Moringa peregrina
Forssk.
ex Fiori
For my money, this native of the Red Sea region is the strangest member
of a strange group. When Moringa peregrina seedlings start out, they
have broad leaflets and a large tuber. Through many dry seasons, the shoot
dies back below ground to the tuber. As the plant gets older, the leaves
get longer and longer, but the leaflets get smaller and smaller and more
widely spaced. Adult trees produce leaves with a full complement of tiny
leaflets, only to drop them as the leaf matures. However, the naked leaf
axis remains, giving the tree a wispy look similar to Tamarix or
Cercidium microphyllum. The pink zygomorphic flowers are sweetly scented
and contrast with the blue leaves.
It is thought that M. peregrina
oil may have been one of the important oils of ancient times (visit the
web site
Amphorae from Egypt to find out more). A least in the southern Arabian
Peninsula, the tubers of saplings are roasted and eaten.
Moringa peregrina
images
1) Moringa-covered
hillside in northern Oman; 2) young seedling in cultivation; 3) and 4) adults
in northern Oman;
5) fruits; 6) seeds: brown ones are fertile while white ones are sterile
1. 
2. 
3. 
4. 
5. 
6. 
click on a thumbnail for
a larger image
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acknowledgements
Instituto
de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de
México
Circuito Exterior s/n, Ciudad Universitaria
Copilco, Coyoacán A. P. 70-367
C. P. 04510, México, D. F.
MÉXICO
(52)
55 5622-9127 fon (52) 55 5555-1760 fax
molson@ibiologia.unam.mx
all
material © 2002 Mark E Olson
