Climate change creates uncertainty for the future of animal agriculture and forage productivity. The use of palatable shrubs that can be browsed directly as a mid-story component in silvopastures may be one way to diversify resources and mitigate losses in forage productivity. While white mulberry (Morus alba) has been widely studied for its fodder potential, there remains a paucity of information for the native, shade tolerant red mulberry (M. rubra). We report on the initial growth, survival, biomass, and leaf nutritive value of M. rubra seedlings planted under a cherrybark oak (Quercus pagoda) canopy at four overstory densities: 3 × 3 m (D), 6 × 6 m (S–D), 9 × 9 m (S–O), and 12 × 12 m (O). Despite drought conditions, 81.25% of seedlings survived, with more seedlings surviving in S–O and O than in D. As canopy openness increased, stem diameter increased and specific leaf area decreased. Seedlings obtained greatest leaf biomass in S–O. Late summer nutritive value surpassed the quality of many common pasture forages. Crude protein was greater in S–D and D than it was in S–O and O. Acid detergent fiber was greatest in D and digestibility metrics did not differ between treatments. Our results indicate that production of M. rubra fodder can be optimized on this site at 66.21% Global Site Factor, an irradiance level that corresponds to around 500 trees ha⁻¹. More research is needed to determine seedling response to repeated defoliation events. Additionally, information is needed on secondary metabolites and other anti-quality components that may reduce the value of this potential alternative forage source.

气候变化给畜牧业和牧草生产力的未来带来了不确定性。使用可口的灌木作为林地中层的组成部分可以直接浏览，这可能是使资源多样化和减轻牧草生产力损失的一种方式。虽然白桑 ( Morus alba ) 因其作为饲料的潜力而被广泛研究，但关于原生耐荫红桑 ( M. rubra ) 的信息仍然很少。我们报告了种植在樱桃树皮橡树 ( Quercus pagoda ) 下的M. rubra幼苗的初始生长、存活率、生物量和叶片营养价值) 四种覆盖层密度的树冠：3 × 3 m (D)、6 × 6 m (S-D)、9 × 9 m (S-O) 和 12 × 12 m (O)。尽管干旱条件下，仍有 81.25% 的幼苗存活，其中 S-O 和 O 存活的幼苗多于 D。随着冠层开放度的增加，茎粗增加，比叶面积减少。幼苗在 S-O 中获得最大的叶片生物量。夏末的营养价值超过了许多普通牧草的质量。S-D 和 D 中的粗蛋白高于 S-O 和 O 中的粗蛋白。酸性洗涤剂纤维在 D 中最大，消化率指标在处理之间没有差异。我们的结果表明，可以在该地点以 66.21% 的全球地点因子优化M. rubra饲料的生产，该辐照度水平对应于大约 500 棵树 ha ^-1. 需要更多的研究来确定幼苗对反复落叶事件的反应。此外，需要关于次生代谢物和其他可能降低这种潜在替代草料来源价值的反质量成分的信息。