Abstract

The paper presents ethno-medicinal information collected on 69 plant species belonging to 41 families from the salt range, Pind Dadan Khan, district Jehlum, Pakistan. The purpose of the study was to collect, codify and conserve indigenous traditional knowledge of local flora for the benefit of the community and its environment. The people have their distinct ways of life, beliefs and traditions; and have been using local plants for various purposes for generations. It was found that the community had a rich tradition of using plant resources for common ailments; and that it preferred plant based medicines, owing to their ready availability and low cost, with no stated side effects. It was found that the products, depending upon type, were formulated as powders, decoctions, leaf extracts or pastes, and were commonly used for prevalent disorders; and that the area is under intense deforestation, biotic interference and overgrazing. Consequently, valuable economic and medicinal plants are under threat of depletion at a rate that urgently calls for strategies aimed at sustainable utilization of these plants. As a first step, it is suggested that plant based industries and markets be better organized and promoted in such way that any plans for poverty alleviation are synchronized with those for conservation.

Key words: Medicinal plants, salt range, traditional knowledge, Pind Dadan Khan, conservation.