2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Mora (lat. Rubus glaucus) - belonging to the Pink family, a variety of a fruit plant from the genus Raspberry.
Description
Mora is a fairly large perennial fruit shrub that grows up to three meters in height.
Juicy mora berries are quite sweet and slightly tart. Their size rarely exceeds three centimeters, and in shape they are similar to raspberries. The average weight of each berry can vary from three to five grams. Ripening berries change their color twice: first - from green to red, and then also to purple.
Where grows
The birthplace of the mora is the picturesque foothills of the Andes, and in the wild it can be found from Peru to Mexico. In South American and some Central American states, mora is actively grown as a fruit plant. Especially often it can be seen in Ecuador, however, it is no less common in Colombia. At the same time, over the past few years, a number of hybrids of mora with blackberries and raspberries have been bred.
Application
In nutritional and taste qualities, mora is much superior to blackberries and raspberries. Mora berries are either eaten fresh, or compotiques or jam are made from them. They also make excellent fillings for pies, confitures, marmalade and jams. Juice is often squeezed from fresh berries, and they are also added to a wide variety of confectionery products or ice cream. They contain large amounts of phosphorus, vitamin C, pectin, calcium, organic acids, carbohydrates and proteins.
Mora is also used for medical purposes - it is an excellent prophylactic agent against a great variety of diseases. It has proven itself especially well in the fight against inflammatory ailments of the respiratory tract (bronchitis, laryngitis, sore throat, etc.), in addition, it is often used to increase pressure. The high iron content makes mora berries not only an excellent general tonic, but also indispensable helpers in case of too heavy menstruation, after complex surgeries and in case of anemia. To a large extent, these berries also contribute to an improvement in appetite. And it is also recommended to use mora for fever, atherosclerosis and diabetes mellitus (it perfectly helps to reduce blood sugar).
Among other things, mora berries are an excellent raw material for producing blue and purple food colors.
Contraindications
Mora has practically no contraindications, however, people with high blood pressure need to constantly monitor the amount of berries eaten and in no case abuse them.
Growing and caring
Temperatures in the range from twelve to nineteen degrees and air humidity in the range of 80 - 90% are best suited for growing mora. As for precipitation, the ideal indicator in this case would be 800 - 2500 mm per year. Mora is very light-requiring and loves to grow on forest edges. Under especially favorable conditions, it can become so aggressive that it drowns out all other vegetation without much difficulty. However, many plants belonging to the genus Raspberry do this.
Despite the fact that it is possible to meet the sea only in the subtropical or tropical zones, it will easily survive frosts down to minus ten degrees - this quality makes it possible to grow it at an altitude of 1500 - 3100 meters above sea level.
In case of good care, the yield of mora can reach twenty tons per hectare. Its fruiting starts in the first year after germination, and subsequently this culture continues to actively bear fruit until the berry bushes reach twelve or even twenty years of age.
