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10 www.DesertMessenger.com February 21, 2024 Gardening with Dennis Stay up to date with Town Hall Town of Quartzsite now offers text notifications on your phone through TextMyGov. iWorQ is excited to an- nounce a strategic partnership with @TextMyGov to expand citizen en- gagement with text messaging To opt in, text the word "QUARTZSITE" to 91896. What to expect: After the initial keyword is sent, you'll receive a con- firmation message asking you to re- ply "YES" to verify opt-in. There will be up to 4 text messages per month with a notification from the Town re- garding the categories you are opted- in for. Message and data rates may apply. Check with your mobile phone carrieer for more details. How to Opt-Out: Text "STOP" at any time to remove yourself from the notification list. Also are you looking for an- swers? Need to report an issue? Now you can Text the Town of Quartzsite directly. Introducing the new way to skip a phone call and use your mobile phone's text messaging to find answers to your questions. Text "hi" or one the words listed below, to 928-260-4442. "Trees, Sewer, Contact, Street, Water, Pothole, Weeds, Departments, FAQ."TextMyGov will help you to quickly find the answers your looking for or help you to report an issue to the Town. MORINGA OLEIFERA THE MORINGA TREE By Alex Taft Moringa is a food tree that is both nutritional and medicinal. It is na- tive to India. I chose this as a topic because there are more of them in town and their history is interest- ing. As more and more of them pop up in people's yards, I decided to do some research about them. The common names of the moringa tree are the tree of life, the drumstick tree and the horseradish tree. They are called the tree of life because they are an integral part of subsis- tence farming in many countries. They are called the drumstick tree because of their fruit and the horse- radish tree because of the spicy taste of their roots. They love the heat and the sun. It is a deciduous tree with lacy green foliage and white and yellow flowers when it blooms. It blooms twice a year, in summer and fall. It grows quite easily here, does not re- quire a lot of water and is relatively easy to grow from its seeds. Within six months of planting, a young tree can bloom. It is fast growing. There is a down side. When the leaves drop you are left with a rather homely tree with lots of long, brown seed pods. It takes all of the tree's energy to grow its seed pods and the result is that it looks like it is on its last legs while this process occurs. Then the leaves sprout again in the spring, the tree blooms and it starts its process again. It is not a bad idea to grow it near other trees that stay green for the sake of having some- thing green to look at when it has lost its leaves and the pods ripen. There is nothing in Dennis's notes about this tree, and its advent in the community is relatively recent. I discovered its his- tory through reading about permaculture. The moringa tree has gained popularity rapidly. It is not how- ever considered an in- vasive species, like a tamarisk tree, because it does not appear to displace any native trees or plants. It can grow up to 30 feet tall and 15 feet across. I have not seen any that size in town, but that is probably because most trees have been planted recently. The leaves can be dried and made into a powder to serve as a supple- ment of vitamins and minerals. It is loaded with vitamins B, C, beta carotene, K, minerals magnesium, potassium, zinc manganese and calcium and protein. To quote an article in the Phoenix Home and Garden magazine, "Miraculous Mo- ringa Survives and Thrives Here in the Desert" by John Roark, who was prompted to write the article when he interviewed a Scottsdale resident, interested in permaculture, "…mo- ringa (Moringa oleifera) boasts a long list of purported benefits that have garnered attention from nutri- tionists all over the world. Ounce for ounce, the leaves of this drought- tolerant tree have seven times more vitamin C than oranges, four times the calcium of milk, triple the po- tassium of bananas and quadruple the vitamin A found in carrots. The plant's proponents believe it to be effective in treating headaches, high blood pressure, arthritis, gas- tric ulcers and more, and it has been shown to boost breast milk produc- tion in lactating mothers. Powder from the plant's seeds can be used to purify water." It attracts butterflies, bees and hummingbirds. It should be pro- tected from frost and the bean pods should be removed, once ripe. It grows best from seed, planted about one inch deep and keep the soil moist un- til they sprout, which isn't very long. They can also be grown from cuttings, but from what I have read, seeds are best. As for taste and edibility, ev- erything about the tree is edible, from leaves to flowers to roots to the pods. It has been described as "spicy". Mor- ingas can be grown in a container, but they have a tap root so they will outgrow a container in a year. Since they grow so quickly, saving seeds and planting a new one is certainly an option if container gardening works for you. It is easy to see why the tree is part of subsistence farm- ing in many countries. As people learn more about permaculture, this tree comes to the forefront in southern climates like ours and low water needs make it a tree to con- sider in your yard. Growing plants underneath this tree to benefit from its shade is another bonus. Choos- ing this tree for your yard is literally food for thought. Note: for those who did not know Dennis, he was a part-time employ- ee of the town parks department, a Master Gardener since 1985 and instructor for the Master Gardener Class. He passed away in 2018. Craft Fair 1st Sat. of every month! Daily Activities! QIA 928-927-6325 235 E. Ironwood St., Quartzsite BINGO FRIDAYS! Starts Nov. 10th Opens at 5pm. Early Birds 6:30pm. Main 7pm. Concessions Available The Quartzsite GFWC Women's Club is sponsoring a blood drive with Vitalant Monday MARCH 18th at the QUARTZSITE SE- NIOR CENTER from 9am to 1 pm. Walk ins always welcome but it is faster of you have an appoint- ment. Thank you to everyone who donates. You may be saving a life. You can schedule a time by calling 877-258-4826 or online at www. donors.vitalant.org blood drive L1250. There is no age limit. (See ad Page 17) Blood Drive

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