Traditional knowledge and landscape management: evaluation and measurement of traditional knowledge on edible wild plants and mushrooms in the satoyama ecosystems in the Noto Peninsula, Japan

The tribal belt of Pakistan-the Pak-Afghan border region is famous for its unique culture, ethnography and wild food plants and traditional knowledge. People of these regions gather wild plants for number of purposes including plants or plant parts for direct use, use it in the traditional cuisines and selling in local markets. However, there is huge lack of documentation of food system particularly the Wild Food Plants (WFPs). In current study we have focused on the uses and contributions of the WFPs in the tribal traditional food system. The ethnobotanical data were gathered through questionnaire surveys with Eighty-four informants 69 men and 15 women belonging to 21 different villages. We documented Sixty-three WFP species belonging to 34 botanical families, of which 27 were used as vegetables, 24 as fruits, 6 in different kinds of chutneys (starters) formation and six as fresh food species. Fruits were the mostly used part (40%) followed by leaves (24%), aerial parts (24%), seeds (7%), stem (3%), legume (2%) and young inflorescence (1%). Use of Carthamus oxycanthus & Pinus roxburghii seeds and Marsillea quadrifolia leaves were the novel reports for the gastronomy of Pakistan. The results elucidate that WFPs have a significant contribution in the Tribal Food Systems. Tribal people use WFPs not only due to their nutritional importance but also as a cultural practice - an inseparable component of the tribal communities. This important traditional Knowledge about the consumption of WFPs has been eroding with an alarming speed among the younger generations due to introduction of fast food chains, modernization, and globalization. Therefore, appropriates strategies are imperative not only to safeguard traditional knowledge but also the cultural heritage, food security and hence public healthcare via food supplement in the region.

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Documentation of Commonly Used Ethnoveterinary Medicines from Wild Plants of the High Mountains in Shimla District, Himachal Pradesh, India

Horticulturae ◽

10.3390/horticulturae7100351 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (10) ◽

pp. 351

Author(s):

Pramod Prakash ◽

Radha ◽

Manoj Kumar ◽

Ashok Pundir ◽

Sunil Puri ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Medicinal Plants ◽

Traditional Knowledge ◽

Wild Plants ◽

Rural People ◽

Field Surveys ◽

Extensive Field ◽

Permanent Loss ◽

Rosaceae Family ◽

Medicinal Properties ◽

Livestock Diseases

The aim of current study is to provide a significant traditional knowledge on wild medicines used for ethnoveterinary purposes in the rural area of Maraog region in district Shimla. The medicinal plants have played a significant role in the treatment of human as well as animal’s diseases. The rural people of the Maraog region were interviewed through a questionnaire and extensive field surveys were conducted from June 2020 to July 2021. The discussion, observations and interviews were conducted in study site and included 96 informants. The information gathered from the residents is presented in a table format and includes scientific and local names, different parts used, diseases treated and mode administration. The most commonly used taxa are calculated with used value. The study revealed 100 plants in which trees (7), shrubs (26), herbs (56), ferns (5), grasses (3) and climbers (3) were identified. The most commonly documented livestock diseases were found to be hoof infections, eyes infections, poisoning and skin infections. In the current study, the Rosaceae family was reported as being the highest number (11), followed by Asteraceae (10) and then Lamiaceae (6). It was found that leaves, roots, flowers and fruits are the commonly used parts for ethnoveterinary medications. The phytochemicals present in the plant, such as alkaloids, sterols, glycosides, flavonoids, lignin, coumarins and terpenoids, etc., may be responsible for their medicinal properties. In this documentation, it was observed that the younger generation does not have good knowledge of medicinal plants as compared to the older ones. Therefore, it is necessary to preserve the traditional knowledge of these medicinal plants before their permanent loss. The documentation and conservation of medicinal plants can be a good start for novel phytopharmacological research in the veterinary field.

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Antioxidant and Prebiotic Activity of Selected Edible Wild Plant Extracts

Journal of Food Research ◽

10.5539/jfr.v6n1p7 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 7

Author(s):

Poloko Stephen Kheoane ◽

Clemence Tarirai ◽

Tendekayi Henry Gadaga ◽

Carmen Leonard ◽

Richard Nyanzi

Keyword(s):

Antioxidant Activity ◽

Ascorbic Acid ◽

Plant Extracts ◽

Acid Content ◽

Dietary Fibre ◽

Wild Plants ◽

Wild Plant ◽

Edible Wild Plant ◽

Edible Wild Plants ◽

Total Dietary Fibre

Edible wild plants were investigated as potential sources of antioxidants and prebiotics to benefit human health. Antioxidant activity, ascorbic acid and total dietary fibre contents were determined in edible wild plants from Lesotho, Swaziland and South Africa. Pure probiotic strains of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. animalis (ATCC 25527), Lactobacillus rhamnosus (TUTBFD) and Lactobacillus acidophilus (ATCC 314) were cultured in broth containing edible wild plant extracts to assess their prebiotic activity. Cyperus esculantus had the highest arscobic acid content of 603±64.1 mg/100 g edible dry plant material followed by Rosa rubiginosa (500.8±48.8 mg/100 g). The two plants had IC50 of 10.7±0.2 µg/mL and 47.8±0.2 µg/mL for DPPH inhibition, respectively. Forty percent (40%) (n=30) of the edible wild plants had significant (p<0.01) total antioxidant activity (IC50<60 µg/mL) and high ascorbic acid content (>200 mg/100 g). Nasturtium officinale reported the highest yield for soluble fibre (25%) while Hypoxis hirsute had the highest total dietary fibre content (7.3%). Rorippa nudiuscula enhanced the growth of B. animalis significantly (p=0.001), 8-fold more than inulin. Chenopodium album and Urtica dioica stimulated the growth of L. rhamnosus significantly (p=0.0001) than inulin, respectfully, while Tragopogon porrifolius significantly (p=0.0001) stimulated the growth of L. acidophilus than inulin. It was concluded that the investigated edible wild plants from southern Africa have antioxidant and prebiotic properties that may be beneficial to human health.

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