Red Mulberry
Morus rubra
Found in bottomland forests, moist slopes, disturbed areas, suburban woodlands. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- 25–60 feet
- Spread
- 35–40 feet
- Light
- Deep shade, Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
Space about 30 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- March to May
- Fruiting season
- May to June
Recorded in 95 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Floodplain and bottomland forests
Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 137 animals.
- Yellow-billed CuckooCoccyzus americanus
- Yellow-breasted ChatIcteria virens
- Yellow-rumped WarblerDendroica coronata
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- American KestrelFalco sparverius
- American WoodcockScolopax minor
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Barred OwlStrix varia
- Black VultureCoragyps atratus
- Black-capped ChickadeePoecile atricapillus
- Black-throated Green WarblerDendroica virens
- Blue-headed VireoVireo solitarius
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Brown ThrasherToxostoma rufum
- Carolina ChickadeePoecile carolinensis
- Cerulean WarblerDendroica cerulea
- Chipping SparrowSpizella passerina
- Chuck-will's-widowCaprimulgus carolinensis
- Common GrackleQuiscalus quiscula
- Common RavenCorvus corax
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Eastern BluebirdSialia sialis
- Eastern TowheePipilo erythrophthalmus
- Eastern Wood-peweeContopus virens
Who uses this plant?
7CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Morus
- Automeris ioIo Moth
- Dryocampa rubicundaRosy Maple Moth, Green-Striped Mapleworm, Rosy Dryocampa
- Euzophera semifuneralisAmerican Plum Borer
- Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
- Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
- Nymphalis antiopaMourning Cloak
- Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
14BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Morus
- Bombycilla cedrorumCedar Waxwing
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
- Cardinalis cardinalisNorthern Cardinal
- Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
- Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
- Hylocichla mustelinaWood Thrush
- Melanerpes carolinusRed-bellied Woodpecker
- Melanerpes erythrocephalusRed-headed Woodpecker
- Piranga ludovicianaWestern Tanager
- Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
Show all 14
- Tyrannus tyrannusEastern Kingbird
- Vireo griseusWhite-eyed Vireo
- Vireo olivaceusRed-eyed Vireo
- Zenaida asiaticaWhite-winged Dove
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Moraceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 4a–9b
- Flower color
- Yellow or green
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Growth habit
- Single stem
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- May
- Fruit ends
- June
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “March to May” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow or green” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “May” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Growth habit · “Single stem” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Hardiness · “Zones 4a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “25–60 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Minnesota Wildflowers differ)
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Deep shade (less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight); Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain differ)
- Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain differ)
- Spread · “35–40 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications