STATUS OF PRODUCTION AND UTILISATION OF MORINGA

IN SOUTHERN INDIA
Rajangam J., Azahakia Manavalan R. S., Thangaraj T., Vijayakumar A. and Muthukrishan N.
Division of Vegetable Sciences, Horticultural College and Research Institute
Tamil Nadu Agricultural Universit, Tamil Nadu, India
CHARACTERISTICS OF PKM-1 ANNUAL MORINGA
!volved through "ure line selection
Seed "ro"agated
#edium, d$arf stature
%ods are &'()' cm long $ith &*+ cm girth $eighing ,-'g
.ears --'(-/' fruit "er tree
The estimated ield is /'(/0 tonnes1ha
Suitable for ratoon cro"
2o$ incidence of insect "est and disease
Suitable for varied soil t"es 3freel drained4 in tro"ical "lains
SEEDS AND SOWING
#oringa is "ro"agated either b stem cuttings 3limb cutting4 or b seed* In "erennial t"es, limb
cuttings ,''(,/'cm in length $ith a diameter of ,0(,& cm are "lanted in situ during the rain
season* !lite trees are cut do$n, leaving a stum" $ith a 5'cm head from $hich - to + branches
are allo$ed to gro$* 6rom these shoots, cuttings ,'' cm long and 0 to / cm in diameter are
selected and used as "lanting material 3Seemanthini, ,5&07 %eter, ,5)84*
In the 9ana:umari district of Tamil Nadu, shield budding has been found to be successful, and the
budded trees begin to bear fruit in & months and continue to give good cro"s for about ,+ ears*
Se"tember and December is found to be the best season for budding 3Sundara; et al, ,5)'4*
Seeds do not sho$ an dormanc "eriods and can be so$n as soon as the are e<tracted* At the
"resent time, annual moringa occu"ies about )' "er cent of the total area under moringa
cultivation in southern India, "ro"agated solel b seed* In Andhra %radesh State 3India4 alone,
over 5'= of the total area under moringa cultivation involves seed("ro"agated annual t"es*
SEASON AND PLANTING
The limb cuttings are "lanted in "its of &'<&'<&' cm at a s"acing of /</ m, during the months of
>une to August* The monsoon rains during the "eriod facilitate eas rooting and further gro$th*
?hile "lanting, one(third of the cutting should be :e"t inside the "it* Under moderate cla
situations,$atering should be done ;ust to o"timum levels to avoid root rot*
The seeds of annual moringa ma be directl dibbled in the "it to ensure accelerated and faster
gro$th of the seedlings* The best suited season for so$ing the seeds is Se"tember under Southern
Indian conditions* The time of so$ing has to be strictl adhered to because the flo$ering "hase
should not coincide $ith monsoon seasons, $hich results in heav flo$er shedding* A "lant s"acing
of -*/ < -*/ m bet$een to$s and seeds should be ado"ted , giving a "lant "o"ulation of ,&''
"lants1ha* %its of 0/<0/<0/ cm in si@e are dug out and then the seeds are so$n in the centre of
the "it* The seed germinates ,' to ,- das after so$ing* The seed reAuirement "er hectare is
&-/g* ?hen "lanted in single ro$s along $ith irrigation channels, a s"acing of -m is sufficient*
Treatment of moringa seeds $ith A@os"irillum cultures at the rate of ,'' g "er &-/ g of seeds
before so$ing resulted in earl germination, and increased seedling vigour, gro$th and ield *
AFTER CARE
%inching the terminal bud on the central leader stem is necessar $hen it attains a height of
)/cm3t$o months after so$ing4* This $ill "romote the gro$th of man lateral branches and reduce
the height of the tree* In addition, "inching reduces the damage due to heav $ind and ma:es
harvesting much easier* Vi;aa:umar et al. 3-'''4 found that earl "inching of gro$ing ti"s carried
out &' das after so$ing is better than "inching 5' das after so$ing for obtaining a higher ield*
#oringa trees are generall gro$n successfull $ithout fertili@ers* In 9erala 3Southern India4, ring
trenches are dug about ,' cm from trees during the rain season and filled $ith green leaves,
manure and ash, and then covered $ith soil* This is said to "romote higher fruit ields
3Ramachandran et al., ,58'4*
If fertilisers are a""lied, the cro" reAuires 00 B ,& B +' g N%91 tree at the time of "inching 3)/ das
after so$ing4* Nitrogen C 00g 1 tree must be a""lied as to" dressing at first flo$ering 3,/'(,&'
das after so$ing4 stage 3Suthanra"andian et al., ,5854*
.eaulah 3-'',4 integrated nutrient management in annual moringa encom"assing organic
manures, bio(fertili@ers and varing levels of N, % and 9* The results obtained a "ositive res"onse
from moringa to the a""lication of manures and fertili@ers* Initial vigour $as higher in treatment
$ith "oultr manure 3/'' g 1 "it4 D Neem ca:e 3-/'g1"it4D "ancha:ava 3-=4 s"ra along $ith
,/'B,/'B,''g N%91tree* In ratoon cro"s, similarl, the same treatment resulted in earl and
vigorous gro$th confirming the su"eriorit of integrated nutrient management in moringa*
Ero$ing moringa "lants ma not reAuire $atering e<ce"t during hot $eather $hen the ma be
irrigated once a $ee:* Annual moringa res"onds $ell to irrigation and the ield can be doubled
3vegetable moringa fruit4 b dri" irrigation as com"ared to rain(fed cro"s* Ra;a:rishnamoorth et
al. 3,5504* Dri" irrigation at the rate of 0 lit1da can enhance ields b /) "er cent as com"ared to
rain(fed cro" Ra;a:rishnamoorth et al. 3,5504*
Vi;aa:umar 3-'''4 found that s"ra a""lication of EA+ C -' ""m on 5'th da of so$ing
increased all the "od characters, such as length, s"ecific gravit, number of seeds, flesh content
and "ul", more than untreated chec:*
RATOONING
In annual moringa, $hen the harvest is in, the trees are cut do$n to a height of one metre above
ground level for ratooning* These ratoon "lants develo" ne$ shoots and start bearing four or five
months after ratooning* Three ratooning o"erations are recommended during the "roduction ccle
3at month nF 5, ,) and -/4, after each harvest is over* During each ratooning o"eration, the "lants
are su""lied $ith the recommended level of N, % and 9 nutrients along $ith -'(+/ :g of 6G#*
%erennial t"es are also "ollarded bac: to a height of '*+('*0/m from ground level during Hctober
November, follo$ed b manuring $ith organic matter 3-/:g4 and the recommended in"ut of
fertili@ers*
HARVEST AND YIELD
%erennial t"es raised b cuttings ta:e nearl a ear to bear fruit* The ield $ill generall be lo$
38'(5'fruit1ear4 in the first t$o ears of fruit(bearing* This graduall increases to /''(&''
fruit1tree1 ear in the fourth and fifth ears* The "ods are harvested mainl bet$een #arch and
>une* A second cro" is normall harvested from Se"tember to Hctober*
Annual moringa t"es are seasonal in terms of fruit( bearing and the cro" so$n during Se"tember
comes to harvest $ithin si< months* 6ruit of sufficient length and girth are harvested before the
develo" fibre* The harvest "eriod e<tends for -(+ months and each tree bears -/'(0'' fruit
de"ending on the t"e*
INSECT PESTS AND DISEASES
Develo"ing fruit are damaged b the fruit fl Gitona distigmata $hich can be effectivel managed
b ado"ting integrated "est management 3I%#4 measures* The "ac:age includes 3i4 A""lication of
6enthion 8' !C '*'0 "er cent during the vegetative and flo$ering stage* 3ii4 A""lication of
Nimbecidine '*'+ "er cent at ,/' ""m during /' "er cent fruit set and +/ das after 3iii4 soil
a""lication of Neem seed :ernel e<tract 3NS9!4 C - lit "er tree at /' "er cent fruit set and 3iv4
$ee:l removal of affected fruit 3An;anea et al., ,55- 7 Ragumoorthi et al., ,558 7 Sivagami et
al., ,5&/4*
No ma;or disease in India has been re"orted as affecting the economics of the cro"* Ho$ever, a
ne$ disease has develo"ed in the #aharastra region* %ods reaching maturit sho$ed e<tensive rot*
The disease sm"toms are observed all over the surface of the "ods, more cons"icuousl at the
stigmatic end* Hn green "ods, elli"tical or elongated sun:en s"ots $ith reddish bro$n raised
margins can be observed* Diseased "ods are shrun:en to thinner dimensions at their stigmatic
ends, than health ones* In advanced stages of the disease develo"ment, the "ods are rotten and
dried u" "re(maturel leaving uneven raised s"ots over them* The causal organism $as identified
as a fungus re!hslera haraiiensis* This disease a""ears to be ne$l recorded for moringa in the
countr*
SEED PRODUCTION, PROCESSING AND STORAGE
Harvesting of bro$n coloured moringa fruits at -' das after anthesis led to recover of good
Aualit seeds $ith high germination "otential from the "ro<imal and middle "ortion of the fruit
com"ared to the distal "ortion* .lac: follo$ed b bro$n coloured seeds $ere su"erior $ith higher
seedling Aualit attributes((i*e* germination and vigour inde<((than $hite seeds* Harvested "ods
must be dried for one or t$o das under shade $ith good ventilation* The seeds are e<tracted
manuall b o"ening the "ods using gentle "ressure on them* Hn o"ening, the seeds are se"arated
freel* Small, shriveled and damaged seeds are removed*
Erading is carried out $ith the s"ecific gravit se"arator* The fraction from - and + gives higher
seedling emergence and vigour* Seed treatment $ith A@os"irillum C ,''g 1&-/g seeds is found to
increase the seedling $eight and vigour* The o"timum tem"erature range is -'(-/oC* 6or seed
testing, so$ing seeds at a de"th of ,cm in a sand medium $ith 8' "er cent moisture(retaining
ca"acit re"resents the ideal conditions*
Annual moringa seeds can be stored for u" to ,- months, $hen freshl harvested seeds are dried
to 8 = moisture content and treated $ith ca"tan C -g1:g of seeds and "ac:ed in )'' gauge
"olthene bags 3%alanisam et al7 ,55/4* The blac: and bro$n seeds treated $ith carbenda@im
-g1:g of seeds and stored in )'' gauge "olthene bags maintained more than 80= germination u"
to ,- months 3Sivasubramanian et al., ,55)4*