Re: [nafex] Morus Nigra Chilling Requirements, Etc

Fred, I am very surprised at the amount of cold your M. nigra tolerated, although we don't know just how cold it got in the unheated greenhouse. Where did you get your M. nigra, because sometimes nurseries mislabel the plant?

Lee Reich, PhD
Come visit my farmden at http://www.leereich.com/blog <http://www.leereich.com/blog>
http://leereich.com/ <http://leereich.com/>

Books by Lee Reich:
A Northeast Gardener's Year
The Pruning Book
Weedless Gardening
Uncommon Fruits for Every Garden
Landscaping with Fruit
Grow Fruit Naturally

> On Mar 28, 2016, at 10:25 AM, Nathan Wilson <nathan.b.c.wilson@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Thanks very much Fred. This is exactly the sort of information I'm looking
> for.
>
> Nathan
>
>
>
> On Friday, March 25, 2016, Robert Bruns <r.fred.bruns@gmail.com> wrote:
>> I have M. nigra "Noir de Spain" in a pot. I overwintered it in a cool
>> greenhouse where the temperature was set to 60 degrees but got down as low
>> as 35 on extremely cold nights. The plant sprouted about a month ago,
>> which implies that your option D would work.
>>
>> A few years ago, my previous greenhouse had its heater fail on a night
> when
>> the temperature got down to minus 15. My Morus nigra survived, but my
> figs
>> didn't. So your options A and B might work, but I think they are iffy.
> In
>> your option C, I'm sure the plant would leaf out in the basement.
>>
>> Good luck!
>>
>> Fred
>> central Indiana, zone 6 (formerly zone 5b)
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Mar 25, 2016 at 12:11 PM, Nathan Wilson <
> nathan.b.c.wilson@gmail.com
>>> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi everyone,
>>>
>>> What are the chilling requirements of morus nigra?
>>> 1. Minimum chilling hours needed to ensure fruit set the next year.
>>> 2. Maximum temperature that 'counts' as chilling hours.
>>> 3. What conditions trigger the plants to break dormancy?
>>> 4. What are the lowest short-term and long-term temperatures the plant
> will
>>> survive?
>>>
>>> Background information: As mentioned in a previous post, I'm in zone 5/6
>>> and have morus nigra in 87 litre (23 U.S. gal) pots.
>>>
>>> I'm weighing my options:
>>> A. Bury the plants in winter, just like some people do with figs. I'm not
>>> sure if morus nigra is hardy enough for this.
>>> B. Put the plants in an unheated, detached garage over winter. I think it
>>> would get far too cold in January and February and would kill the plants,
>>> although I haven't documented temperatures yet.
>>> C. Leave the plants outside until around Christmas to satisfy chilling
>>> requirements, then put them in a cool basement, which is presently 12
> deg C
>>> (54 deg F), and hope the plants don't break dormancy before I can bring
>>> them back outside.
>>> D. Greenhouse: I have a mekeshift greenhouse setup in my cellar door
>>> stairway. The temperature fluctuates, but I can control it to a point.
> The
>>> benefit of having the plants in the greenhouse is that I think it could
>>> reduce the number of years it takes the plants to bear, by making them
>>> slightly healthier and more vigorous (this was pointed out by Lee Reich).
>>> But, perhaps I can't have my cake and eat it too.
>>>
>>> Any input or experiences would be appreciated.
>>>
>>> -Nathan
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