Moringa, great tree to have around, beside all of its nutritional value, its also good as a green manure crop, and also a foliar spray from Moringa leaves is a natural growth stimulant, and has been shown to increase production of fruit trees up to 25% ( tests done on cashews, and vegetables ) I suspect they may be beneficial on mango trees, but I have not found test done on them yet.
main cultivation tip i can give you it to prune them so they will branch out as much as possible , because their natural tendency is to grow up fast and spindly. with no pruning the trees are not very attractive and you will get little foliage.
Tropicdude, i'd be interested in finding out more about what you say about using moringa as a foliar spray. Do you remember the source of that info? Thanks,
Sorry Oscar, took so long to reply on this, I never came back to this thread.
I have not been able to find tests done specifically on Mango, and I have been ltrying to learn all I can on phytohomones in mangoes.
The Zeatins in moringa are growth simulators cytokinins group, this is the hormone that depending on its ratio / balance with Auxins and Gibberellins, is what tilts the preference whether you will get more vegetative growth or florescence.
Timing seems to be the key here, my best guesstimate would be around the same time one would spray KNO3 but I am still looking into this.
I also found out that KN03 is really not necessary as its only the nitrogen that is really needed to start inflorescence in mangoes ( That was confirmed in Mexico )
My interest in this is to find a natural organic alternative to potassium nitrate to stimulate and/or increase flowering. and also to see if I can speed along my mangosteen plants as I was told by an expert that the G.mangostana slowness is due to its strong growth retardants, and he was able to get his seedlings to fruit after 5 years ( using some fancy product from Europe, organic amino acid and hormonal formula ).
I came back to this thread because I am interested in finding seeds for the Moringa hybrid PKM-1 and/or PKM-2 varieties, and was hoping someone knows where to get them in the US?
Echo has them but not listed in their online store, and the only other place I can find them is in India in 1000 seed packs min.
In case anyone is wondering what these are, PKM-1 is a hybrid bred to be used as an annual , it can produce pods in as little as 8 months, and is semi dwarf, and bushy.
PKM-2 is an improved version of the normal Moringa,
both varieties have better production and are supposed to have no bitter taste. with increased lateral growth.