Moringa is sadly not a frost-tolerant plant and struggles in the winter in zones below 10. If you are wondering how to make moringa frost tolerant, keep reading! This blog post will discuss a simple trick to help your moringa plants survive in cold weather.
Is Moringa Frost Tolerant?
Moringa is not frost-tolerant. This tree does best in subtropical weather and struggles when temperatures dip into the freezing range. We’ve lost many trees to cold winters and found some tricks to help you not meet the same fate!
A hard frost will damage the moringa tree leaves, and a prolonged freeze can kill the tree.
One of the easiest ways around this is to grow your Moringa in pots and simply bring them inside.
The problem with this is that you’d then need to grow your Moringa in pots.
Moringa does not do well when grown in pots for an extended period of time.
While it is possible to move them inside when there is a freeze warning, it is better to protect the plant from the cold weather altogether.
One way to do this is by creating a simple structure to keep your Moringa tree warm.
There is a simple trick that you can use to make your moringa tree more frost tolerant.
If you live in an area where there is a risk of frost, be sure to take this simple precaution to help your moringa tree survive
This will help to insulate the tree and protect it from the cold weather.
What Zones Does Moringa Have Trouble In?
Though it’s native to tropical and subtropical regions, moringa can actually tolerate a fair amount of cold. However, it doesn’t take well to frost and will start to struggle when temperatures dip below ~40 degrees Fahrenheit.
The plant will typically lose its leaves when the mercury plummets and may even die if the temperatures stay low for an extended period of time.
This means that moringa starts to struggle outside of zone 10 in the winter, and anything below zone 7 makes for a difficult time altogether.
We’ve had great success with Moringa in zones 7 and 8, but if you live in an area that’s colder than that, you’ll need to take some extra precautions, like bringing in your Moringa trees in the winter or using our insulation trick below.
How to Make Moringa Frost Tolerant
To make your Moringa tree frost tolerant, you’ll need to follow these simple steps.
Wrapping all of the stumps in your yard should only cost you about $25, assuming you already have the tree trimmers.
The only items you’ll really need are chicken wire fencing, usually found in the shed.
Cutting the tree down to a 2-3 foot stump is the best place to start.
This will remove all branches, leaving you with a small trunk to work with.
Be sure to wear protective gear when operating these tools, as they can be dangerous.
With the tree finally at the right size, you can start to build your protective barrier.
Chicken wire fencing is a great way to keep your stump warm in the winter.
Just wrap it around the stump, leaving enough room to stuff the insides with insulation.
This will help to keep the heat in and the cold out, making it a much more comfortable winter for your little Moringa tree.
Just be sure to remove the chicken wire fencing when the weather starts warming up, so your tree doesn’t overheat!
Fill the insides around the tree with dead fall leaves from around the garden or yard until it’s full and pretty tight.
If you’re in a very cold region (7 or below), building a small pile of leaves around the base of your chicken wiring is a great way to keep the insulation in place and protect the roots from frost damage.
This can help you from creating a cold air tunnel into the insides of your insulation, so it’s definitely worth taking the time to do it right.
Finally, cover the top with a tarp.
By following these steps, you can ensure that your moringa can withstand even the harshest frost!
How To Video for Our Visual Learners:
Can Moringa Survive Without Leaves?
Moringa can survive without its leaves. Before Moringa grows into a large tree, it starts with roots and a trunk. Moringa trees in the winter have an easier time surviving without the leaves since it cuts down on the amount of exposure and lowers the risk of internal rot.
The leaves are important for the tree to grow, but the root system and trunk help Moringa survive during cold weather.
Why Do We Not Cut Moringa All The Way Down To The Roots?
One of the reasons we chop our moringa tree down for the winter is to reduce exposure to rotting. When left standing, the tree’s branches are more likely to come into contact with moisture from snow and ice, which can lead to rotting.
By chopping the tree down, we lower the amount of surface area exposed to potential moisture sources.
This helps to reduce the risk of rot, and also makes it easier to insulate the tree against the cold.
Also, chopping down the tree also allows us to take advantage of its natural shape. By cutting it into a stump, we create a more compact form that is less susceptible to wind damage.
Finally, cutting the tree down to a stump will reduce the time it will take to insulate it. The smaller the stump, the less time it will take to make our insulation structure.
This is because a smaller stump will have less surface area for the insulation to cover.
Also, a smaller stump is easier to work with and will require less time to secure the insulation in place.
As a result, if you are trying to save time, it is best to cut the tree to about 2-3 feet tall.
Conculsion, Is Moringa Frost Tolerant?
So there you have it – a way to keep your moringa alive and frost-tolerant all winter long. Even though moringa is not frost tolerant, the method above can get you very close! If you try this method, be sure to let us know how it goes in the comments below. And if you’re looking for more ways to use moringa, don’t forget to check out our other posts on the subject.
Thanks for reading; we have an introduction-to-Moringa guide here.
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