Interesting Facts

Agricultural

BIOMASA, an agricultural research program located in Nicaragua has found the following.

Juice from fresh Moringa leaves used as a foliar spray can increase yields by 25-30% for nearly any crop, for example onions, bell pepper, soya, maize, sorghum, coffee, tea, chili and melon. In one trial, use of this spray increased maize yields from 60 to 130 sacks per hectare.

Moringa can be used as a green manure by growing seedlings and then plowing into the soil to significantly enrich agricultural land.

 

BIOMASA also conducted extensive trials using moringa leaves as cattle feed (beef and milk cows), swine feed, and poultry feed. With moringa leaves constituting 40-50% of feed, milk yields for dairy cows and daily weight gains for beef cattle increased 30%. (5)

Developing countries

In developing countries, Moringa trees have been used to combat malnutrition especially among infants and nursing mothers. Three non-governmental organizations in particular—Trees for Life, Church World Service and Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization—have advocated Moringa as “natural nutrition for the tropics.” (1)

Moringa is actively cultivated by AVRDC The World Vegetable Centre in Taiwan – a centre for vegetable research with a mission to reduce poverty and malnutrition in developing countries through improved production and consumption of vegetables.

Moringa have been included in the AVRDC Nutrition Seed Kit. Each kit includes different kinds of vegetable seeds for planting in home gardens to ensure good health and nutrition of household recipients. The Nutrition Kit is promoted and distributed by the AVRDC Regional Center for Africa to farmers, women groups, and extension people. (3)

Parts of the plant

Since every part of the tree can be utilized and each has beneficial properties, in developing countries the ownership of just one Moringa tree can make an enormous difference to a family’s livelihood.

Drumsticks

The immature seed pods called drumsticks are particularly high in vitamin C and are commonly consumed in South Asia. They are prepared by parboiling and are cooked in a sauce until soft. (6)

Leaves

The leaves are a good source of protein, calcium, iron, vitamin C, vitamin A (as beta-carotene) and potassium. See Nutritional Value Table. They are commonly cooked and used like spinach, or dried and crushed into a powder to be used in soups and sauces.

Leaves are also used for animal forage, as a domestic cleaning agent (crushed leaves), a foliar nutrient for crops (juice expressed from leaves), green manure (from ploughing seedlings into the ground), biopesticide (soil incorporation of leaves to prevent seedling damping off), and to produce biogas. (1) (7)

Seeds

The seeds may be removed from mature pods and eaten like peas or roasted nuts. They may be also roasted, powdered and steeped for tea or used in curries. Powdered seeds are used to clarify honey and sugar cane juice as well as for water purification. The seed cake left over from water purification can be used for animal forage and fertilizer. (1) (7)

Oil

Oil collected from mature seeds is known as ben oil due to its high concentration of behenic acid. The oil has high resistance to oxidative rancidity. (8). It has been used in salads, for fine machine lubrication and in the manufacture of perfume and hair care products. (1) (7). The seed cake remaining after oil extraction may be used as a fertilizer or as a flocculent to purify water. (9)

Wood

Used to make a blue dye. Wood pulp is highly suitable for making newsprint and writing paper. (1) (7)

Flowers

Are a good source of nectar for honey-producing bees. (1) (7)

Bark

Can be beaten into a fibre for production of ropes or mats. Bark as well as the gum from tree trunks is made into tannin for tanning hides. (1) (7)

Living trees

Fencing and as an ornamental plant. (1) (7)

All parts of the plant have been used for centuries in traditional medicine.