Abstract:Moringa oleifera introduced from Myanmar was grown in some dry-hot valley areas of Yunnan Province. Propagation methods of direct sowing and sapling transplanting in the spring were applied, and three types of planting sites were experimented with M. oleifera for three years, i.e., irrigated farmland, farmland without irrigation and the waste sloping land in the mountainous area.. The following results were concluded from the three year introduction experiment. (1) The M. oleifera plants grown on the farmland by the both two propagation methods could normally bloom and bear fruits in the first year. The plants grown on the waste sloping land could not bear fruits or bear little in the first year, and the young shoots of some plants severely dried out because of the drought. While the trees planted on the former farmland could bear some fruits, but the yield was lower than that on the farmland. (2) The development rhythm of M. oleifera bearing basal shoot and fruit spurs was different from most of tree species. The fruit spurs of different ages could simultaneously develop on the same fruit bearing basal shoots, and the same fruit bearing basal shoot could produce fruit spurs continuously for many times. (3) The peak period of fruit elongating growth was earlier than that of girth growth. (4) Fruits consumed as fresh vegetable should be harvested before fibrosis, which took place from the elongating growth of the fruits ended to the girth growth stage started. (5) It was demonstrated by the preliminary results of the experiment that M. oleifera was a moderate drought resistant species, and it might fit to be planted in arid or semiarid areas in tropical or sub-tropical climate zones in China. It was recommended that great attention should be paid to planting site selection before the cultivation area is extended.
