Survey of ethnomedicinal plants diversity in forest area of Raigad district of Maharashtra state
AS Sure and Sonali Gaikwad
A survey ethnomedicinal plants of forest area of Raigad district has been carried out during the year 2017-18. During study medicinal plants have been identified for the various medicinal properties. The present study revealed in forest area of Raigad district at different localities. The information pertaining to botanical name, common name, family, morphology, parts used and medicinal properties was identified with the help of local population. The survey investigated 294 wild medicinal plant species belonging to 255 genera and 90 families. Out of these wild medicinal plants 18 species belongs to the family Fabaceae, 12 Species from Euphorbiaceae, 11 Species from Malvaceae, 10 species each from Apocynaceae, Caesalpinaceae; Remaining families are having less than nine species each. Life forms indicated that trees were dominating (37%) followed by herbs (29%), shrubs (18%), climber (8%), creepers, grasses, lianas, twiners (2%) each. The plant parts like root, rhizome, bulb, stem, bark, root bark, latex, leaves, gum, gum-resin, flower, peduncle, arillus, fruit, tuber, oil, seed, sap, shoot, resin and whole plant are used for the treatment of various diseases. Medicinal plants are globally valuable sources of herbal products, and they are disappearing at a high speed due to activities carried out by human as result of over-exploitation, industrialization, development projects and civilization. Therefore, there is need of the management of traditional medicinal plants conservation strategies i.e. in-situ and ex-situ conservation and cultivation practices and resource management i.e. good agricultural practices and sustainable use solutions.