Exploration of Some Wild Edible Plants of Digras Tahsil, Dist

International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 5, May 2012 1 ISSN 2250-3153

EXPLORATION OF SOME WILD EDIBLE PLANTS OF DIGRAS TAHSIL, DIST. - YAVATMAL, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

Dhore M.M.*, Lachure P.S.*, Bharsakale D.B.**, Dabhadkar D.K.***

*B.B.Arts, N.B.Commerce & B.P.Science College, Digras. Dist.-Yavatmal, Maharashtra, India **Shivaji Arts, Commerce and Science College, Akola Maharashtra, India ***G.V.I.S.H. Amravati, Maharashtra, India E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract- India is well known for its “Indus-Vedic” cultural about the use of plants is on sharp decline due to lack of heritage. The study of this civilization has been made by the help awareness and interest of younger generations. This knowledge of biodiversity. The ancient people of India had very good and is now only limited to senior people of small town, villages or sufficient knowledge about the use of plants from the ancient the people who are residing near by the forest area. Unless efforts time. The plants have been used as source of food, medicine, are made to educate the younger generations about their shelter, clothing’s, fiber, oil, gum, etc. The knowledge of importance, this traditional knowledge may be lost in the near consumption of fruit and their use is only limited to senior future. In Digras tshsil some villages are having about more than peoples of tribe. Digras tahsil has a large population of tibals like 60% population of tribe. The tribe population mainly includes the Banjara, Adivasi, Gond, Gawali, etc. Several wild plants are used Banjara, Adivasi, Gond, Gawali, etc. which immensely used the as food by tribals and other local people living in and around the plant species in their routine life for their welfare as food, forest area of villages. The knowledge of using wild edible plants medicine, household purposes, etc. The knowledge of using wild is very interesting. These plants play incrediable role in their life. edible plants is very interesting. These plants play incrediable So it is necessary to keep this knowledge of tribe alive. role in their life. So it is necessary to keep this knowledge of The present study deals exclusively with first hand tribe alive. A study on native wild edible plant used by the tribe information of 25 wild edible plant species belonging to 15 and local peoples of this area was carried out with major families. This work is helpful to explore the food habits of tribals obhective of how to use the wild edible plants and also to of Digras tahsil. Dist.- Yavatmal, Maharashtra, India. Plants understand their conservation. Also the goal of this study is that botanical name, family, common name along with their parts to explore the knowledge of tribe. used is discussed in present paper. This paper deals with exploration of 25 plant species belonging to 15 families consumed by tribals and other local Index Terms- Indus-Vedic, Banjara, Adivasi, Gond, Gawali peoples of Digras tahsil. Dist.- Yavatmal, Maharashtra, India. Plants botanical name, family, common name along with their parts used is discussed in present paper. In Digras tahsil, there I. INTRODUCTION are about 70 villages having about 80% population of tribals like thanobotany can be defined as the total natural and Banjara and other tribes are Andh, Gawali, Adivasi, etc. E traditional relationship and interactions between man and his surrounding plant wealth. Documentation of traditional knowledge on the ethanomedicinal uses along with the other uses II. METHODOLOGY of the plants is essential for conservation effort for the plants The ethanobotanical study with respect to the wild edible source and new drug development and to get their use in future. plants used by tribals was carried out during March 2009 to An ethanobotanical survey with respect to food plants and their February 2011. During this period this region was frequently medicinal values shows that tribals of this area are much depend visited. Local peoples and tribes were interviewed and the data of upon the products obtained from the plant which available in or 25 wild edible plants were collected and documented. Edible around the forest area. The knowledge of consumption of fruit plant species were located or searched by the help of informants. and their use is only limited to senior peoples of these tribe, on Plant parts used as food and the method of preparation was noted the other hand the younger people or generation of these tribe has down along with local, common name was recorded. Plants were very insufficient and quite knowledge about the plant parts used. identified using relevant scientific literature Hooker 1872-1877; There is need to developed awareness as well as interest in Cooke 1967 (Rpr.); Naik 1998; Karthikeyan 2000. younger generation of tribe about the use of edible plants. Out of Abrus precatorius L. (V. Gunj) Family- Fabaceae the 25 hot spots of the world, India has 2 hot spots therefore India is mega-biodiverse country. The traditional knowledge Leaves are sweet testing. Flowers are also sweet eaten

www.ijsrp.org International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 5, May 2012 2 ISSN 2250-3153 raw. Leaves are chewed as mouth freshner and also as ingredient Leaves of this plant is used to make pakodas. Leaves of Pan. and flowers are used in worship of God and Poojas on specific Amaranthus spinosus L. (V. Kanta, Katili-Chaulai) Family – occasions like Ganesh pujan, Teej, Haritalika pooja and Amaranthaceae Mahalaxmi pooja. Leaves and whole plant chopped, mixed with onion and Cordia dichotoma Frost f. (V. Bhokar) Family – Boraginaceae made into vegetable. Amaranthus polygamus L. Hook f. (V. Laal Shaak) Family – The fruits are used to make vegetable and also make Amaranthaceae. pickles in some tribe of Digras tahsil. Young leaves mixed with onion and made into Cordia gharaf (Forsk.) Ehrenb and Ash. (V. Gondani) Family – vegetables. It is supposed to be more nutritious and tasty than Boraginaceae Amaranthus spinosus L. The fruits are used as vegetable and pickled. Bauhinia racemosa Lam. (V. Bhosa, Apta) Family – Digera muricata (L.) Mart. (V. Kunzar, Lat-Mahuria) Family – Caesalpinaceae. Amaranthaceae. Flowers are used as vegetable. Pods are also said to be Young leaves used as vegetable. Flowers and seeds are eaten after roasting, but not commonly used. also used. Bauhinia purpurea L. (V. Kachnar) Family – Caesalpiniaceae. Dioscorea bulbifera L. (V. Matalu, Banalu) Family - Dioscoreaceae. Flower buds and flowers are large, used as a vegetable, Dried and pounded tubers and bulbils are edible. The it is fried in purified butter. This preparation is also useful for tubers are bitter , they lose their bitterness on roasting and are patients suffering from dysentery. Flowers are used after then eaten. Some tribe boil the tubers like potato and eaten. removing calyx. Ficus glomerata Roxb. (V. Umbar) Family – Moraceae Boswellia serrata Roxb. Ex Coleber. (V. Salai) Family – Burseraceae. Ripe fruits (receptacles) are eaten raw. The drupe i.e. fruit of plant is pickled, they are strongly Ficus religiosa L. (V. Pipal) Family – Moracea scented. The fruit along with twig is used in marriage ceremony of tribe people. Gum obtained from plant is also used. Young leaves and shoots are used as vegetable. The Capparis zeylanica L. (V. Vagati) Family – Capparidaceae plant is also worship in some festivals of tribe. Ficus hispida L. f. (V. Anjir Dashti, Peyatti) Family – Moraceae The fruits are edible. The fruits are eaten at the time of fast in some festivals like Mahashiv ratri. Leaves are large in size and used as vegetable. It also Careya arborea Roxb. (V. Kumbhi) Family – Lecythidiaceae. have fruit which is eaten raw. Fruits are recommended in treatment of jaundice. The flowers are large and showy used as vegetable. The Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam. (V. Ratalu) Convolvulaceae fruits of this plant is also used in marriage ceremony of some tribe. The fruits are eaten raw or in some cases they are boiled Cassia fistula L. (V. Amaltaasa) Family – Caesalpiniaceae like potato and eaten with sugar. They are rich in starch content. Lannea coromandelica (Houtt.) Merr. (V. Moin) Family – Leaves of the plant is used as vegetable. The flowers Anacardaceae and pods are have medicinal value and are edible in some part of Young leaves are used as vegetable by some community this tahsil. of tribe. Fruits are edible and also made into pickles. Cassia tora L. (V. Tarota) Family – Caesalpiniaceae. Mangifera indica L. (V. Amba) Family – Anacardaceae

Leaves are used as vegetables. It is said that this Fruits are edible which is well known but some vegetable if eaten in rainy season fives immunity towards community used tender leaves to make chutteny. It taste like seasonal disease. Equal parts of leaves and seeds is given for young fruits and has very pleasant smell. jaundice. Oxalis corniculata L. (V. Ambushi, Amlikaa) Family – Celosia argentia L. (V. Kurdu) Family – Amaranthaceae Oxalidaceae Leaves are used as vegetable or used in salad as they are Tender leaves are used as vegetable. This plant is acidic in taste. The plant when boiled with butter milk is home usually grown on marshy places and on non-useable lands as remedy for diarrhea in children. Leaf paste apply over forhead to weed. cure headache. Cicer arietinum L. (V. Chana) Family – Fabaceae Soymida febrifuga A. Juss. (V. Rohan) Family – Meliaceae

The fruits are well known eaten raw but the leaves of these fruits are edible and it also used in marriage the plant is used as vegetable, it has sour taste. ceremony of some tribe. Commelina behghalensis L. (V. Keena) Family – Commelinaceae.

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Amaranthus polygamus L. Boswellia serrata Roxb. Ex Coleber.

Abrus precatorius L. Cassia tora L.

Soymida febrifuga A. Juss. Cordia dichotoma Frost f.

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Careya arborea Roxb.

Cassia fistula L.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT Authors acknowledge the tribal of Digras tahsil for giving the III. RESULT information willingly. Authors also thankful to all the people The life of tribal and other local peoples were very much directly or indirectly supported and helped to make contact to the depends upon the plant products because mainly they used the tribal. plants as vegetables; few species were used as fruit and also for grains. They were very simple people and the knowledge of them REFERENCES is very interesting. During this study local 25 plants belonging to [1] Ambasta S.P. 2000. The useful plants of India, Publication and information 15 families were studied, whenever possible, the local names Directorate, CSIR, New Delhi. were also noted down. Known, commonly used edible species [2] Anon 1948-1976. The wealth of India Vol. I-XI, CSIR, New Delhi. were excluded from the given data. Only those species are [3] Chopra R.M.; Chopra S.L.; Handa K.L.; Kapur L.D. 1982. Indigenous enumerated which form interesting part of eating habits of tribals Drugs of India (Second Edi.- Repr.) Academic Publishers, New Delhi. of Digras tahsil. It was observed that only old people know about [4] Cooke T. 1945. The Flora of the presidency of Bombay. Vol. I, II. Botanical the use of wild edible vegetables and fruits; on the other hand the Survey of India. Calcutta. [5] Dhore M.A.; Joshi P.A., 1988. Flora of Melghat Tiger reserve. Directorate, young generation of these tribe rely on the vegetables and fruits Project Tiger, Melghat. Paratwada. Dist.- Amravati, Maharashtra. that dominate the market of plain area and have poor knowledge [6] Dhore M.M.; Lachure P.S.; Gawande P.D. 2011. Trees of Vidarbha – A about the wild edible plants. The knowledge of using wild edible field guide to flowering trees. Paygun Prakashan, Amravati. plants is very interesting. These plants play incrediable role in [7] Hooker J.D. 1872-1897. The Flora of British India. Vol. I, II, III. London. their life. So it is necessary to keep this knowledge of tribe alive. [8] Jain S.K. 1963. Observation on Ethanobotany of tribal of M.P., Vanyajati. Survey of weekly market of this area show that people are trying [9] Maheswari J.K. 1996. Ethanobotany of South Asia, Scientific Publisher, to cultivate the popular vegetable and fruits. It is necessary to Jodhpur. readvocate the use of wild vegetables and edible fruits to young [10] Majumdar K and Datta B.K. 2007. Ethanobotanical observation on the generations of tribe. traditional usage of Medicinal plants among the Tribe of Tripura (P.C.Trivedi). Ethanomedicinal plants of India. Aaviskar Publishers and Distributors, Jaipur. [11] Naik V.N. 1998. Marathwadyatil Samanya Vanaushhadhi (Marathi). Amrut Prakashan, Aurangabad. [12] Pandey D.N. 1998. Ethano-forestry : Local Knowledge for sustainable forestry and livelihood security. Himanshu Publication, New Delhi.

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[13] Singh N.P.; Karthikeyan S. 2000. Flora of Maharashtra state – Second Author – P.S.Lachure, D.Pharm, M.Sc. (Botany); Dicotyledones. Vol. I. Botanical Survey of India. Calcutta. [email protected] [14] Singh N.P.; P. Lakshiminarasimhan; S. Karthikeyan; Prasanna P.V. 2001. Flora of Maharashtra state – Dicotyledones. Vol. II. Botanical Survey of India. Calcutta. Third Author –D.B.Bharsakale, M.A. M.Phil. (Geography); [15] Saxena H.O. 1988. Obervations on Ethanobotany of Madhya Pradesh. Bull. [email protected] Bot. Survey of India. Fourth Author - D.K. Dabhadkar., M.Sc. (Zoology); [email protected] AUTHORS Correspondence Author - Dr. M.M.Dhore; India, First Author – Dr. M.M.Dhore, M.Phil, Ph.D. (Botany); [email protected] ; +91 9423131997 [email protected]