Wrapping up for the freeze

As anyone who has tried winter gardening in Tucson can tell you, the weather forecast can be iffy at best. I have been getting FREEZE ALERTS for the last few days along with sporadic announcements of possible rain and even snow - so I thought it was time to cover the base of our moringa to protect the roots. 

It was 48 degrees on Wednesday (but it felt colder in the wind) so I wrapped piping insulation around each of the thicker branches down by the trunks (tying it snug with string). 

HISTORY: Before I get any complaints about wrapping plastic around them, let me share a little history of our moringa. About eight years ago we planted moringa seeds in our new right of way basin with the idea that they would be well watered in the coming monsoons. I babied those seeds, using  tomato cage and shade cloth to protect them from the scorching June sun and watering them daily. We were amazed by how quickly they grew in the monsoon rain!  What we didn't anticipate was that, unsheltered on the side of the street, they would die back in a hard freeze.

Dec. 2017. The towels we wrapped around them didn't save them.

Heartbroken, we finally cut back the dead branches. We were delighted when they came back from the roots in the Spring. 

After a freeze warning one year, we tried covering the whole plant but that trapped the moisture and mold grew inside the branches and on our precious nutritious leaves. That's when I started protect them with piping insulation - which seemed to help. But when it rained some moisture did get caught between the insulation and the trunk. (Despite some mold, they still came back). So I started covering the insulation with old plastic table cloths. 

Yesterday it was supposed to rain, so I wrapped a cheap, old plastic table cloth around it to keep the rain out - tucking it between branches and holding it together with binder clips. Then I stuffed a plastic grocery bag in the hole in the top to make sure the rain wouldn't get in.. This was a challenge in the icy wind! I had to hold the tablecloth down with rocks so it wouldn't blow away.

;

Our poor moringa (a tropical plant) has been really struggling with the sporadic weather this year. Record heat and very little rain. I was able to harvest leaves for tea twice, but it didn't come back like it usually does. (Usually pruning it encourages more growth.)

Now it seems confused by the unseasonably warm winter, but no winter rain. It sent out new leaves (that wouldn't grow bigger) and even flower buds!  

Ever hopeful, we deep watered it recently (with the little rainwater left in our cistern) to help it out. 

But with the leaves already starting to droop from 36 degree weather and rain on it's way, I finally decided to harvest the little leaves for soup.

I held the branch and pulled off the biggest leaves. (No, I don't have 3 hands! Dan is holding the strainer for me...) Still hoping for warmer weather, I did leave some sprouting leaves with the flower buds. 

The table cloth did its job and kept out the rain (a whole 0.02"!) nicely. 

Back in the warm house, I washed them and removed the tiny leaves from their stems. 

I added moringa to some veggie scraps to make a super healthy broth. 

This gave me a chance to use up some wilting veggies I found in the fridge and some leftover broth, noodles and bread for soup and sandwiches.

After removing the kitchen scraps from the broth, I added potatoes, carrots, peas, and more moringa. Finally, I threw in some left over noodles to make a yummy noodle, veggie moringa soup. 

Nothing warms you up like wrapping up in a fluffy housecoat after a hot shower and enjoying a piping hot bowl of noodle, veggie moringa soup. 

By the way, we didn't end up having a hard freeze last night after all. (Maybe tonight?) Last I looked, the buds were still hanging in there! Crossing my fingers for them to finally bloom. It's always a bit of a gamble on whether to harvest them or not. 

UPDATE: After the hard freeze some smaller branches, leaves and buds are dead. But some bigger branches, leaves and buds are still alive after 2+ days of freezing weather. So covering the base really seems to have helped.  

Some life left after 2+ days of freezing weather.

UPDATE (March 28, 2025) 

I may have left the pipe insulation and the plastic tablecloth on too long. (I didn't have time to take it off before leaving on a family vacation.) But I removed it immediately when I got home. I was pleased to find some healthy branches with leaves growing there.

Unfortunately, I also discovered some pale, twisted branches under some of the piping. 

I went ahead and pruned back the dead, hollow branches and cut them into mulch.  

Then I gave it a deep watering, hoping it would recover.  The twisted branches finally got some color and began to grow leaves. This moringa is a fighter! 

Oddly the bunnies ate the healthy leaves and left the unhealthy ones. 

UPDATE (June 7, 2025) 

Those who have followed our their plight may be aware of how the moringa have suffered from our sporadic weather in the unsheltered streetside basin.

On the 8th anniversary of planting the four moringa seeds, I have learned that it was a serious mistake to plant them in the right-of-way basin. While they did flourish and grow with the monsoon rains, they were unprotected from the deep freeze and the brutal record heat. A micro burst even took one out! Now only one of the four trees remains. (Bunnies recently finished off the stunted leaves on the second one.) I believe they would have done much better if they had been protected by a wall or other trees in a guild. 

On the bright side, the last moringa is coming back nicely with periodic deep watering and the merciful 1/2 inch of rain on June 1st.

Moringa on June 5, 2025

I am confident that it will continue to grow like gangbusters during the upcoming monsoon season and provide plenty of nutritional leaves for our family.