees are leafless. Rooted plants can also go in during the monsoon.
Why is my mulberry tree not producing fruit?
It may be a male tree, a young black mulberry, too shaded, or overfed with nitrogen. A tree that has never fruited by year five is likely male.
Is paper mulberry the same as shahtoot?
No. Paper mulberry is a different genus, known for heavy allergenic pollen. Shahtoot is black mulberry, a fruit tree.
Can I grow mulberry from the seeds in the fruit?
It can sprout, but the seedling may be male or poor fruited and slow. Cuttings are faster and give known fruit.
When should I prune my mulberry tree?
Between leaf fall and mid winter. Pruning in spring or summer makes the tree bleed sap heavily.