Drumstick, Moringa - 0.5 kg Seeds

Drumstick or Moringa (Moringa oleifera) is a very fast-growing, soft-wooded deciduous tree with a slender open crown, delicate tripinnate leaves and fragrant cream-white flowers followed by the long, ribbed green pods that give it its common name. It is one of the most useful trees of the tropics.

Its tender pods and vitamin-rich leaves are a popular vegetable and a celebrated nutritional supplement, the seeds yield ben oil and can clarify drinking water, and almost every part has a traditional medicinal use. Hardy and drought-tolerant, it is also grown for fodder and as a quick living fence. Across India it is cultivated in home gardens, fields and orchards throughout the plains and warmer regions.

• Family: Moringaceae
• Native region: Sub-Himalayan north-west India
• Mature height: 10–12 m
• Growth rate: Very fast

Soak the winged seeds in water for 24 hours to speed germination. Sow them about 2 cm deep directly in well-drained soil or in deep polybags; germination is quick, usually 7–14 days in warm conditions. The seedlings grow rapidly, so transplant or thin them early and give the young trees a sunny, free-draining position.