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Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants used by Traditional healers in Shobanapuram village of Pachamalai Hill, Tamilnadu

M. Johnson Gritto, V. Nanadagopalan and A. Doss

An ethnobotanical survey in Shobanapuram village of Pachamalai hills, Tamilnadu have revealed a wealth of traditional knowledge on medicinal plants and their uses amongst the local traditional healers. The indigenous knowledge of local traditional healers and the native plants used for medicinal purposes were collected through questionnaire, group discussion and personal interviews during field trips. The study was focused on identifying folklore medicinal plants, disease treated, part of the plant used, methods of preparation, route of administration, ingredients added etc. From the survey, a total of 165 plant species belonging to 58 families were found to be useful in the treatment of various diseases. In this study the most dominant family was Papilionoideae and Rubiaceae. Folklore and traditional medicinal plants are important contributor for various ailments of local tribal communities. It is urgent need for documenting these plant species before such valuable knowledge becomes inaccessible and extinct. Moreover, this study could play an important role for the conservation of these plants and represent the preliminary information required for future phytochemical and pharmacological investigation