Moringa (Sohanjna) Tree at Home: Grow From Seed, Pot or Ground (Video)

Transcript

Did you know a moringa tree can reach ten meters in a year?

Did you know a moringa tree can reach ten meters in a year?

Moringa at Home

Ever wondered how a tiny seed can become a towering, bushy moringa tree right on your balcony? I'll walk you through sowing, pot choices, pruning, and winter tricks.

At a glance

A quick look: the tree is called sohanjna or drumstick in English. Start with fresh seed, soak it overnight and plant in spring. If you use a pot, aim for a half-drum size, about fifty to sixty litres, and keep the canopy around head height.

How to grow moringa from seed, step by step

Moringa seeds sit inside papery, three-winged pods. Fresh kernels work best, so ask a neighbour for a dry brown pod or buy a recent packet. Peel the wings if you like, then soak the seeds in plain water for twelve to twenty-four hours. Fill a deep pot or grow bag at least twenty centimetres deep with a mix of two parts garden soil, one part sand and one part compost. Sow two seeds per pot about two centimetres deep and give them a light watering. Keep the pot in a warm, bright spot and the soil just damp, never soggy. In warm weather you’ll see sprouts in five to fourteen days.

Growing moringa in a pot vs in the ground

People often ask how big a moringa can get. Left in the ground it can shoot up several metres in the first year and eventually reach ten metres or more, but the wood stays soft and brittle. A pot keeps the tree modest; a half-drum with a few drainage holes, raised on bricks, works well on a roof. Choose a container no smaller than forty litres for a plant you intend to keep. In a pot you’ll prune it to head height, about one and a half to two metres, and water it daily in summer, then weekly once it’s established. In the ground the tree will grow fast, need less frequent watering, and produce many pods after a year or two.

How to take care of moringa plant: water, food, pruning

Young moringa needs regular water until its roots settle, think every two to three days in summer if it’s in the ground, and often daily in a pot during May and June. Once the tree is about a year old, a weekly soak is enough, and in winter you should water sparingly to avoid rot. The plant isn’t greedy; mix a bucket of compost into the planting hole and add a handful of compost or well-rotted manure around the base each spring. When the tree reaches about one to one-point-two metres tall, trim the top just above a leaf with clean secateurs. That encourages three or four side shoots; pinch the tips when they’re thirty to fifty centimetres long, and keep pinching every few weeks. After each pod-bearing season, cut the main branches back by about a third so the canopy stays at head height.

A moringa you can't reach is a moringa you won't use. Cut the top off early.

Harvesting leaves and phali (pods)

You can start snipping leaves once the tree is about a metre tall and growing strongly. Grab whole leaf stalks from the top third of the branches and strip the tiny leaflets at home. This regular harvest doubles as light pruning, keeping the tree bushy. Just be gentle, never take more than a third of the foliage at once. Ground-grown trees usually flower in their first or second year, showing creamy-white, sweet-smelling blooms in late winter to spring, especially in Punjab. After the flowers turn into pods, you can harvest those too, usually after a year or two of growth.

Pests: the hairy caterpillar problem

In the warm months you’ll likely meet the moringa hairy caterpillar. Brown, fuzzy clusters sit on the trunk by day and climb up at night to strip leaves. A heavy attack can leave a tree bare for a few days, but the foliage usually regrows within weeks. Avoid poison sprays, the leaves are for eating and the flowers attract bees. Keep the ground under the tree clear of fallen leaves so the caterpillars have fewer hiding spots. Every morning in summer and after the monsoon, inspect the trunk and branch forks. Wearing rubber gloves, scrape any clusters into a bucket of water with a splash of washing-up liquid, or brush them off. Pick off any leaves that carry egg clusters, and give a strong spray of water to knock off aphids on new shoots.

Take care

The hairs of the moringa caterpillar can sting, leaving an itchy red rash, so always wear gloves and full sleeves when you’re handling the tree. Keep children away from the clusters and wash any skin that contacts the hairs with soap and water. If a rash spreads or hairs get into the eyes, rinse the eyes with clean running water and see a doctor if it doesn’t clear. Remember, the root and bark aren’t meant for the kitchen despite the “horseradish” nickname, don’t dig them up to eat. The branches snap easily, so avoid climbing, and keep leaves and pods out of reach of pets.

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Read the full guide

For the full guide, with every detail and answers to common questions, visit thecareonline.com. You'll find more short videos like this one on our YouTube channel. This is general information, not medical advice, so check with your doctor about your own situation.