POLOKWANE – Professor Paulina Bopape-Mabapa, an associate of the University of Limpopo advises all residents of Mankweng and surrounds to make use of the muringa plant, as a weapon for food insecurity.
The constant rise in food prices exposes the already impoverished to extremes, while the working class also feel the pinch.
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But, Bopape-Mabapa believes since the muringa plant is planted all year long despite the climate, this can bring some relief.
Apart from its known medicinal and soil fertility uses, the plant, of which the entirety is consumable can be used to purify water, and has a high nutritional value for livestock.
This means a cut in costs relating to cleaning water for domestic animals and purchasing their food from retail stores. “Several studies revealed that, almost every part of the muringa plant has nutritional value and various utilisation forms,” she says.
The agronomy lecturer in the Department of Plant Production, Soil Science, and Agricultural Engineering conducted a survey in 2016 and 2017 which revealed that there is a great quantity of farmers who grow muringa in all districts of Limpopo.
The study set out to prove the effectiveness of muringa in Limpopo known for its extreme weather conditions such as high temperatures, water scarcity and erratic rainfall.
“The tree can be planted by anyone, as it adapts to various soil types and does not need moisture and fertiliser once it has established. It can grow fast and harvests leaves within a very short space of time,” she adds.
Muringa can be planted in the agroforestry system where trees and other crops such as vegetables can be inter-cropped as the leaves can improve soil fertility and benefit from it.
