Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Whats this plant for?

Ah where is Chappo when we need him

Moringa is a tree that is also sometimes called Drumstick tree or horseradish tree. Much of the tree is edible. The leaves are high in protein as well as vitamins and minerals, notably Iron. The seed pods are also edible (the drumsticks) and the seeds can be a source of oil that apparently doesn't go rancid as fast as most other types of oil. The roots can be used as a sort of horseradish substitute too. They grow very fast (faster than papaya) and can often survive in soil that is quite poor. I believe they will die back in a hard freeze but if the ground doesn't freeze, they will grow back from the roots. They are heralded as a plant that could save the world from malnutrition. Some say that a big spoonful of the powdered dry leaves per day could save a starving child. At least it could probably help against many diseases of poor nutrition.

many people are looking at it as a feed supplement for fish that eat veggies.

I have eaten some, the fresh leaves are pretty bland so far in my experience, could add to salads without much notice at all. The leaves seem to keep for a very long time in a baggie in the fridge, much longer than lettuce will stay nice.

Some people talk about making moringa tea to spray on their plants or use as a nutrient supplement in their systems.

It all sounds pretty useful. We will see how well they do over the next year here.

Some info I have collected so far......

Moringa is one of the world’s most nutritious crops. Ounce for ounce, the leaves of moringa have more beta-carotene than carrots, more protein than peas, more vitamin C than oranges, more calcium than milk, more potassium than bananas, and more iron than spinach. Your growing supplement tree!

Moringa tolerates a wide range of environmental conditions. It grows best between 25 to 35oC, but will tolerate up to 48oC in the shade and can survive a light frost. The drought-tolerant tree grows well in areas receiving annual rainfall amounts that range from 250 to 1500 mm. Altitudes below 600 m are best for moringa, but this adaptable tree can grow in altitudes up to 1200 m in the tropics. Moringa prefers a well-drained sandy loam or loam soil, but tolerates clay. It will not survive under prolonged flooding and poor drainage. Moringa tolerates a soil pH of 5.0–9.0.

Moringa grows well in most soils without additions of fertilizer. Once established, the extensive and deep root system of moringa is efficient in mining nutrients from the soil.

Irrigate newly transplanted trees immediately after transplanting to promote early root development. In dry and arid climates, irrigate regularly for the first two months. Once established, moringa rarely need watering. The well-rooted tree tolerates drought and needs irrigation only when persistent wilting is evident.

SOLD YET?

Think you need to prune them harder TC

Hey Rupe! I don't believe it! Another Moringa-rilla!!!!! I bet you got a yard full of them.... or the seeds are in the post.

How could I resist another label?
I, too, have a few seedlings in a pot, and a spot in the greenhouse for them...

Where did you get yours Unkie Y?
Does anyone in south oz have access to seeds or cuttings?

Steem
Link to a site in WA http://www.permaculturenursery.com.au/p ... lants.html
Have not tried them yet but they look ok

Moringa-rillas unite! LOL

speaking of unite, should we merge the thread below into this one?
viewtopic.php?f=26&t=3438&st=0&sk=t&sd=a

.... I wondered how long it would take before someone twigged and figured there's been considerable discussion about this plant before... and went and "searched" for it ...

Anyone in the Perth WA southern suberbs managed to try these?

Sounds like a really useful plant.

I bought seed and planted 3 in grow bed....they all failed. Planted six in little pots on window sill. They did fine untill repotting but died thereafter. I now have two that were planted in topsoil in six in. pots and are now 8 inches tall. They are in green house to avoid frost. Will put them in the ground come spring.

I planted seeds twice. I think the first batch failed from being too wet as I tried to start them in a tray of worm castings. My second batch germinated 5 out of 6 seeds that were in the just under a gallon size nursery pots. They are all in the ground now and well over 6 feet tall. I've been harvesting the top shoots and branches to keep them within reach and hopefully make them fuller bushier plants. Trying for the edible hedge! We will see what happens over winter as I suspect we will get some hard freezes this year. I understand that they are likely to re-grow even if top killed by frost.

I have not had much luck rooting any cuttings off these yet, anyone got any advice on rooting moringa cuttings? I've tried with and without rooting powder.

I may just have to order more seeds at the rate I'm going since I would love to run these all around the property line.