Moringa peregrina is native of the Red Sea. It is thought that M. peregrina oil may have been one of the important oils of ancient times. A least in the southern Arabian Peninsula, the tubers of saplings are roasted and eaten. Considering fact that this plant belongs to Arabian Peninsula this is one among the plants introduced to India during madanapala’s period. Author identifies it as the third variety of sigru.
Botanical Description – Shrub or small tree up to 10 m tall, with tuberous rootstock; bole up to 40 cm in diameter; bark grey, purple-grey or bright brown; crown ovoid; branches terete, slender, young stems grey-white or waxy blue-green; twigs brittle. Leaves alternate, in bunches at the ends of branches, 15–40 cm long, 2–pinnate, with 2–5 pairs of pinnae; leaflets opposite or alternate, obovate, oblanceolate or spatulate, 3–20(–35) mm × 2–10(–13) mm, base cuneate to rounded, apex rounded or notched, grey or waxy green. Inflorescence an axillary, lax, much-branched panicle 18–30 cm long. Flowers bisexual, slightly zygomorphic, 5-merous, white with purple heart or pink-flushed, sometimes scented; pedicel 2–9 mm long, jointed; sepals free, oblong to lanceolate, 7–9 mm × 1.5–3 mm, acuminate, hairy on both surfaces; petals free, narrowly oblong, obovate or spatulate, 8–15 mm × 2–5 mm, hairy inside; stamens 5, free, 4.5–7 mm long, alternating with 5 staminodes, 4–5 mm long; ovary superior, shortly stalked, cylindrical, hairy, 1-celled, style slender. Fruit an elongate capsule (10–)32–39 cm × (1–)1.5–1.7 cm, somewhat trigonous, slightly narrowed between the seeds, with a beak, glabrous, dehiscent with 3 valves. Seeds globose to ovoid or trigonous, 10–12 mm × 10–12 mm, brown.
Distribution – Moringa peregrina occurs naturally in arid or semi-arid countries bordering the Red Sea, from Somalia and Yemen to Israel and on to Syria. In tropical Africa it is reported from Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia. It is reported from Iran and Pakistan, but its occurrence there needs confirmation.
Chemical Constituents – The seed of Moringa peregrina contains about 50% oil. It is similar to the oil extracted from the seed of Moringa oleifera Lam. The approximate fatty acid composition of the oil is: palmitic acid 9%, stearic acid 4%, arachidic acid 2%, behenic acid 2%, oleic acid 71%, linoleic acid 1%, and gadoleic acid 2%. The oil contains the sterols campesterol, stigmasterol and β-sitosterol and the tocopherols α-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol.
Note – There are few other species which may be considered as nila sigru of raja ighantu viz., M. rivae and M. borziana
Moringa rivae – This is the most taxonomically frustrating taxon in the family. It is native from southern Lake Turkana to Mandera District in Kenya and throughout southeastern Ethiopia. It doesn’t seem to extend far into Somalia. Subspecies rivae is recognized as having creamy petals with brownish tips and short fruits. Subspecies longisiliqua has yellow flowers and very long fruits. Moringa rivae is very similar to M. arborea and M. borziana
Moringa borziana Mattei – This small Moringa occurs from southern Kenya to the region of Kisimayu in southern Somalia, always within 100 miles of the coast. It may occur in northeastern Tanzania but has never been found there. It usually only bears one or two stems, which typically reach about waist level. These shoots seem to die back to the tuber every few years, but occasionally the plant may grow into a small tree. The flowers of M. borziana are greenish cream to yellow with brown smudges on the petal tips, and have an almost sickeningly sweet odor. When not in flower or fruit, this species has often been confused with M. rivae, but the latter species never occurs so close to the coast.
Uses
The main product derived from Moringa peregrina is seed oil, called ‘ben oil’. The use of the oil goes back to antiquity and is already referred to in old Egyptian texts and the Bible. The oil is used for cooking, in cosmetics and in medicine. In Yemen the oil is used as a lubricant for small machinery. The seeds are also used as coagulant to purify water, e.g. in Sudan. In southern Sudan and Yemen Moringa peregrina is a bee plant and its leaves are used as fodder. The seeds are used in medicine in the Middle East and Sudan. The oil is used to treat abdominal pain. The tuber of the young plant is eaten in Yemen and Oman. The plant is grown as ornamental in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. The wood is collected for fuel in the southern Sinai, but it has now become scarce.
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