Research on the local knowledge of medicinal plants by sub-ethnic Batak Simalungun of North Sumatra was conducted, using an ethnobotanical approach. The sample consisted of 8 key informants and 32 general respondents, who were grouped into two, namely those who were 30-50 years old and >50 years old. Data were analyzed both qualitatively by descriptive statistics and quantitatively by calculating the index of cultural significance (ICS) and the use value (UVs). It was found that 239 species (170 genera, 70 families) of medicinal plants were used to cure 18 kinds of natural diseases and 2 kinds of supra natural diseases. Almost half of those plants (119 species) had leaves used as medicines. Among the diseases, gastrointestinal disorders had the highest number of medicinal plants used (72 species), followed by fever (64 species), and fractures (41 species). It seemed that younger generation had lost their knowledge in the medicinal plants because their knowledge of medicinal plants (48.19 ± 8.35 species) was lower than the that of older generation (170.19 ± 18.38 species), while our key informants had the highest knowledge of medicinal plants among respondents (202.00 ± 12.32 species).

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Indonesia is not only rich in its biodiversity but it is also well known as a country with high diversity of ethnicities. Each ethnic group has extensive experienced in the utilization and conservation of biological and ecological diversity. This biocultural richness has provided ethnobotanical researchers with endless research opportunities. Ethnobotanical study has a long history in Indonesia and dates back to the early Dutch colonization period when Dutch explorers and naturalists recorded the uses of plants used by the natives for food, medicine, buildings materials, etc. Based on research on Java, Hasskarl (1845) recorded 900 species of plants used by Indonesian communities. Previously, Rumphius (1750) in his monumental book "Herbarium Amboinense", reported the uses of several hundreds plants from Ambon and its vicinity. Recently, Indonesian scientists from both government and non-government organizations have given more attention to the importance of ethnobotany as a means of elaborating traditional knowledge, especially for economically useful and scientifically undiscovered plants. The talk will focus on ethnobotanical research performed by LIPI scientists at the Research Center for Biology in Bogor and the Indonesia Botanic Gardens. During the last 20 years, since the Indonesia' Ethnobotanical Museum was established. Indonesian scientists have documented the importance of ethnobotany, ethnomedicine, ethnomycology, ethnoentomology, and ethnoecology for conservation of traditional knowledge in relation to the economic botany and to other applied sciences. The meaning and scope of ethnobotany and its status including the future prospects, its contribution to the exploitation and conservation will be discuses in this paper.© 2008 Jurusan Biologi FMIPA UNS SurakartaKey words: ethnobotany, ethnomedicine, ethnomycology, ethnoecology, traditional knowledge, use of plants, Indonesia.

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Batang Gadis National Park (BGNP) located in Bukit Barisan Mountains, Sumatera Utara. A Mandailing tribe who lives around the BGNP, has the unique local knowledge, such as processing young stem of rattan (Calamus manan) into pakkat (traditional food) and use rimbang (Solanum torvum) to neutralize toxins. These local knowledge could be lost because it only inherited orally from generation to generation. This study was aimed to reveal ethnobotany knowledge of Mandailing Tribe. The study was conducted in November 2015 in four villages around the BGNP, Sibanggor Jae, Hutabaringin Julu, Pastap Jae, and Botung Villages. Data were collected by interviewing informants in each village as well as the field survey through two approaches, emic and etic. A total of 262 plant species is used by Mandailing Tribe for subsistence and commercial needs. The highest utilization is for food (106 species), followed by traditional medicines (81 species), firewood (29 species), building materials (35 species), and animal feed (25 species). People also used plant for household appliances, agricultural equipment, art materials, ropes and wrap, and pest control materials. Eme/rice (Oryza sativa) have the highest Index of Cultural Significance (ICS) values. The existence of this species is maintained for its local wisdom. Thus, involvement of local community will give great contribution to manage and conserve the BGNP area.