My three mulberry cuttings seemed to be doing fine for a few months, and I was waiting for the roots to start showing at the base of the flower pots so I could re-pot them. They had all grown at least one or two new stems of about 30cm, and my anticipation was rising with each new leaf.

When I saw the first root start to show at the bottom of one pot, I thought I’d better be patient and give the cutting time to develop a proper root system. Soon, the other two plants caught up, and I began to look for bigger pots to transfer the plants to.

Before I could do so, the leaves began to turn brown! Spots began to develop, and then the edges started darkening. Before I knew it, all the leaves were some shade of brown, and began dropping, one by one! My heart sank. All these months and weeks of keeping the plants watered and happy in their bright-shaded corner began to spiral down the drain.

The last mulberry leaf... and the new leaf beginning to bud...

In desperation, I put the worst-off plant with its last remaining leaf out in the garden where it would get morning and late afternoon shade, and about four hours of full sun in between. Somewhere in the back of my head, I figured that putting it in the conditions I wanted the plant to grow in would be a form of CPR for it. However, the leaf continued to brown, and finally it dropped off, leaving behind the sad looking stem sticking out of the pot.

The other two plants were also down to their last leaves, and I sadly began to think of asking for another set of cuttings to replace them. This was not supposed to have turned out this way. I was supposed to be re-potting cuttings with lush growth that needed pruning.

I think the gardening gods like yanking me around a lot. After making me think that the first pot that I left out in the garden was dying, it actually began to sprout new leaves! I was astounded to see the tiny green budding at the apex of the stem when I was admiring the yellow cosmos flowers next to what I thought was the dying mulberry plant. Yes, in a twisted way, I was hiding the dying plant next to a flourishing one to soften the blow to myself. Whatever the case, the mulberry plant is still alive! And since the CPR in the garden helped it, I’ve put the other two pots out in the open, too. They’ve both also shed their last leaves, but have new ones budding right now. Once they’ve stabilized with new leaves, I’ll transplant them to bigger pots.

At this point, my mulberry journey is only five months along.

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