A remarkably quick, drought-tolerant tree whose leaves are among the most nutrient-dense greens grown anywhere.
Moringa is a slender, fast-growing tree that can put on two to three metres in its first year from seed. Nearly every part is used — the young seed pods (the "drumsticks" of South Indian cooking), the seeds, and above all the small, rounded leaves, which are eaten fresh or dried and are unusually rich in protein, vitamins and minerals.
It is a plant of hot, dry places and hates cold, wet ground. In a suitable climate it grows almost like a weed; in a cool one it is kept in a large pot, cut back hard, and protected from frost. Seeds germinate quickly in warm, free-draining compost, and cuttings root readily too.
Because it regrows so vigorously after cutting, moringa is often grown as a "cut-and-come-again" leaf crop — pollarded to keep the nutritious foliage within easy reach rather than left to become a full tree.
A succulent that stores its own water and asks for almost nothing in return — the classic starter plant for anyone who has killed everything else.
A clump-forming grass with a sharp citrus scent, grown for the tender stems at the heart of Southeast Asian cooking.
The knobbly rhizome behind so much cooking will sprout on a warm windowsill from a piece bought to eat.