MORINGA: WHAT’S THE HYPE ALL ABOUT?
The health conscious are all raving about the benefits of this miraculous tree. Moringa’s fame has found its way from East to West; in health stores, raw food cafes and in breakfast smoothies everywhere. So what is it about this scraggly looking tree?
I’m halfway through reading a book called “Moringa: Nature’s Medicine Cabinet” by Sanford Holst and so far it is seeming like Moringa is our answer to almost all diet deficiencies. According to Holst it strengthens bones, enriches anemic blood and enables a malnourished mama to nurse her starving baby. For decades northern indians and africans have used Moringa Oleifera to cure diabetes, intestinal worms, inflammations fever, epilepsy, listeria, to skin infections, toothaches, snakebites and a whole list of varying diseases. It has also been used to purify river water for drinking.
THE JUICY FACTS:
Moringa leaves contain around 40% protein, with all of the 9 essential amino acids present in various amounts. It is considered to have the highest protein ratio of any plant so far studied on earth. The protein quality and quantity is said to be similar to soy beans, but there are no reports of Moringa triggering allergies as soya does. Moringa’s leaves, pods and flowers have seven times the Vitamin C found in oranges, four times the Vitamin A of carrots, three times the iron of spinach, four times as much calcium as milk and three times the potassium of bananas…. all I have to say is… Lets grow some Moringa!!!
SOME DIFFERENT WAYS TO EAT AND USE MORINGA:
MAKE A CURRY
The Balinese make a yummy aromatic curry dish called Roroban. Its leaves are boiled with bumbu Bali (the base to any balinese dish – an awesome sauce made from turmeric, ginger, peppers, garlic, shallots, lemongrass, cumin, salt and pepper) and coconut milk.
TURN IT INTO LEAF POWDER
Great for a boost in energy! Harvest the leaves, dehydrate them, grind them and turn them into leaf powder. You can use this as a sprinkle for your food or add a teaspoon to your morning juice or smoothie.
BREW A MORINGA TEA
This is apparently great for treating colds. Take some flowers from your Moringa tree, bring some water to a boil and add between 5 to 7 flowers. Let water and flowers steep for 5 minutes, add some honey to sweeten and enjoy!
Consuming 1 – 2 teaspoons a day is enough, if you take too much it can make you quite nauseous, this is powerful stuff!
GROWING MORINGA:
Seeds should be planted an inch deep in aerated soil. Germination rate is said to be quite high, around 80%, however if you keep the seeds stored for a while your chances of germination will go down by 30%, giving your seeds only a 50% chance of sprouting into life. In other words once you get your hands on some seeds plant them immediately.
Basic requirements for growing are light, water and soil. Ideal soil is a sandy loam, and you can make a little perfect mixture by adding sawdust, rice straw, peat moss and compost. What’s also really great about this tree is that you can grow it indoors in a big pot just as long as it’s exposed to light.
Moringa is versatile – it’s fast growing, edible and nutritious, and it’s also a beautiful tree to look at. It can be grown year-round in warm and tropical climates, and can be successfully grown as an annual in more temperate zones. So, it’s no wonder that Moringa is gaining popularity with survival gardeners.
Want to grow Moringa? Here are some tips on getting started.
Pick a good location. Moringa trees grow quickly. They can grow over 20 feet tall in just their first year alone. Average growth is approximately 15 feet, but in optimal conditions, they can grow much taller in short time periods. You will need to plant your Moringa trees away from existing structures as the branches can get four feet wide in the first year. If you’re growing Moringa as an annual, you can grow a hedge of Moringa. You will want to keep the trees pinched back from the very start, to allow them to grow more like a bush and less like a tree. So, choose your location wisely based on your long-term needs and growing conditions.
Sunlight is key. Moringa trees are tropical trees, so they need a lot of sunlight. Make sure you plant them in an area where they will receive optimal sunlight. Warmth is important, too. Moringa trees can tolerate drought conditions, but they cannot tolerate the cold, and freezing temperatures will cause them to die.
Plant in healthy, rich soil. Moringa trees do not grow well in heavy, thick or clay soils. And, they do not like to have wet roots. Make sure your soil is rich and drains well. You can add compost and sand to your to soil to loosen it up and boost the quality, if necessary.
Plant so that the tap root has plenty of room to grow downward. If you are using containers to grow your Moringa trees, make sure to find the deepest container possible.
The more you prune them, the faster they will grow. This is good to know, especially if you will be growing your Moringa trees in rows, or as a hedge. If you’ll be allowing one Moringa tree to grow to its full potential, make sure to give it plenty of room to spread out and prune wisely. If you will be growing them as a hedge, make sure to prune them very regularly and keep them pinched back.
Eating Moringa – Raw or Cooked
The leaves, pods, flowers, buds, blossoms and seeds of the Moringa tree are all edible. However, you should not eat the roots. The roots can be toxic, especially if eaten in large amounts. While the roots are eaten in some areas of the world, it is not recommended that you do so unless it is a true survival situation, and even then should only be done with extreme caution.
The leaves are the most popular edible part of the Moringa tree. They can be eaten raw, directly right off the tree. Use Moringa leaves in your diet as you would any other fresh greens.
Replies
Finca Feliz planted Moringa trees 5 years ago, the first to do so in Boquete, and I have been harvesting them and selling the dried leaves at the Tuesday Market for a couple of years. It's all organic. I also make a Moringa tincture for a concentrated dose, and you can also buy it ground into powder for those who prefer that. See you every Tuesday at the BCP in the Octagon room.
Dehydrated moringa leaves are available at the Finca Santa Marta tables at the Tuesday Market or pre-order from our web site www.fincasantamarta.biz.
We have been developing our own moringa "groves" and eventually will have leaves fresh, dried and powdered year around. I also want to experiment with using it as high protein tilapia food. Currently any local tilapia you buy has been fed GMO alfalfa pellets from the US. Ron
Thanks for the post on Moringa and the great information. We are also just learning about Moringa and its health benefits since coming to Panama. We purchased some plants of our own at Viveros Two Rivers (just past The Book Mark outside Dolega) and also Gray River Farms has them. We are finding they like lots of sun, and also need a little protection from cutter ants. We have kept them in pots away from the ants as much as possible, and now they have stopped bothering them as the trees matured. It is also true you can cut the whole tree back, and it will just resprout and keep growing, bushing out very nicely. One even just flowered, which we did not expect already, maybe due to the pruning. They are all in pots except for one we put out, but we are keeping them in the sun. There are lots of helpful Youtube videos on growing them. We hope to post back soon on the health benefits as we start to get enough leaves to eat regularly.
We have been cultivating Moringa for over 10 years in Panama towards the central provinces, it is a very good tree and we have alot of different types of cross genetics we have done with Moringa Oleifera and Stenopetala.
Lots of health benefits and easy to grow in our backyards.
Do you make teas and other derivatives?
Yes, the tea can easily be made from dehydrated leaves, for a fresh garden salad you can harvest the leaves right off the tree. We also make a pain reliever using moringa as a base. Oil based products require heavy cultivation of seed which is something we will be doing in the immediate future once our parcels of trees are ready for intensive seed production. Very easy to grow in your backyard only problem is Moringa trees strive in sandy soil, they hate standing water or too much moisture. My research on growing the trees in the Santa Lucia area which is 1200m above sea level is that growth stunts quite noticeably vs. my trees which are at sea level. This stunt in growth can be broken by adaptation and cross genetics of the trees with stenopetala, 1st generation trees will suffer adaptation but the 2nd generation should thrive with no issue.
I thought that the Morninga tree was called the miracle tree because of the reason that it grows well in arid climates thus being a great health source in typically poverished areas. I would think Boquete is not the place to grow these trees as the soil holds high moisture and the rain is plentiful in Boquete.
However, in areas closer to the coast that are dry, the Moringa tree would be great!
GrayRiver Farms grows Moringa in Boqueron, but it does grow well here in good soil and full sun. We will have trees at the Chiriqui Storage Flea Market on Sunday, April 3rd. 1.5km passed the Dolega Y going toward Boquete.
To pre-order,
grayriverfarms@yahoo.com
$6 each.
Great information. Thank you
I read you can grow them in large pots as well for home use.
Either way our Boquete residents should really try the benefits of the Moringa which is readily available in our town.