scholarly journals Ethnobotany and Agrobiodiversity: Valuation of Plants in the Homegardens of Southwestern Uganda

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 90-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cory W. Whitney ◽  
Joseph Bahati ◽  
Jens Gebauer
Keyword(s):  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Food System ◽  
Agroforestry Systems ◽  
Quantitative Ethnobotany ◽  
Conservation Movement ◽  
Cultural Importance ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Cultural Importance Index ◽  
Southwestern Uganda ◽  
High Diversity

Homegardens are species-rich agroforestry systems with a high diversity of associated traditional knowledge. These systems are an important part of food security for rural marginalized poor around the world, particularly in the humid tropics. Despite the high diversity and cultural importance, little is known about the livelihood-relevant plant diversity contained in the homegardens of southwestern Uganda. Here we employ the quantitative ethnobotany indices use reports (UR) and the cultural importance index (CI) to describe the importance of plants and plant types in the region’s homegardens. Data is based on inventories of 102 homegardens in the Greater Bushenyi from 2014 and reveals 225 useful plant species in 14 different use categories with 3,961 UR, 54% for food, 15% for economic uses, and 11% for medicine. The findings highlight the importance of homegarden plants for subsistence farming households and indicate that they are important places for conservation of botanical agrobiodiversity that should be considered part of the conservation movement in Uganda. Efforts to conserve both botanical and food system diversity in the extremely rich but rapidly deteriorating regional socio-cultural and ecological systems should consider homegardens for their role in conservation of plants and preservation of traditional knowledge.

Folk medicines of Bafra (Samsun-Turkey)

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elif Karcı ◽  
İlhan Gürbüz ◽  
Galip Akaydın ◽  
Tuğba Günbatan
Keyword(s):  
Relative Frequency ◽  
Folk Medicine ◽  
Use Value ◽  
Ethnobotanical Knowledge ◽  
Gradual Reduction ◽  
Quantitative Indices ◽  
Cultural Importance ◽  
Informant Consensus ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Cultural Importance Index

AbstractObjective:In this study, determination and documentation of folk medicines that are being used by indigenous people in Bafra was aimed.Materials and methods:Scientific trips were organised to the region and folk medicines were identified by interviewing individuals which have knowledge of folk medicine. One hundred and fifty-five plant samples were collected during the study. Obtained data were statistically analysed by using four quantitative indices; “informant consensus factor”, “use value”, “relative frequency of citation” and “cultural importance index”.Results:Fifty-three genera and 62 taxa belonging 33 families were recorded to be used in the treatment of different diseases. The usage of five species (Conclusion:Once again, the present investigation has highlighted the gradual reduction in the use of folk medicines, and ethnobotanical knowledge has been falling into oblivion rapidly. Therefore, ethnobotanical inventory surveys should be undertaken throughout Turkey before this important cultural heritage becomes lost.

scholarly journals Woody species associated with coffee production systems in southern Colombia

2021 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 4-16
Author(s):  
Héctor Ramiro Ordoñez-Jurado ◽  
Marbel Cerón ◽  
Dayana Lizeth Martinez O
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Floristic Composition ◽  
Woody Species ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cultural Importance ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Family Economy ◽  
Cultural Importance Index ◽  
Productive Systems

In the coffee zone of the town La Unión- Nariño, native or introduced trees are associated with the productive systems of the farms, mainly because they provide shade for coffee crops, where particular aspects such as species biodiversity and silvicultural management are unknown. With the aim of knowing the woody species of common use and the cultural importance, a semi structured survey was applied to 100 coffee growers who were selected at random and aleatorily distributed in three altitudinal ranges: (m.a.s.l.): I (<1500), II (1500-1800) and III (> 1800). Species richness was determined for each chosen range; for diversity between ranges, the Jaccard Index (JI) and the Cultural Importance Index (CI) were used. The latter was determined by adding up the intensity of use (IU), frequency of citation (FC), and use value (UV). In the three altitude ranges evaluated, 59 tree species were found. These were distributed in 32 botanical families and 46 genera. The fabaceae family was the most representative, followed by rutaceae, myrtaceae and bignoniaceae; 45.8% of the species were introduced. Among the altitudinal ranges, a low degree similarity was found; ranks I and II shared 24 species, which is equivalent to 33.8% of their floristic composition. As for ranges I and III, they had an even lower degree of similarity: 24.2%; only 17 species were shared. The species I. densiflora had the highest percentage of CI, with 32.92%, followed by C. sinensis with 31.98%; then the species T. gigantea and P. americana with 30.49% and 26.27% respectively. These species were of great importance to coffee growers due to the positive impact they have on the family economy and their contribution to the environmental well-being of production systems.

scholarly journals Using Measurable Indices to Evaluate the Cultural Importance of Socio-religious Plants: Comparative Data from the Three States of India

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 96-104
Author(s):  
Kavi K. Oza ◽  
Suchitra Chatterjee ◽  
Shrey Pandya ◽  
Vinay M. Raole
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Common Species ◽  
Cultural Value ◽  
Plant Parts ◽  
Religious Rituals ◽  
Cultural Importance ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Cultural Importance Index ◽  
Traditional Societies ◽  
Specific Culture

The aim of the present study is to do the balancing between the science and cultural practices in an increasingly complex developing society and policy on the traditional knowledge landscape. Various quantitative indices are proposed to determine the cultural importance of socio-religious and ethnobotanically valuable plants as a tool for the evaluation of cultural heritage. These indices were applied to an ethnobotanical, sociocultural survey of plants and plant parts traditionally used and consumed in the selected study area. Selected plants were grouped into seven use categories for further analysis. The cultural value index (CV), use value index (UV), the relative frequency of citation (RFC), relative importance (RI), and cultural importance index (CI) were calculated for different plant species cited by 45 informants in different traditional societies from the studied states. The calculated values of the cultural importance of plants through diverse indices generated interesting variations from three regions of India. There were eight common species through all the three states. Among these eight species Butea monosperma shows the highest values from Rajasthan and Ziziphus jujube shows the lowest values from Gujarat region. While Nelumbo nucifera, Vigna mungo, and Nymphaea lotus were also portrayed high calculated values in the CI, RI, and CVs. The combined use of these indices makes it possible to quantify the role which has given to a particular plant within a specific culture in one or many festivals in general or religious rituals.

scholarly journals Variability between socio-cultural groups and generations of traditional knowledge of the use of Euphorbia poissonii Pax in Benin

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gbodja Houéhanou François GBESSO ◽  
Jhonn Logbo ◽  
Jacques Evrard Charles Aguia Daho
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Basis ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Scorpion Sting ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Cultural Importance ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Cultural Importance Index ◽  
Medicinal Use ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Derivatives Of

This study was conducted in the Municipality of Savalou to assess endogenous knowledge related to the use of Euphorbia poissonii in the Mahi and Nago ethnic groups. The survey was conducted through individual interviews with 112 people. The Relative Frequency, the Use Value, Fidelity and Cultural Importance index were used to assess the importance of each use. Correspondence analysis (CA) was used to describe the relationship between the categories of use and ethnicities and between the parts used of the plant and the ethnics groups. The analysis showed that the plant, Euphorbia poissonii, falls under three levels of major medicinal use, including: medicinal use of the stem, sap and leaf, which is the most common practice of the Mahi sociocultural group (UV=1.58) like Nago (UV=1.35). It helps to effectively treat measles (FL=23.08), incurable wounds (FL=22.30) and scorpion sting (FL=22.30). Powder, infusion and decoction are the forms of preparation of the products most used by the skin. The two socio-cultural groups all hold and effectively various knowledge of the use of different derivatives of the plant. The importance and increasing use of Euphorbia poissonii puts this plant under various pressures and threats from the population and it has no conservation measures to this day. Finally, this study not only alerts but also provides a scientific basis to define strategies for the conservation and protection of this neglected species.

Traditional Knowledge and Usage of Edible Plants amongTemuan Community in Gunung Ledang Johor National Park, Malaysia

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nor Adila Ahmad ◽  
◽  
Siti Fatimah Sabran ◽  
Muhamad Harith Mazlun ◽  
Mohd Fadzelly Abu Bakar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
National Park ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Edible Plants ◽  
Edible Plant ◽  
Manihot Esculenta Crantz ◽  
Security Issues ◽  
Cultural Importance ◽  
Importance Index

Edible plants are important for their nutrient values as part of human diet and as food resources that are essential in times of food shortage. Due to the lower utilization of edible plants, loss of traditional knowledge and food security issues have caused the urgent need to document and safeguard the edibles knowledge especially among indigenous people. The objectives of this study were to document edible plant species used by Temuans in Gunung Ledang Johor National Park and to determine the relative value of different edible plants usage, and cultural importance. The data were collected through a semi-structured interview and free listing technique that were applied to all 85 informants from Tanah Gembur village. Frequency Citation (FC), Utilization of Frequency(f), Cultural Importance Index (CI), and Cultural Food Significance Index (CFSI) were used to evaluate the relative importance of the different edible plants. A total of 43 edible plant species belonging to 22 families and 33 genera were recorded in the study. Based on the result, Manihot esculenta Crantz scored the highest FC and CFSI while Carica papayahad the highest CI value. These crucial knowledges suggest a potential approach toward conserving the vast traditional knowledge from Temuan community.

scholarly journals Traditional forest-related knowledge and agrobiodiversity preservation: the case of the chagras in the Indigenous Reserve of Monochoa (Colombia)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Alejandra Hernandez Marentes ◽  
Martina Venturi ◽  
Silvia Scaramuzzi ◽  
Marco Focacci ◽  
Antonio Santoro
Keyword(s):  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Agroforestry Systems ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Indigenous Populations ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Nature Protection ◽  
Wild Fruits ◽  
Deep Relationship

AbstractChagras are complex agroforestry systems developed by indigenous populations of the Amazon region based on shifting agriculture, as part of a system that includes harvesting of wild fruits and plants, hunting and fishing. During the centuries, thanks to their traditional knowledge, indigenous populations have developed a deep relationship with the surrounding environment, as, living in remote places, they must be self-sufficient. The result is the chagra, a system whose cycle is based on seven basic steps to establish a successful and sustainable system, starting from place selection and ending with the abandonment of the plot after harvesting of the products. After the abandonment, the forest starts to grow again to allow the agroecosystem to recover and to take advantage of the residual vegetal material to avoid erosion. The paper takes into consideration the Indigenous Reserve of Monochoa in Colombia as an example of how traditional knowledge can support a rich biodiversity conservation. Moreover, differently from other parts of the world where there is a growing contrast between indigenous communities and protected areas, in the Indigenous Reserve of Monochoa local communities have been recognized as the owners of the land. Results highlighted the crucial role of the indigenous communities for biodiversity conservation. The preservation and adaptation of traditional knowledge and practices, a decentralized autonomous governance system demonstrates that local communities not only can be part of ecosystems with unique biodiversity, but that they can represent the main actors for an active conservation of biodiversity. Agroforestry systems based on traditional forest-related knowledge can therefore be an effective alternative to biodiversity and ecosystem services conservation based on strict nature protection where humans are perceived as a negative factor.

scholarly journals Contribution of the Wild Food Plants in the Food System of Tribal Belt of Pakistan; The Pak - Afghan Border Region

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shujaul Mulk Khan ◽  
Abdullah Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Fast Food ◽  
Food System ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Plants ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Public Healthcare ◽  
Wild Food Plants

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 &amp; 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.

scholarly journals Traditional Therapies Used to Manage Diabetes and Related Complications in Mauritius: A Comparative Ethnoreligious Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Fawzi Mahomoodally ◽  
A. Mootoosamy ◽  
S. Wambugu
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Information ◽  
Traditional Healers ◽  
Morinda Citrifolia ◽  
Diabetic Patients ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Active Metabolites ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Cultural Importance Index ◽  
Traditional Therapies ◽  
Pharmacologically Active

Religious communities from Mauritius still rely on traditional therapies (TT) for primary healthcare. Nonetheless, there is still a dearth of scientific information on TT used by the different religious groups to manage diabetes and related complications (DRC). This study aimed to gather ethnomedicinal knowledge on TT used by the different religious groups against DRC. Diabetic patients (n=95) and traditional healers (n=5) were interviewed. Fifty-two plant species belonging to 33 families and 26 polyherbal formulations were documented to manage DRC. The most reported DRC was hypertension (n=36). Leaves (45.2%) and juice (36%) were the most cited mode of preparation of herbal recipes. Plants which scored high relative frequency of citation wereCitrus aurantifolia(0.55) andMorinda citrifolia(0.54). The cultural importance index showed thatOcimum tenuiflorum,Cardiospermum halicacabum,Camellia sinensis,andOphiopogon japonicaswere the most culturally important plants among Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and Buddhist community, respectively. Hindu and Muslim community showed the highest similarity of medicinal plants usage (Jaccard index = 95.8). Seven animal species distributed over 4 classes were recorded for the management of DRC. Plants and animals recorded as TT should be submitted to scientific studies to confirm safety and efficacy in clinical practice and to identify pharmacologically active metabolites.

scholarly journals Ethnomycological Study of Wild Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms in District Jammu, J&K, India

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roshi Sharma ◽  
Y. P Sharma ◽  
S. A.J. Hashmi ◽  
Sanjeev Kumar ◽  
R. K. Manhas
Keyword(s):  
Skin Diseases ◽  
Local Population ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Jammu And Kashmir ◽  
Medicinal Mushrooms ◽  
Informant Consensus ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Cultural Importance Index ◽  
Near Future ◽  
Union Territory

Abstract Background: Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) has a rich tradition of usage of wild edible mushrooms (WEM) for culinary and medicinal purposes. But very few studies, restricted to some regions of the Union Territory, have been conducted to enlist the WEM. District Jammu has never been explored for WEM. Moreover, the quantification of the traditional knowledge of WEM has not been carried out as yet in J&K. Therefore, the present study was conducted in Jammu district with aims of; enlisting the WEM and its usage, finding the most used WEM, and enumerating the consensus of usage for a species and associated knowledge. Methods: Data of use reports was collected as per semi–structured questionnaire from 192 randomly selected informants. The cultural importance index (CI) and informant consensus factor (Fic) were calculated on the basis of use reports. Analysis of variance was used to evaluate the significance of differences in the usage of WEM among the different informant categories.Results: Results of the present study show that the locals were having the knowledge of fourteen fleshy fungi that are mainly utilized for culinary purposes. They also affirmed various medicinal values of some of these fungi. Termitomyces sp. (CI, 0.57) was the most important and diversely used species. Termitomyces heimii, Termitomyces clypeatus and Termitomyces striatus var. annulatus were the other frequently consumed species by the locals. More than 78.6% of these WEM were new records as culinary and medicinal for Jammu and Kashmir (UT). Agaricaceae and Lyophyllaceae were the largest families and Termitomyces (5 species) the most represented genera. Females, elders, and informants who have not attended schools were having significantly (P<0.05) higher information regarding WEM. The maximum consensus was recorded for the use of WEM as culinary with 596 citations and 0.98 Fic, and the minimum homogeneity was found for their use in skin diseases (42 citations and 0.76 Fic).Conclusion: The inhabitants of district Jammu had good knowledge of WEM, but no documentation, lying of most of the information with elders and uneducated people, and destruction of forests and other natural habitats of WEM pose serious threat of losing this valuable information in near future. An ardent need is to educate locals regarding regionally available WEM. Further studies are recommended for developing protocols of cultivation of these WEM so that their future availability is ascertained along with creating income resources for the local population.

scholarly journals Traditional Knowledge of Forest Medicinal Plants of Munduruku Indigenous People - Ipaupixuna

2020 ◽  
pp. 20-35
Author(s):  
Patricia Chaves de Oliveira ◽  
Beatriz Costa de Oliveira Queiroz de Sou
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Group ◽  
Traditional Knowledge ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Relative Frequency ◽  
Rank Order ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Indigenous Populations ◽  
Quantitative Ethnobotany ◽  
Ethnobotanical Study ◽  
Rich Diversity

Aims: The traditional knowledge about the use of typical flora of forests such as the Amazon rainforest, is undoubtedly an intangible richness of indigenous populations. Recording this knowledge to value it is essential in the construction of contemporary history, especially in the present times of invasion of the Indigenous Territories. Thus, the objective of this research was to elucidate from ethnobotanical diagnoses the useful flora of Munduruku indigenous families, as a renewable and exploitable natural resource. The working hypothesis was to confirm the dependency of these local communities on the forests, while medicinal environments.   Study Design: The structure of the research was based on three moments: 1. Intervention with the human component (conducting interviews with indigenous families); 2. Intervention with the plant component (preparation of the excicatas of the cited plants and taxonomic identification); 3. Analysis of human and plant components (ethnobotanical study). Place and Duration of Study: The research developed in a village called Ipaupixuna, whose indigenous families are from Munduruku ethnic group. The duration of the research was six (6) months. Methodology: The analysis was characterized by Quantitative ethnobotany whose variables analyzed were Relative Frequency of Citation, Use Valour, Level of Fidelity, Relative Popularity and Rank Order Priority. The statistical analysis comprised a Linear Pearson Correlation Matrix for dimensioning the correlation between the ethnobotanical variables. Results: The results showed rich diversity of species, with 110 plants being raised used by indigenous families in five categories: medicinal, food, crafts, construction and cosmetics.  Arecaceae was the botanical family with the highest number of medicinal species.  Dipteryx odorata was the specie with the highest Relative Frequency, while Plectranthus amboinicus and Caesalpinia ferrea as well as Fredericia chica presented high Use Value for the indigenous. Conclusions: The indigenous families of Munduruku ethnic group of Tapajós river Basin studied in this research, have in the Forest and in its backyards, sources of plants for multiple uses, thus evidencing the high dependence between indigenous people and Forests. The creation of new spaces called Medicinal Forests and Ethnogardens is essential to contributing to the health safety of indigenous families.

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