Plants profile of Malakand Pass Hills, District Malakand, Pakistan

Abstract

An ethnobotanical survey was conducted in Malakand Pass Hills, District Malakand, Pakistan, during 2010, in order to document vegetation information and indigenous knowledge about plant use. The area has rich vegetation and a high potential for ethnobotanical utilization. Information was collected through semi structured questionnaire. A total of 169 species of 140 genera from 76 families were recorded. These consisted of 63 dicot families, five monocot families, four pteridophytes families and a single family of gymnosperm. Poaceae was the last family with 16 species, followed by Asteraceae with 12 species and Lamiaceae with 11 species. It was observed that shoots were the most frequently used part (34.91%) followed by leaves (27.21%), whole plant (21.89%) and fruits (18.93%). Generally, ethnobotanical uses were: Medicinal (83.83%), fodder (24.85%), vegetable/fruit edible (23.68%), fuel (18.93%), fencing (11.24%), veterinary medicines (10.65%), thatching/timber (8.87%), furniture (8.82%), ornamental (15.38%), honey bee (5.91%), poisonous (4.37%) and a miscellaneous (13.6%). The area is under intense pressure of deforestation and overgrazing, which has reduced the renewal of woody plants. Proper ecological management is necessary to protect the wildlife and ethnobotanical resources for the future generations.

Key words: Malakand Pass, ethnobotanical profile, part used, deforestation.