Moringa oleifera Lam.

 
  • Family : MORINGACEAE
    (Moringa Family)
  • Family (Hindi name) : SONJNA FAMILY
  • Family (as per The APG System III) : Moringaceae
  • Synonym(s) : Guilandina moringa L.; Moringa pterygosperma Gaertn.
  • Species Name (as per The IPNI) : Moringa oleifera Lam.
  • Common name : Drumstick Tree, Horse Raddish Tree, Ben Oil Tree, Coatli, Oil of ben tree
  • Vernacular name :
    • Sojna, Sainjna (Hindi)
    • Munaga, Mulaga, Tella munaga (Telugu)
    • Chhui gaccho, Munagha, Sajana, Chhai (Oria)
    • Shevga (Marathi)
    • Nugge mara (Kannada)
    • Muringa, Moringa, Sigru (Malayalam)
    • Moringa, Murungai (Tamil)
  • Habit : Tree
  • Habitat : Cultivated
  • Comments / notes : Fruits and leaves are used as vegetables. Wood is used as floater
  • Key identification features : Trunk grey-white with longitudinal wrinkles. Leaves polypinnate. Flowers pale white, fragrant. Pod long, pendulous
  • Flower, Fruit : Throughout the year
  • Distribution :
    • Andhra Pradesh : Vizianagaram district, Krishna district, Prakasam district
    • Telangana : Khammam district, Mehboobnagar district
    • Kerala : All districts of Kerala
    • Maharashtra : Akola district
    • Tamil Nadu : Tamil Nadu
    • Delhi : Delhi
    • Haryana : Gurgaon district
    • Uttar Pradesh : Uttar Pradesh
    • Punjab : Punjab
    • Rajasthan : Jaisalmer district, Barmer district, Bikaner district, Jodhpur district
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands : Port Blair taluk
  • Native : India, Pakistan
  • Exotic/Native : Native
  • World Distribution : Tropical Countries
  • Conservation Status : Not Evaluated (NE)
  • Literature :
    • Pullaiah et al., 2002 - Flora of Eastern Ghats Vol. 1
    • Sudhakar Reddy, C et al., 2009
    • Matthew, K.M., Flora of Tamil Nadu Carnatic, Vol.3 (1). Diocesan Press, Madras. 1983
    • Pullaiah, T & Chennaiah, E., 1997. Flora of Andhra Pradesh. Vol. 1
    • Sasidharan, N. 2011. Flowering plants of Kerala. DVD, V 2, KFRI
    • Kamble & Pradhan, 1988. Flora of Akola District, Maharashtra. Botanical Survey of India.
    • Maheshwari K.J (1963). Flora of Delhi: 106
    • Parkinson, C.E. 1923. A Forest Flora of the Andaman Islands, Govt. of India, Shimla: 142
  • Read more :
  • Citation : Sankara Rao, K., Deepak Kumar (2024). India Flora Online. http://indiafloraonline-ces.iisc.ac.in/plants.php?name=Moringa oleifera. Downloaded on 2 April 2025.

Botanical Description

Herbarium Specimen(s)

Line Drawings

Field Image(s)

India Distribution

World Distribution

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