Exotic mulberries spread their roots in California super delicious S uperfood ,
Story by Cyndee Fontana-Ott ∞ Photos by Paige Green
The owners of a Bay Area mulberry farm thought they might attract a few hundred people on their first-ever U-pick weekend. Instead, Habitera Farms drew more than a thousand. By the end of last year’s seven-week season, 35,000 mulberry fans had flooded into the Brentwood farm to pick, sample and take home boxes of the exotic, sweet berries clustered on slender stalks. “I had never heard of a mulberry let alone had one,” says Andrina Spearman, who visited in June 2023 with her mother and 3-year-old grandson. “They were very tasty.” “The best berries I have ever had in my life,” says Nasar Agboatwala, who picked with his wife, children and in-laws. That turnout, coupled with intense interest at farmers markets, added up to a successful season for the agricultural operation known as Very Mulberry at Habitera Farms. More than 77,000 pounds of fruit were harvested in 2023, and that volume is expected to triple this year as trees continue to mature. “It’s a berry that people absolutely fall in love with,” says Anil Godhwani, who partners with his brother Gautam and friend Smita Sadana in Habitera, which means “from the earth.” “There are few things in life that just taste that good and are that good for you.” An uncommon berry In California, mulberries are a specialty crop gaining in popularity, thanks partly to Habitera’s pesticide-free, large-scale commercial operation and other growers like Frog Hollow Farm, also in Brentwood. In addition, folks like restaurateur Anthony Roost and ice cream maker Ketki Dandekar are harnessing the fruit for seasonal use in food, drinks and desserts in the greater Bay Area. Known for a firm texture and dozens of varieties, mulberries are more common in countries like India, Pakistan and China. The tightly clustered, juicy berries appear in many colors—ranging from dark purple to shades of white—and grow on trees that can easily reach 50 to more than 60 feet. Frog Hollow has tended 5 acres of Pakistan mulberries for about eight years. The certified organic farm is home to thousands of trees ranging from cherries and pears to Meyer lemons and plums.
Andrina Spearman gives grandson Benjamin Spearman a boost so he can reach the mulberries at a Brentwood U-pick business called Very Mulberry at Habitera Farms.
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Spring 2024
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