Malunggay CompassThe calculator
Fill in area (or fence length) and price to see density, yields, revenue, and margin. A preset loads sensible defaults — adjust from there.
This density (625 trees/ha) is managed for pods, not for repeated leaf cuts, so the leaf products show nothing to sell and the net figure reads as a pure cost. Two ways forward: set You will sell… to Dry pods & seed to price the pods and seed, or switch back to a leaf system. The pod and seed basis is in the pod and seed notes.
Harvest calendar — cuts against the rainy season
Timing is where an otherwise sound plan quietly fails: the same block that yields well in a dry month can lose most of its value in a wet one, because leaf that cannot be dried within a day or two discolours and then moulds (see drying and water activity). This calendar draws the plan from the calculator above — the same area and cut interval — and marks which harvests fall in the months when field drying is unreliable where you are.
usually dry unreliable field drying ×2 = two cuts that month
Nursery economics — the seedling enterprise
Selling planting material is the usual first enterprise on a moringa farm: almost no land, cycles in weeks rather than months, cash while your production block matures, and every new grower in the province as a potential customer. The cost and price ranges below come from the nursery section. Note what the margin does when the numbers are unkind — a nursery with bought-in media and labour priced at market wage can lose money, which is the point of running the figures before buying bags.
No land or shade-structure cost, no transport to the buyer, and no value on your own labour — all three move the margin more than anything you can type here. Losses are applied to the whole batch, so you pay to raise the seedlings you later cull. And bagged seedlings are heavy: if the buyer is an hour away, price the trip before you price the plant. Selling planting material at scale may bring you under Bureau of Plant Industry seed-dealer registration — see the nursery section.
Presets explained
| Preset | Geometry | Density | Cut interval | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🌿 Leaf hedge | 1 m × 1 m | 10,000 plants/ha | 70 days | The default commercial block — sturdy hills, forgiving management, fresh-leaf sales |
| 🚿 Intensive | 0.45 m × 0.18 m | ~123,000 plants/ha | 40 days | Irrigated, fertilized blocks feeding a dryer/mill; forage-grade tonnage |
| 🫛 Pod orchard | 4 m × 4 m | 625 trees/ha | — | Drumstick pods and seed; trees need space and light to flower heavily. Selects the dry pods & seed product for you |
| 🪵 Fence row | single row, 0.8 m in-row | per meter of hedge | 70 days | Boundary plantings; household supply plus side income |
How the math works
total plants = plants/ha × area (or fence length ÷ in-row spacing)
cuts/year = ⌊365 ÷ cut interval⌋
fresh kg/yr = yield t/ha × 1,000 × area · adjusted by cut-interval ratio (capped at 1.5×)
dry kg/yr = fresh kg/yr ÷ fresh-to-dry ratio · leaf meal kg/yr = fresh kg/yr ÷ 4.0
dry pods/yr = 2 t/ha × 1,000 × area (pod orchard only) · seed = pods × 0.25
revenue = kg of the chosen product × its price · net = revenue − (cost/ha × area)
margin = net ÷ revenue · break-even = costs ÷ kg sold
- Leaf yield bases: hedge 20 t/ha/yr · intensive 45 t/ha/yr · fence ~0.35 kg fresh per meter per year · pod orchard 0, because that density is managed for pods rather than repeated leaf cuts. All are literature midpoints from the Cultivation chapter.
- Pod and seed basis: 2 t/ha of dry pods — the midpoint of the 1–3 t/ha reported for mature orchards — with seed taken as a quarter of pod weight; see the pod and seed notes. Sales of tender green pods at the palengke are a different, earlier market and are not priced here.
- Leaf meal converts at 4.0 kg fresh per kg meal rather than your powder ratio, because feed-grade meal is sun-dried, coarser, and tolerates more stem than food-grade powder. Prices for it sit in the feed chapter (₱12–25/kg against 27% crude protein).
- Cut-interval adjustment: cutting more often than the preset raises modeled yield (up to 1.5×); stretching intervals lowers it — mirroring the agronomy in the pruning chapter. It does not apply to the pod orchard, which is not cut on a leaf cycle.
- Sell mode: only the chosen product is priced. The second quantity tile reports what that choice leaves out, so the conversion is visible rather than hidden.
Worked examples
🌿 1 ha hedge, fresh leaves
1 ha · 1×1 m (10,000 plants) · 70-day cuts (5/yr) · ₱15/kg farmgate · ₱80,000 costs:
- Fresh leaf: ≈ 20,000 kg → ₱300,000 gross
- Net ≈ ₱220,000 · margin ≈ 73%
- Break-even ≈ ₱4/kg fresh
Matches the upper, well-managed end of the economics chapter scenarios.
🚿 1 ha intensive, powder
1 ha · 0.45×0.18 m · 40-day cuts (9/yr) · ₱450/kg powder · 4.5:1 · ₱355,000 costs:
- Fresh ≈ 45,000 kg → ≈ 10,000 kg powder → ₱4,500,000
- Net ≈ ₱4.1M — the optimistic ceiling, achievable only with irrigation, strong fertility, and a committed powder buyer
Run conservative numbers too: halve the yield or price and see how fast the margin compresses.
🫛 1 ha pod orchard, dry pods
1 ha · 4×4 m (625 trees) · no leaf cuts · ₱30/kg dry pods · ₱35,000 costs:
- Dry pods: ≈ 2,000 kg → ₱60,000 gross, plus ≈ 500 kg seed inside them
- Net ≈ ₱25,000 · margin ≈ 42% · break-even ≈ ₱17.50/kg pods
An orchard is a slower, lower-labour business than a leaf block — the pods mature once a year rather than cycling every 60–75 days. Seed is counted but not priced; add it via the oil or planting-seed routes.
Assumptions and limits — read before betting money
- Steady-state model. Year 1 delivers only 50–70% of steady-state yield (establishment + formative cut). Model year 1 separately.
- Irrigation assumed. Yields collapse in unirrigated dry seasons; the 45 t/ha intensive figure presumes water on demand.
- Yield bases are literature midpoints, not guarantees — variety, soil, typhoons, and management swing results widely.
- Costs vary by locality. Pull real quotes for labor, fertilizer, and hauling; the default ₱80k/ha is a placeholder informed by the ½-ha budget.
- Prices move. Fresh-leaf prices crash in gluts; powder and meal prices hinge on quality and contracts; dry-pod prices swing with the seed market. Stress-test with the calculator: try ₱10/kg fresh, then ₱20.
- Pod yields are annual, not seasonal. The 2 t/ha figure is a mature orchard in a good year. Trees take three to five years to reach it, and a single typhoon can take the crop with it — see climate resilience.
- The nursery module is a per-cycle picture. It ignores land, structure, transport and the value of your own labour, and assumes the batch sells. Three empty cycles in a row is a real outcome, not a hypothetical.
- Excludes land rent, financing, certification fees, equipment depreciation beyond the cost field, and the owner's own labor.
This calculator exists to build realistic expectations and stress-test plans — not to guarantee income. Validate locally with your MAO, buyers, and neighbors' actual harvest records. See the full disclaimer.