Folk Medicinal Uses of Indigenous Plant Species of Barroha, Bhara Kahu and Maanga in Islamabad, Pakistan
Journal of Medicinal Plants Research Vol. 6(11), pp. 2061-2070, 23 March, 2012 Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/JMPR DOI: 10.5897/JMPR10.803 ISSN 1996-0875 ©2012 Academic Journals Full Length Research Paper Folk medicinal uses of indigenous plant species of Barroha, Bhara Kahu and Maanga in Islamabad, Pakistan Fizza Rauf, Rahmatullah Qureshi* and Humaira Shaheen Department of Botany, Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Murree Road, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Accepted 13 April, 2011 Ethnobotany is the study of mutual relationships of plants and people. An ethnomedicinal study covers the utilization of plants by the native people as remedy against various ailments. The aim of present study was to evaluate the folk medical uses of the study area. For this purpose, the study areas: Barroha, Bhara Kahu and Maanga had been visited regularly from October 2009 to February 2010. Semi- structured questionnaire and formal interviews from the elderly known people, herbalists (Hakeems) and merchants (Pansaars) had been conducted for the extraction of folk knowledge of native plants. A total of 34 plant species of medicinal importance belonging to 27 families and 32 genera were recorded, which are being used by the inhabitants as a source of medicament. These species are being used to treat 64 ailments of humans and their cattle as well. Sexual diseases of humans, that is, leucorrhoea and spermatorrhoea were also cured by the local people by using wild plant species. Key words: Indigenous species, Hakeems, Barroha, Bhara Kahu, Maanga. INTRODUCTION While discussing the human history, it would be Ethnobotanical studies of many medicinal plants in incomplete without the role of plants (Qureshi et al., various parts of the world has been carried out during 2006), because early man was directly dependent on successive years (Murray, 1881; Kirtikar et al., 1935; plants for his needs.
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