Productivity and quality of tree mulberry (Morus alba L.) leaves

Abstract

A study on productivity and quality of tree mulberry, Morus alba L. was undertaken in farmers’ field condition by utilizing established five tree mulberry gardens of one-year-old and above and one bush mulberry garden as a control in each of the Chikkaballapura and Kolar Districts. There was a significant difference in number of shoots (36.06 and 67.93), shoot length (108.00 and 112.03 cm), number of leaves/shoot (23.06 and 21.92) and leaf yield/ tree (2167.00 and 3409.83 g per tree), respectively in Chikkaballapura and Kolar Districts. The leaf area in Chikkaballapura gardens showed significant difference (125.55 cm2), but it was non-significant in Kolar District. The leaf moisture (73.24 and 72.34%) and leaf moisture after 6 hours of harvest of leaves (62.10 and 61.02%) were minimum in tree mulberry compared to the bush mulberry. The carbohydrates (17.44 and 17.89mg/100g), proteins (27.72 and 32.77mg/100g), phenols (3.02 and 3.22mg/100g), nitrogen (4.43 and 5.24%), phosphorous (0.36 and 0.42%), potassium (1.26 and 1.33%), calcium (1.92 and 2.11%), magnesium (0.49 and 0.54%) and sulphur (0.12 and 0.14%) were significantly maximum in tree mulberry compared to bush mulberry, respectively in Chikkaballapura and Kolar Districts except for calcium content in Kolar District.