Ethnobotanical survey of wild edible flowering plants of Himachal Pradesh and nutritional analysis of some selected species

Abstract

The present study documented 256 wild edible angiospermic plant species belonging to 181 genera and 79 families from Himachal Pradesh. Of these, herbaceous habit (154 species) was found to be the most dominant. Ficus is the most dominant genera representing 7 species followed by Rubus and Prunus which represent 5 species each. Rosaceae is the most dominant botanical family reported with 23 species and 12 genera followed by Polygonaceae and Fabaceae. Wild edible plants are either consumed as raw or eaten after cooking or boiling. Plants consumed raw may include ripened fruits or seeds or consumed as chutneys, pickles, salads or used for making alcoholic drinks. Boiled or cooked wild edible plants are either consumed as vegetables or consumed as spices and condiments and can also be used as herbal teas and soups.Hilly, undulating terrain with limited agricultural land, poor accessibility and low income from crop yields are the main reasons for the use of wild edible plants as food items in the study area. It is heartening to note that recent years have seen a revival of interest in the study of wild edible plants. Wild foraging, as it is called, has become a hobby and wild foraging clubs have come up in urban areas of many countries. The study of wild foraging has also become an important component of wildlife tourism. All this is helping us to know that eating wild edible plants and plant parts is a healthy lifestyle that not only helps to satisfy our basic nutritional needs but also understand how nature works. newline