MIRACLE TREE Seeds | Moringa oleifera

STEP 1 - Fill a 2L pot with 85% organic soil, 10% washed sand and 5% compost. Moringas need a well draining potting mixture, otherwise, the seeds will become waterlogged and rot. Mixing potting soil with sand and compost will create a nutritious and well drained mix for your new Moringa seeds.

 

STEP 2 - Plant your Moringa in the pot. Remove the shell and plant them 2.5 cm deep and 5cm apart. Use your finger to push holes into the potting mixture. Moringas cannot survive if it drops below 0°C, so keep Moringas in pots to transport them inside and outside easily. If your climate does not drop below freezing, you can plant Moringas directly outside in a similar soil mixture.

 

STEP 3 - Water the soil with a watering can until it is damp. The soil should be saturated, but not over watered. If there is standing water on the top of the soil, you’ve watered too much and your soil likely has poor drainage. Check the moisture by sticking your finger into the soil. Water once a week or more depending on your climate so the soil stays damp

 

STEP 4 - Transplant Moringas grown from seeds when they are 15cm -20cm. When Moringas reach this size, they will begin competing for resources in the soil and need to be moved to their own individual pots or the garden. Carefully use a ruler or transplant tool to loosen the soil around one of the seedlings. Lift the root system and place it into its new spot.

The horseradish tree is a nutritious, diuretic, laxative herb that is expectorant, increases milk flow, controls bacterial infections and is rubefacient when applied topically.

 

It contains a potent antibiotic.

 

‘Ben Oil’ obtained from the seeds, has no taste, smell or colour and is exceptionally resistant to oxidation.

The young leaves are taken internally to increase the milk flow in nursing mothers.

The root is used as a vesicant.

 

The alkaloid Spirachin (a nerve paralyzer) has been found in the roots.

 

The root juice is used internally in the treatment of asthma, gout, rheumatism, enlarged spleen and liver, bladder and kidney stones, inflammatory conditions.

 

Externally, the root is used to treat boils, ulcers, glandular swellings, infected wounds, skin diseases, dental infections, snake bites and gout.

 

The roots and bark are used for cardiac and circulatory problems, as a tonic and for inflammation.

The bark is an appetizer and digestive.

The gum is demulcent, diuretic, astringent and abortifacient.

 

It is used in cough syrups and in the treatment of asthma.

 

The bark and gum are used in the treatment of tuberculosis and septicaemia.

 

Flowers and immature fruits are said to be a good rubefacient.

 

A decoction of the flowers is used as a cold remedy.

 

The seeds are effective against skin-infecting bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. They contain the potent antibiotic and fungicide terygospermin.

 

Oil of Ben is used for hysteria, scurvy, prostate problems and bladder troubles.

 

A number of compounds with medicinal properties have been isolated. The fruit and leaf contain oxalic acid, the bark moringinine, the stem vanillin, the flower kaempferol and quercetin and the root spirochin and pterygospermin.

 

The seeds contain a glucosinolate that on hydrolysis yields 4-(alpha-L-rhamnosyloxy)-benzylisothiocyanate, an active bactericide and fungicide.

Young leaves and shoots can be eaten raw or cooked. It is added to salads, cooked as a potherb and added to soups and curries. The leaves have a mustard-like flavour.

 

The dried leaves contain 7% - 10% protein. The leaves are very nutritious, being rich in vitamins, minerals and the sulphur containing amino acids methionine and cystine, which are often in short supply. The young, tender seedlings make an excellent cooked vegetable.The plant is also be used to make a tea.

The long, bean-like pods are used in soups and curries, or made into pickles. The young pods are said to have a taste reminiscent of asparagus and can be eaten raw. The pods can be 15cm - 45cm long.

 

The immature seeds are eaten like peas and have a sweet flavour. Mature seeds, when roasted or fried, are said to taste similar to peanuts in flavour.

 

An oil obtained from the seeds is used in salads and cooking. Pleasantly flavoured, it resembles olive oil and is an excellent salad oil. The oil is clear and odourless and does not become rancid quickly. The seeds from mature pods (which can be 40cm - 50 cm long) are browned in a skillet, mashed and placed in boiling water, which causes the oil to float to the surface.

The pungent root is used similar to horseradish as a hot flavouring in foods.

 

A reddish gum obtained from the bark is used as a seasoning. Used in a similar manner to gum tragacanth.

Plants can be grown as an informal hedge, providing wind protection, shade and support for climbing garden plants. Widely used for live fences and hedges in many areas. Stakes root easily and are stable, and cuttings planted in lines are used particularly around houses and gardens.

 

Because its shade can be controlled well Moringa oleifera is suitable for planting in alley cropping and in vegetable gardens. When trees reach 1.5m, farmers prune them at 50cm from the ground or at ground level for older ones, once or twice a year. In alley cropping, an intra-row spacing of 2m is used. In the wet season cereals are grown between the lines, in the dry season vegetables.

 
Because the tree is fast growing and readily colonizes areas such as stream banks and savannah, it makes a very good pioneer species for establishing a woodland garden. It is able to provide food after just a few months and also providing shelter to help other plants to establish

The oil obtained from the mature seed and pods, known as 'Oil of Ben', has been used to lubricate watches and other fine machinery.

 

It is also used in perfumery, artist's paints, soaps and ointments.It is yellowish, non-drying, has good keeping qualities but eventually turns rancid.

 

The powdered seeds are used to clarify sugar cane juice.A suspension of the ground seed is used as a primary coagulant.

 

It can clarify water of any degree of visible turbidity. At high turbidity, its action is almost as fast as that of alum, but at medium and low turbidity, good clarification is obtained if a small cloth bag filled with the powdered seeds is swirled round in the turbid water.

 

To prepare the seed for use as a coagulant, remove the seed coat and wings. The white kernel is then crushed to a powder, using a mortar or placing it in a cloth and crushing it with a stone. The powder should be mixed with a small amount of water, stirred, then poured through a tea strainer before being added to the turbid water.

The seed cake residue from oil extraction can also be used for water purification.

The seed contains a protein (cationic polyelectrolyte) that acts as a flocculant in water purification. It also contains a non-protein flocculant that is more effective in purifying low-turbidity water.

The bark, when beaten, produces a fibre used to make small ropes and mats. A study on the production of rayon-grade pulp from Moringa by a prehydrolyzed sulphate process in India shows that it is suitable as a raw material for the production of high alpha cellulose pulp for use in cellophane and textiles.

When the tree is injured, the stem exudes a gum that is used in calico printing.

The bark is used for tanning. The wood yields a blue dye.

The crushed leaves are used to clean pots, pans and walls.

The press cake left after oil extraction from the seeds can be used as a soil conditioner or as fertilizer.

The wood is very soft, corky and light, and is useful only for light construction work.

 

It is pulped as a source of rayon and cellophane.

 

The soft and light wood burns smoke-free and is an acceptable firewood for cooking but makes poor charcoal.