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Language: English
From the preface:
"The history and development of ethnobotany is as old as human civilization. There is practically no human activity in which plants do not play a role. Although our country, lndia, is renowned the world over in terms of ethnic variability, rich diversity of plants and the enormous wealth of traditional knowledge systems related to the use of plant species, unfortunately, the traditional knowledge base is fast eroding due to the advent of modern civilization and changes in sustenance economy. Evidently, the need of the hour and one of the foremost challenging tasks before the world community is to inventorize and document all available ethnobotanical information among the diverse ethnic communities before it is lost forever. As a matter of fact, tribal knowledge of plants is important not just for the tribal people themselves. but for the wider world. Against this backdrop, the preparation of this invaluable compendium, the first of its type, has been necessitated and is based on intensive ethnobotanical surveys undertaken by the authors in various rural pockets of the Palalmpur Himalayas during the years 2003-2009, a region of the Himalayas which is at the confluence of the plains and is blessed with remarkable natural beauty and the high ranges of the Dhauladhar Mountains, with a backdrop of tops remaining snow covered for most part of the year and significantly rich in ancient heritage, ethnic variability, floristic and cultural diversity.
The main body of the text comprises an exhaustive account of 336 promising plants (244 medicinal, 166 edible, 100 fodder, 60 magico-religious, 48 fuel, 35 wood, 16 household articles, 12 aesthetic, 10 beverages, 10 fibres, 11 condiments, 9 hedges, 9 local wines, 7 dyes, 6 walking sticks, 4 insecticidal, 4 thatching, 4 vermillion, 3 bedding, 3 insect repellent, 3 nector, 2 fish poison, and 88 miscellaneous) with multifaceted information on updated nomenclature; vernacular, English, Hindi, Sanskrit and regional names; Distribution; Description; Flowering & Fruiting; Habitat Ecology; Part(s) Used; Folk Uses; Active Constituents; Biological Activity; and Uses in Literature to serve as a valuable ready-reckoner to different stakeholders like pharmacists, medical practitioners, chemists, biotechnologists, plant geneticists, new entrepreneurs and technocrats, extension workers, students, researchers, policy planners, etc.
Moreover, inclusion of information on economic valuation and availability of underutilized Himalayan plant resources, nativity, 55 photographic plates, 42 tables, 25 figures, 6 useful appendices are the other added attractions that enhance the value of this unique treatise significantly. It is hoped that the information in the present manual offers tremendous scope for its bioprospecting, and can be utilized by policy planners in developing effective strategies for ensuring a meaningful sustainable rural development plan for hill communities of the Himalayan states. No institutional library in India and abroad should be without it."
