Ethnobotanical study of the wild edible plants used by the indigenous people of Merak in Bhutan

Abstract

Abstract. Jigme, Yangchen K. 2023. Ethnobotanical study of the wild edible plants used by the indigenous people of Merak in Bhutan. Asian J Ethnobiol 6: 1-6. Merak communities possess one of the oldest and most extensive cultural traditions of using plants for various ethnobotanical purposes, but this traditional knowledge still needs to be reported. As a result, this is the first ethnobotanical survey on Wild Edible Plants (WEPs) in Merak Gewog, Tashigang Dzongkhag, Bhutan. The data was obtained through an ethnobotanical survey and semi-structured interviews with 40 informants. The study identified 16 plant species from 16 genera and 16 families of WEPs consumed in Merak Gewog. Herbs (14 species) were found to be the most important sources, followed by shrubs (1 species) and trees (1 species). The most commonly consumed plant part(s) are leaves (8 species), followed by flowers (4 species), shoots and whole plant (with 3 species each), rhizome, and root (1 species each). Wild edible plants supplement the family diet, and their usage and collecting frequency are constrained by seasonal availability. Summer is the best time to harvest wild edible plants, followed by spring, autumn, and winter. However, many of the wild edible plants found in the Merak are under increased strain due to human and socioeconomic causes such as livestock overgrazing, habitat degradation, unsustainable harvesting, and forest fire. This finding has resulted in the disappearance of WEP species and the underlying indigenous knowledge. As a result, the importance of wild vegetables must be stressed and included in conservation and food security strategies.

Short Communication: Utilization of wild plants in medicinal foods for maternal postpartum recovery among the Kasepuhan in rural West Java, Indonesia

“…Most ethnobotanical studies related to postpartum recovery primarily focus on the use of cultivated plants, often overlooking their wild counterparts (Bazzano et al 2020;Kumawat et al 2021;Ramulondi et al 2021;Ridzuan et al 2021;Sibeko et al 2021;Magtalas et al 2023). However, many societies incorporate wild plants into their diets for nutritional and medicinal purposes (Esakkimuthu et al 2018;Luo et al 2019;Yang et al 2020;de Medeiros et al 2021;Jigme and Yangchen 2023;Mukaila et al 2023;Yao et al 2023). Wild plants, which grow and reproduce naturally without cultivation, are commonly found in forests, agroforests, fallow or uncultivated lands, riverbanks, roadsides, and even as weeds on farmland, are often used as natural food-medicine (Bhatia et al 2018;Duguma 2020;de Medeiros et al 2021;Motti 2022).…”