Plant Diversity from Wardha District (Maharashtra) Used as Medicines Against Human Dysentery K.G. Dube Post Graduate Department of Botany, Jankidevi Bajaj College of Science,Wardha-442001(India) [email protected] Abstract: The villagers use various medicinal plants against various diseases of human-beings. The author has made extensive survey of villagers from Wardha district about the identification and uses of medicinal plants. The present investigator has collected the information related to botanical aspects of medicinal plants including their scientific and local names, habitats, habits and medicinal parts used as remedies for various diseases of human-beings. It has been observed that about 52 plants belonging to 34 families are used by villagers as a remedy against Human dysentery. These include 15 herbs, 11 shrubs, 21 trees, 3 climbers and 2 twinner plants. The present paper deals with the conservative aspects of plant diversity from Wardha district used as medicines against human dysentery. Key words : Dysentery. Human diseases, Medicinal plants, Medicinal uses. Introduction: Human beings from the ancient times use the traditional drugs to cure the diseases. In recent years, all over the world traditional drugs from medicinal plants have received the great attention due to their safe administration without causing any side effects. Therefore, the urgent need of documentation and conservation of the heritable knowledge about medicinal plants has been expressed by scientific workers from various geographical parts of the world (Pal, 1980 andSatapathy, 2010). Wardha district of the Vidarbha region is located in the central part of India. The present investigator has documented information about various medicinal plants belonging to different families which are used by villagers of Wardha district as a remedy against human dysentery. This paper deals about the conservative botanical aspects and medicinal uses of these plants. Material and Methods: The extensive survey and repeated field visits were organized during 2011- 2013 in the remote villages situated in the different parts of Wardha district. The information about the medicinal plants, their local names, habitats habits and uses in the treatment of various diseases of human-beings was collected from the local practitioners through group discussions. The plants were digitized from the fields and their specimens were collected, which were identified using the Flora of Maharashtra (1996, 2002). Results and Discussion: The data related to botanical and local names of medicinal plants, their families, habitats, habits and medicinal parts used as remedy against dysentery of human-beings has been enlisted in Table 1. It has been observed that about 52 plants belonging to 34 families are used by villagers as a remedy against human || 71 dysentery. These include 15 herbs, 11 shrubs, 21 trees, 3 climbers and 2 twinnerplants.The maximum plants were belonging to the family Fabaceae (7), followed by Caesalpinaceae (3), Malvaceae (3), Mimosaceae (3), Moraceae (3). Apocynaceae (2), Asteraceae (2), Euphorbiaceae (2), Rutaceae (2), Anacardiaceae (1), Apiaceae (1), Asclepiadaceae (1), Boranginaceae (1), Cactaceae(1), Celastraceae (1), Combretaceae (1), Cucurbitaceae(1), Dioscoreaceae (1), Lamiaceae (1), Liliaceae (1), Menispermaceae (1), Musaceae (1), Myrtaceae (1), Nymphaceae (1), Oleaceae (1),Pedaliaceae(1),Polygonaceae(1), Rhamnaceae (1), Santalaceae (1), Sapindaceae (1), Scrophulariaceae (1), Smilaxaceae (1), Tiliaceae (1) andTrapaceae(1). The useful information about medicinal plants is scattered among various sectors of peoples distributed in remote villages and is hardly passed to their subsequent generations (Pal, 1980 andSatapathy, 2010). In this context, the information collected by the present investigator would be useful for pharmaceutical and phytochemical studies. The medicinal plants were used for treating dysentery, blood dysentery and chronic dysentery as well as for promoting dysentery. The medicinal parts included used of plant cold extract; seeds, roasted seeds; root ash, root infusion, root decoction; stem, stem bark, bark juice, tuber, wood; leaves, leaf ash, leaves decoction; bud Infusion, dried buds; flowers; green fruits/pods, ripe fruit, fruit powder; gum and latex. It was observed that villagers use most of the medicinal plants either in the natural form or store the freshly collected plant parts every year for the odd seasons. This documented information would be helpful for the use of natural medicines and formation of low cost formulation of natural medicines for human-beings. Table 1: List of medicinal plants and their parts used as remedy against dysentery of human-beings in Wardha district. Sr.N Botanical name Local Family Habitat Habit Medicina Remedy o. name l part 1 Acacia farnesiana Devbabh Mimosa Wild, common Tree, small Green Dysentery ul ceae in hedges pods 2 Acacia Hivar Mimosa Wild, forest and Tree, small, bark Bark Dysentery leucophloea ceae field white grey boundaries 3 Acacia Babul Mimosa Wild, foot of Tree, small, spines Plant Blood niloticassp.indica ceae hills and field white straight dysentery boundaries 4 Bauhinia Rakta- Caesalpinia Garden Tree, small or Flowers Blood purpurea kanchan ceae medium size dysentery 5 Bauhinia Apta,Kac Caesalpina Garden Tree, medium Dried Dysentery variegata hanar,Ka ceae buds nchan 6 Buteamonosperm Palas Fabaceae Wild, in field Tree, small, Gum Dysentery a var. and forests cracked trunk monosperma 7 Chlorophytumtub Safedmus Liliaceae Wild, common Herb, annual Root Dysentery erosum ali, Kuli in grass lands and hill slopes 8 Cissampelosparei Pahadvel Menisperm Wild, common Twinner, woody, Leaves Dysentery ravar.hirsuta aceae on hedges perennial chewed 9 Crotalaria juncea Boru Fabaceae Cultivated Shrub, erect, tall Seeds Dysentery || 72 10 Cullen corylifolia Bawachi Fabaceae Wild, common Herb, erect, Leaves Dysentery in waste fields annual, tall or among grasses 11 Dioscoreabulbifer Akashwel Dioscoreace Wild, common Herb, twinning Tuber/ Dysentery a , Kadu- ae in hill forests Fruits kand, Karande 12 Euphorbia Dhakti- Euphorbiac Wild, common Herb, prostrate, Plantextr Dysentery thymifolia dudhi eae on waste land annual act/leave along roadsides s 13 Ficusbengalensis Wad Moraceae Garden and Tree, large Bud Dysentery roadsides descending roots Infusion from branches 14 Ficushispida Bhui- Moraceae Wild, common Tree, small, Fruits, Dysentery umbar,K along banks of branches hispid seeds and atu- rivers and bark umber streams 15 Ficusracemosa Umbar Moraceae Wild, common Tree, evergreen, Bark/Fru Dysentery in villages tall its 16 Foeniculumvulgar Sop, Apiaceae Cultivated in Herb, erect, Fruits Dysentery e Badishep fields annual, tall 17 Grewiahirsuta Gaturli, Tiliaceae Wild, on hills / Shrub, branches Fruit Dysentery. Kirmid field stellate hairy boundaries 18 Hibiscus Ambadi Malva Cultivated Shrub, erect, Leaves Dysentery cannabinus ceae prickly tall 19 Jatrophacurcas Chandraj Euphorbiac Cultivated in Shrub, large, Root Bark Chronic yoti, eae hedges glabrous with dysentery Yerand watery juice 20 Limoniaacidissim Kawath Rutaceae Wild, often Tree, with sharp Fruit Dysentery a cultivated straight spines and brown grey bark 21 Malvastrumcorom Petari Malva Wild, common Herb, erect or Stem Dysentery andelianum ceae at all places procumbent, tall 22 Mangiferaindica Amba Anacardiac Cultivated, Tree, evergreen, Ripe Dysentery eae planted in branched, fruits fields and spreading, bark roadsides rough 23 Maytenussenegal Bharati Celastra Wild, common Shrub, tall Root/ Dysentery ensis ceae on hill slopes Leaf ash and on barren land 24 Murrayakoenigii Kadhi- Rutaceae Gardens and Tree, small, grey Bark/ Dysentery limb,Kad houses bark leaves/ hipatta fruits 25 Musa paradisiaca Kela Musa Cultivated Shrub, Flower Dysentery ceae stoloniferous, tall Juice/ Ripe fruit 26 Nyctanthes arbor - Parijatak Oleaceae Gardens and Tree, small, rough Bark Dysentery tristis houses all over with stiff whitish hairs 27 Nymphaeanoucha Janglika Nympha Wild, common Herb, perennial, Leaves/ro Dysentery li mal ceae in old ponds aquatic ots/ flowers 28 Ocimumbasilicu Subja Lamia Wild, common Herb, erect much Leaves/Fl Dysentery mvar.basilicum ceae on hills and branched, sweet owers/Fr open scented uits grasslands 29 Opuntiaelatior Niwdung, Cacta Wild plant Shrub, succulent Latex in Dysentery Nagfani ceae with jointed sugar flattened stem || 73 30 Paracalyxscariosa Ran- Fabaceae Wild, common Shrub woody Root Dysentery ghevada along nalas and twining decoction / blood among hedges dysentery 31 Partheniumhyster Chatak- Astera Wild, common Herb, profusely Root Dysentery ophorus chadani, ceae weed branched, tall decoction Gajar- gawat 32 Pisumsativum Vatana, Fabaceae Cultivated Climber, annual Raw Dysentery Matar seeds 33 Pterocarpusmarsu Bijja,Bibl Fabaceae Wild, Tree, large Cold Dysentery piumvar.marsupiu a, Bijjaka occasional in deciduous with extract m protected rough bark forests 34 Rumexdentatus Ambatch Polygonace Cultivated Herb Roasted Dysentery, uka ae seeds 35 Santalum album Chandan Santala Wild, common Tree, medium Wood Dysentery ceae in forests and evergreen with gardens drooping branches 36 Saracaasoca Ashok Caesalpina Garden Tree, tall, Bark/ Dysentery ceae branched Flowers /blood evergreen, black dysentery bark 37 Schleicheraoleosa Kusumb Sapinda Wild, in forests, Tree, branched, Bark Dysentery ceae gardens and evergreen juice roadside 38 Scopariadulcis Utari Scrophulari Wild, common Herb, erect, Roots/Le Dysentery aceae in moist places