Hi,
Does anybody have experience growing moringa at altitudes between 1000-1500 m?
Looking at doing tests in the highland of Madagascar for educational purposes.
Hi Andreas, I hope network members with experience will respond well, but there is a reference to altitude from Feedipedia as a starting point -
1 Like
Hi there!
We are around 1500m in Guatemala, and started a few moringa trees from ECHO’s trial seeds earlier last year. So far they seem to be doing just fine - although this is my first experience growing moringa from seed. We started them in pots, and even the one that lost almost all its leaves due to a pretty rough transplant by some volunteers recovered well and is now growing nicely. They’re only 2-3 feet tall seven months or so after planting, so I’m not sure how that compares to trees grown at lower altitude, but we’ve also been pruning them.
1 Like
Thank you, much appreciated!
Thank you Kelly_T.
Do you know what the average temperature and annual rainfall is in your region?
Our temps are around 76-82 degrees F during the day (25-28 degrees C) - averaging annually to about 65 degrees F, since it is pretty cool at night. And average annual rainfall is about 42 inches (1065mm), the majority of which we get during the rainy season, which is between May and October.
1 Like
Hi Andreas,
I got a request to contact you here at YWAM Kona and today I saw this post, so I will respond to both requests here. We have been encouraging our operating locations in Nepal to grow and use moringa for various purposes, and in that context I have been trying to understand elevational range there. At 1,100 m Moringa oleifera grows well, but at least in the Pokhara area (28 degrees N) at slightly higher elevations it seems to survive, but die back in winter, at least from our limited experience there. As I am sure you have discovered, 1200 m is what is frequently listed as its upper limit, but maybe you will discover something different. Wishing you the very best in your project.
2 Likes
I have tried for 25 years to grow moringga in interior Papua but have failed. Our elevation is 5200 ft. lots of rain. I dont think its the elevation but the rainfall that prevents good growth. Under roofing does a bit better.
1 Like
Hello Andreas,
From density research trials I was conducting in the Meru region of Kenya in 2018, I planted stands of moringa at 3 elevations and had colleagues conducting trials at a 4th elevation in Nanyuki. At the end of my 1st, 2-month growing cycle, If I were to aggregate the 4 density treatments (5x5cm, 10x10cm, 20x20cm, and 50x50cm), moringa grown at 1,701m germinated but reached an average height of only 20cm. At 1,417m, the moringa stands were similarly stunted but achieved average heights of 30cm. At 869m, moringa grew to an average height of 90cm, as might be expected at lower elevations with appropriate climatic conditions over a similar 2 month period.
The Nanyuki trials site moringa plants exhibited stunting and none of the plants reached beyond approximately 15cm
It is important to note that my field trials were less than 1 degree from the equator North or South.
I’ve also attached a summary table of the above information as well as a graph of the temperature and rainfall for my trial sites based on data I had extracted from the British Atmospheric Data Center using ARC GIS.
Best regards,
Noah E. Coleman
3 Likes
Thank you very much for sharing your findings. Much appreciated!
We grow Moringa at 700m with average daytime temps of 28 in summer and 20 in winter. Occasionally gets down to around 10 at night in winter ( Celsius).
In winter it dies back a bit but flourishes in summer. Annual rAinfall is around 2500mm mostly in summer. They grow quickly and my tallest one is around 6 metres but they never set seed here. I get heaps of leaf in summer though. I don’t fertilise them or do anything special with them.
1 Like