General description
A deciduous tree to 10m, usually smaller, pale feathery foliage. M. oleifera originates from India, Arabia and was introduced to Ethiopia long ago. The tree is now naturalized in many parts of southern Ethiopia and has also been tried elsewhere with varying success. Konso people plant M. oleifera around their homesteads and also in the terraced fields.

Edible part(s), preparation methods and palatability
Leaves, tender young capsules, immature seeds, fruits and roots are edible. The young leaves are collected, cooked and eaten like other vegetables. The young roots can be collected and used as a sort of spice. But care should be taken by using the root as a food because the root bark contains poisonous alkaloids. Also the fruits are edible even though they are less important than the leaves. Leaves can easily be dried (in the shade to reduce loss of vitamins) and rubbed over a wire screen to make a powder that can be stored and conveniently added to soups, sauces, food without changing their taste. Green immature seeds can be extracted and eaten like peas, boiled or fried. The flowers that must be cooked, are consumed either mixed with other foods or fried in butter or oil and have been shown to be rich in potassium and calcium. The immature green seed pods are probably the most valued and widely used of all the tree parts. They are generally prepared in a similar fashion to green beans and have a slight asparagus taste. The green peas and surrounding white material can be removed from larger pods and cooked in various ways. The mature seed is about 40% oil. Moringa seed has a fairly soft kernel, so the oil can be extracted by hand using a screw press.

Nutritional value
Leaves contain important amounts of iron and other valuable nutritional elements as well as high protein content. Leaves are also outstanding as a source of vitamin A and C as well as a good source for vitamin B. For a child aged 1-3, a 100g serving of fresh cooked leaves would provide all his daily requirements of calcium, about 75% of his iron needs, as well as important amounts of potassium, B vitamins, copper and all the essential amino acids. 20g of leaves provides a child with all the vitamins A and C he needs. The seed pods are highly nutritious containing all the essential amino acids.