Of Moringa and Stocking

It is just great to see how fast they grow. In no time they are already overtaking their neighbours, the galanga and the pandan, in term of height.

You would not believe it if I tell you that I could see them growing day by day with the grey wall behind them, especially when the headlamp shone on them as I parked my Naza Citra after work.

They are the Moringa oleifera that I grew more than a month ago.

After failing in my first attempt, I decided to plant Moringa from seeds instead of cuttings.

It all happened when we visited Ramli in his house in Geliga. To our surprise, there was a tall and healthy Moringa tree in his house compound. What amazed me was their massive branches - they were much bigger that what I was used to come across.

Wasted no time I collected three dried up fruit pods. There were still many young pods up there. There was only one reason for this - there were no Indians around!

It was my wife who diligently split the pods, cleaned the seeds and then soaked them in a luke-warm water in a cup.

She kept them soaked for about 24 hours. Then she planted them in polybags filled with organic matter.

The seeds germinated very well. Almost all polybags had at least one moringa seedling.

The seedlings grew exceptionally well.

I will start harvesting the nutrient-rich leaves when they reach 4 feet.

Besides that, the cuttings that I casually planted in the flower pots are also growing well - much better than the ones that I grew earlier.

Then there is that black and white-stockinged cat.

It is the sole survivor from a family of six who came uninvited into our lives (their story is in my previous post).

It is a pity to see him behaving as if he is still a kitten - chasing anything that moves, be it a fly or a butterfly. Lizards are his favourites.

I know that he prefers to live free in and around the house. He is already more than a year old.

But, there was this very senior gentleman (tomcat) next door who feels that his reign is challenged.

He used to barge in and whenever this happened, our cat (whim we call Stocking) will scream loudly. A couple of times he was injured in such a scruffle.

More often, it was just a protest against an intruder, nothing more than that.

It is a pity seeing him locked in his rather cramped cage. He will always beg us to release him whenever he sees us passing by.

Stocking is big in size, but he clearly lacks experience. Once, he even did not know how to pass motion, except did it in the cage.

Now I caught him many times doing his thing among my moringa - no wonder they grow well!