Moringa hildebrandtii
| Hildebrandt's moringa | |
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| Trunk and leaves of Moringa hildebrandtii | |
Extinct in the wild
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| Species: | M. hildebrandtii
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| Moringa hildebrandtii | |
The Hildebrandt's moringa (Moringa hildebrandtii) is a tree species with a massive, water-storing trunk in the family Moringaceae. It is native to Madagascar, where it is extinct in the wild but preserved by indigenous horticultural practices. It is often thought that the plant originally grew along the west coast of Madagascar, but ethnobotany data suggest that it in fact grew in the island's extreme south-west.
Description
The plant's water-storing trunk grows up to 20 m. Its leaves are pinnate, compound, and can reach one meter long. The leaf rachis and stem tips of young plants are distinctively deep red. Leaves spread around the trunk in an umbrella-like fashion. The small white flowers are borne in large sprays and are reminiscent of baobab flowers.
Rediscovery
In an article in the March 2007 issue of Cactus World (the monthly journal of the British Cactus and Succulent Society) the authors J-B Castillon & J-P Castillon claimed they have rediscovered the first wild population of Moringa hildebrandtii in the wild.
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