The information on the medicinal use, availability, challenges, and future conservation strategies for the medicinal plant Zanthoxylum chalybeum were gathered by using a semi-structured questionnaire, focused group discussions, and field observations in Simanjiro Area, Tanzania. Data were collected from local village members who were familiar with the tree and the key informants. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The extent of use was found to be very high, with more than three-quarters of harvested parts used for treating women’s health system (86.4%). The most used plant parts for medicinal purposes were reported to be the roots and the stem bark (90.3% and 81.6%, respectively), possibly suggesting mortality caused by heavy harvesting. In addition to unsustainable harvesting methods, minimal and unpredictable propagation methods were the key factors affecting the recruitment rate, with perhaps an addition of continued climate and land-use change (93.2%), indicative of low precipitation and high agriculture and settlement expansions. Given these challenges, the future conservation and persistence of Z. chalybeum looks uncertain, which requires such measures as the provision of education and awareness and ensuring proper land-use plans that encompass active recruitment of the species in these areas.

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Zanthoxylum chalybeum (Rutaceae) is subject to heavy exploitation throughout its areas of occurrence in Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite being a common medicinal plant utilized by a large population, little has been documented regarding the constraints which hinder its promotion and conservation concerns within the country. This study was conducted to determine distribution and conservation challenges facing medicinal plant Zanthoxylum chalybeum on different land uses types surveyed at Simanjiro area. The most available roads were used as line transects to observe Z. chalybeum distribution in the study area. Plots were established for data collection whereby GPS coordinates (tree presence- absent), tree numbers and anthropogenic threats were the collected information. In addition, open-ended, semi-structured questionnaires and focused group discussions (FGD) were used to capture information on the uses, availability, conservation challenges and management of the plant in the study area. Results indicated that the distribution of Z. chalybeum in the area differ significantly across the land-use types surveyed in this study by having many trees in hunting blocks within game-controlled areas and open areas (49 and 40 respectively). Anthropogenic threats signs observed included debarking (51%), branch cut (20.6%) and root digging (15.8%). It was observed that the majority of the households use Z. chalybeum for gynecological diseases (such as blood loss after labor, menstrual pain, early pregnancy complications) (86.4%). The main conservation challenges included unsustainable change in land use (99.9%) and inadequate conservation education and awareness. This study recommends more conservation efforts such as active planting of the species, regulated utilization of the Z. chalybeum species and increased education and awareness to be implemented by authorities in game-controlled areas and open areas and also conservation education should be provided to members of the community.