This tree, though a native of Europe, is found in a wild state in this country. It is not nearly as large as the red mulberry, and is of much slower growth. Its wood is not of any value, but its fruit is from two to three times as large as the red mulberry. This tree grows to the height of from twenty to thirty feet. Its leaves are broad, rough, and heart-shaped at the base. On account of its comparative slowness in putting forth its leaves the mulberry was dedicated by the Greeks to Minerva, the goddess of war. "When perfectly dry the wood of the black mulberry weighs only about forty pounds to the cubic foot. As it increases in age it increases in fruit, so that an old tree will produce not only more but better fruit than a young one.