Diversity of ethnomedicinal plants used by Malayali tribals in Yelagiri hills of Eastern ghats, Tamilnadu, India

An ethnobotanical survey was carried out among the Malayali tribals in various villages of Yelagiri hills, Vellore District, Tamilnadu, India during August 2012 to July 2013. The purpose of this study is to collect data about medicinal plants available in yelagiri hills in order to preserve its rich bio resources through documentation since there is scarce information about the existence of medicinal plants in this region. This survey was conducted based on semi structured interviews; field visits and participatory observations. A total 175 species of ethnomedicinal plants belonging to 147 genera under 56 families with 19 habits. There are 162 dicotyledons and 13 monocotyledons were reported with the help of 45 tribal informants between the ages of 45-75. The study shows high degree of ethnobotanical novelty and the use of plants among the Malayali reflects the revival of interest in traditional folk medicine. The medicinal plants used by Malayalis were arranged by botanical name, family name, local name, habit, plant parts used, mode of administration and ethnomedicinal uses.

Author(s): Salai Senthilkumar M. S., D. Vaidyanathan, D. Sivakumar and M. Ghouse Basha*

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