African horseradish tree, cabbagetree

Moringa stenopetala

Physical Characteristics

Moringa stenopetala is a deciduous Tree growing to 9 m (29ft) by 9 m (29ft) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. The plant is self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.

Distribution

East tropical Africa - Ethiopia and Kenya.

Habitats

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Flowers Fruit Leaves Oil Seedpod Edible Uses: Oil Young leaves - raw or cooked and eaten as a vegetable[301 , 317 ]. A larger leaf with a milder flavour than the leaves of M. Oleifera[301 ]. Traditionally, the leaflets are separated from the rachis and plunged into boiling water. Salt or sodium carbonate is added to the water. While the leaves are cooking, a mixture of flours is prepared, then kneaded and made into balls 2 - 5cm in diameter. These are tossed into the water as well and after about 10 minutes the balls and the leaves are ready to serve[299 ]. The addition of fat (grease or butter), small-sized cereal balls and a large amount of leaves are considered to make this dish a good-quality meal[299 ]. The young, soft fruits can also be added, but the slightly bitter taste restricts the use to periods when food is in short supply[299 ]. Flowers - cooked and eaten as a vegetable[418 ]. Seedpods - cooked[418 ]. This probably refers to the young seedpods, as mentioned above, which have a bitter flavour[K ].

Medicinal Uses

Anthelmintic Antiasthmatic Antidiarrhoeal Antitussive Epilepsy Hypoglycaemic Hypotensive Leprosy Malaria An infusion of the leaves is used as a remedy against leprosy[299 ]. They are also used to treat hypertension, retained placenta, asthma, colds, as an anthelmintic, to induce vomiting and to promote wound healing[299 ]. The leaves of certain trees of this species are renowned for their effectiveness against diarrhoea. The smoke of burning roots is used as a treatment for epilepsy[299 ]. The smoke is said to be inhaled by women in Sudan during a difficult labour, but as the species has not been collected so far in Somalia, this record is probably incorrect[299 ]. The leaves and roots are used as a cure for malaria, stomach problems and diabetes[299 ]. The bark is chewed as a treatment against coughs, and is also used to make fortifying soups[299 ]. Ethanol extracts of the leaves and roots have shown promise in control of Trypanosoma brucei and Leishmania donovani in in-vitro experiments[299 ]. The leaf extract causes increased uterine smooth muscle contractions[299 ]. The medicinal use of leaves to expel a retained placenta may be related to these increased contractions[299 ]. A crude seed extract strongly inhibited growth of Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi, Shigella sp. And Candida albicans[299 ]. An aqueous extract of the leaves has been found to lower blood glucose concentration although it was less potent than glibenclamide. The effect was observed to increase with time and with increasing dose of the extract[299 ].

Known Hazards

The glucosinolates in the leaves were found to cause goitre but to a lesser extent than expected on the basis of their concentration. However, in a diet poor in iodine it may be a contributing factor[299 ].