Indigenous knowledge system of bush tea from the local people in Venda

Abstract

The article provides a report on a survey conducted in selected villages of Thohoyandou and Nzhelele in Venda, Limpopo Province of South Africa by means of personal interviews. The aim of the survey was to gather indigenous knowledge and to validate the uses of bush tea as claimed by the local people. The interviews were conducted with three types of respondents: a traditional healer, street sellers and bearers of indigenous knowledge (people who have knowledge about the plant). One important finding of the study was that the people from the area posses a remarkable knowledge of the plant identity and its uses to treat a wide range of physical aliments.

Keywords: Bush tea, medicinal plant, indigenous knowledge system, Venda.