STUDY AREA AND METHODOLOGY

T. Shaju “Taxonomic and ethnobotanic studies of endemic angiosperms of Kerala” Thesis. Department of Botany, University of Calicut, 2010

3. STUDY AREA AND METHODOLOGY

3.1. Study area

This piece of work is an attempt to enumerate, document and analyze the status and distribution

of endemic flowering plants within the political boundary of Kerala State, the narrow strip of

land on the south-western corner of Indian Peninsula. Lying within the species-rich equatorial

tropical belt, this green land, commonly referred to as 'God's own Country' known for its

scenic splendour and spice/timber trade from time immemorial is characterized by an unique

synthesis of diverse ecosystems and cultural diversity. Kerala, occupying a geographical area of

39,863 sq. km (1.8% of the total land area of India), is located between the geographical

coordinates of 8O 18' and 12O 48" N latitudes and 74O 52' and 77' 22" E longitudes which is

bounded by the Arabian Sea on the west and the mountainous belt of the Western Ghats on

the east. The vegetation, occupation, habitation patterns and developmental attributes follow

the physical features of Kerala although the State is often described as a large village by virtue of

the continuity in spread of the human settlements.

3.1 .I. Topography

The State has a complex topography with high mountains, low hills, valleys, ridges and

scrap, and presents an array of varied climatic regions and habitats. Based on physiography, the

State is divided into three natural zones (Fig. 5) as follows.

The lowlands or coastal zone (Theerabhoomi): This narrow strip of land, usually flat but

undulating at times, extends for about 560 km from Kasaragod in the north to

Thiruvananthapuram in the south with an average width of about 25 km and an altitude

ranging between 10 and 30 m.

The Midlands (Edanadu): Lying between coastal region and the mountainous region, the

midland consists of a highly undulating, lateritic hilly tracts extending to over 500 km long and

10-40 km wide. This tract is traversed by several rivers and streams. Most of the midland

regions are highly populated and are under aggressive cultivation. The major agricultural crop

in the area is paddy and the tree crops being coconut, arecanut, cashew, jack and mango.

The Highlands (Malanadu): The mountanious region consists of a series of hilly ranges

of Western Ghats clothed with dense forest vegetation. The eastern border of Kerala is

bounded by an almost unbroken mountain wall, the Western Ghats, with major hills like

Anamala, Choolamala, Elamala, Amruthamala, etc. The continuity of the Ghats is broken by

a prominent depression, the 'Palghat Gap'. South of this gap lies the Anamala range with

'Anamudi' the highest peak (2695 m) in Peninsular India. O n the lower south-western side of

the Nilgiri Plateau lies the verdant Silent Valley. Along the south, the Western Ghats is rather

interrupted and extends up to Kanyakumari.

The most magnificent among the backwaters of Kerala are the 'Vembanad lake' which is

largest one in the State and the 'Ashtamudi lake' is the deepest one. Other important

backwaters include Veli, Katinamkulam, Anchuthengu, Edava, Nadayara, Paravoor, 1

Ka~amkulam, Kodungallur and Chettuva. The 'Sasthamkotta lake' is the only natural fresh

water lake in Kerala.

The unique feature of the State is the presence of 44 main rivers with their innumerable

tributaries originating in Western Ghtas and cutting across Kerala and joining the Arabian Sea.

Among these 'Bharathpuzha' is the longest one in the State, which originates from Anamala

and falls in Arabian Sea. 'Pamba' is another important river of Kerala which is otherwise

known as 'Gift of Kuttanadu'. 'Periyar' -the second longest river in Kerala makes its origin

from Sabarimala. Other important rivers include 'Meenachal', 'Manimala', 'Achankovil',

'Kallada', 'Karamana', 'Neyyaru', 'Chandragiripuzha', 'Valapattanampuzha', 'Bepurpuzha',

'Chalakkudipuzha and 'Kabani'. Most of these rivers originate from the western slopes of the

Western Ghats and flow westward across the plains, with the exception of three rivers viz.

Bhavani, Kabani and Pambar, which are east flowing.

3.1.2. Geology and Soil

Kerala is stratigraphically different from the extra-peninsular Indian region being a part

of the continental fragment of the earth's surface. The mountains and the surface relief are

considered to be relic in nature and are not formed by uplift. Geologically the entire area is

divisible in to: (i) a coastal belt of recent deposits, (ii) a narrow belt of Pleistocene or late

Tertiary, (iii) another narrow belt of laterite, and (iv) a highland mountain belt in the midlands

and mountainous zones formed from Precambrian-Achaean crystalline hard rocks consisting

of granites, schists, gneisses, quartz, etc. Soils are predominantly lateritic, consisting of both

sedimentary and residual laterites. While the upland soils are developed from bedrocks, the

lowland soils are formed from alluvial materials brought from uplands. The soils of Kerala are

classified as: (i) Laterite soil (high and low level), covering the major part of the hilly areas of

Flg. 6, PHY$OGRAPHIC DRIEslONS OF KERALA

the State which is derived from the bed rocks, (ii) Red soil, covering large areas of midland and

some places in the coastal region which is derived from ancient crystalline and metamorphic

rocks, (iii) Forest soil (medium black soil), derived from the decomposition of the trap-rocks,

(iv) Alluvial soil, found in low-lying, marshy and submergible areas and along the coast, and (v)

Peaty or Kari soil, found in 'karinilams' (wetlands with a number of trees at different stages of

decomposition buried at different depth) having accumulation of large quantities of organic

matter.

3.1.3. Climate

A warm-humid tropical climate prevails in Kerala with very little variation in

temperature. The maximum mean daily temperature in the coastal region is 32OC (April-May)

and the minimum is 22'C (December-January). The maximum temperature may rise up to

37OC in some areas in the plains. The minimum temperature also drops to 7°C in mountains.

The average rainfall in Kerala is quite high as the State gets the benefit of two monsoons, the

south-west and the north-east during June to September and October to November

respectively. Majority of the land area formed by the windward side of the Western Ghats, on

an average receives 2000 mm rainfall. Locally, some regions like the High Range and the

western border of the Wayanad Plateau receive more than 6000 mm rainfall. However, some

areas like the eastern parts of Wayanad Plateau, Attappadi Plateau and High Range, which are

beyond the crest of the Ghats and also the eastern part of the Palakkad Gap show gradual

decline in the rainfall to around 1500 mm or even less. The atmosphere is highly humid with

the relative humidity varying between 70 to 90 per cent throughout the year, particularly

during southwest monsoon. The relative humidity decreases during December-April. High

humidity and uniformly high temperature have given rise to the characteristic vegetation of

Kerala. Temperature and rainfall pattern of the State can be termed mega-thermal of tropical

rain type. The pattern of natural plant life changes progressively from the lowland to the

uplands in conformity with the climate regime and soil structure. The tropical rain forests are

therefore proposed to be maintained as a biotic treasure so that ecology and climate of the

region are not endangered and the unique gene bank is not lost forever.

3.1.4. Vegetation

The vegetation of Kerala is most luxuriant and diverse resulted by the varied

topographical features, high rainfall and geological conditions. This favoured the formation of

shola forests on the mountain valleys to the mangrove forests along seacoast and estuaries. As

stated above, Kerala is divisible in to three distinct altitudinal zones, viz. the highlands, the

midlands and the lowlands (Kerala State Atlas, 1984), each with its distinct biological wealth,

vegetational composition and agricultural / land-use patterns. The highlands abode the State's

most characteristic vegetation. The midlands, lying between the mountains and the lowlands,

with intensive cultivation are formed of undulating hills and valleys with isolated pockets of

forest formations. The midland and coastal areas also house a number of small and medium-

sized sacred groves, which represent the remnants of the past vegetation. The lowlands or the

coastal area is interspersed by river deltas and back waters with relicts of mangrove vegetation.

All major types of vegetation recognized in the Western Ghats are found in Kerala.

Champion and Seth (1968) have classified the vegetation of Kerala in to 28 types, including

both primary as swell as secondary forests. Tropical wet-evergreen and semi-evergreen forests

and tropical moist-deciduous forests together hold about 95% of the total forests area in the

State. Nearly 80% of the endemic plants of the State are concentrated in these forests. Tropical

dry-deciduous, montane subtropical temperate forests and grasslands are other forests types

found in the State. This also includes a few edaphic types such as Myristica swamps as well as

bamboo and reed breaks. Major forest types (Plate 3) and their area of distribution is given in

Table 4.

Table 4. Major forest types of Kerala

Forest types Area (sq. krn) Percentage

Tropical wet-evergreen and semi-evergreen 3299 35.1

Tropical moist - deciduous 4100 43.6

Tropical dry-deciduous 100 1.1

Montane sub - tropical temperate forests 70 0.7

Forest plantations 1701 18.1

Grasslands 130 1.4

Total 9400 100

3.1.4.1. Tropical wetevergreen and semievergreen forests

The evergreen forests are seen at altitudes from 200 to1200 m. It has been observed that

there are differences in the physiognomy and composition of species with respect to altitude

and is characterized by its diversity consisting of three strata of vegetation. The upper stratum

is composed of trees and woody climbers. Very often trees are buttressed at the base and boles

are clear, cylindrical unbranched at least up to two-third of their height and are generally with

umbrella-shaped canopy at the top. The middle stratum is more or less candle-shaped and the

lower one is characteristically conical. Infestation of epiphytes and other life forms tend to

increase with altitude while woody climbers decrease. The multiplicity of species co-existing

in a complex biological equilibrium gives this type of forests with the highest status, viz.

T C M cr .mtnr,nrn-- u x a t v iaaur don inJ.cIrau I Jn l ~ n ?

'climatic climax'. The evergreen forests occupy different ecological niches depending on the

local factors like elevation, slope and soil conditions and there is characteristic preponderance

of one or more tree species at specific locations, forming associations like Vateria-

Calophyllum-Cullenia, Mesua-Cullenia-Palaquium, and Mesua-Plaquium. The evergreen

forests below 700 m are occurring in patches and mostly confined along the watercourses

(riparian forests).

Semi-evergreen forests are mainly distributed with an altitude ranging from 400-700 m.

This forest type occupies about 1I0/0 of the forestland of the State. These forests are constituted

by both evergreen and deciduous elements, although evergreen ones are predominant. Semi-

evergreen forests are observed adjacent to evergreen forests or within disturbed evergreen

forests. Because of the indiscriminate felling of evergreen tree species, the evergreen forests of

the past are now changing to this category. The species diversity is less when compared with

that of evergreen forests. The top canopy is not dense and trees attain a height of more than 40

m. Lower storey is mainly evergreen.

3.1.4.2. Tropical moistdeciduous

This type of forests occurs from low hills to low elevation of c. 200 m. The general

canopy is open or less dense. About 44% of the forest area of the State is occupied by moist-

deciduous forests. Its canopy is quite similar to that of semi-evergreen forests and hence it is

very difficult to distinguish between the two during wet season. However, February to May is

the dry season when they shed leaves and at this stage moist-deciduous forests are easy to

identify. The trees in general are tall and consist of much hard and durable timber-yielding

ones. Therefore, moist-deciduous forests have been heavily exploited for extraction of

valuable timber.

3.1.4.3. Tropical dry-deciduous

This forest type is mostly confined to the rain-shadow regions of the State. The forests in

general are with small to medium-sized deciduous trees. The under growth is often with

thorny species.

3.1.4.4. Montane sub-tropical temperate forests (Sholas)

This forest type is confined to the valleys or folds of the hills above 1500 m. The trees are small

and highly branched. The branches of trees are clothed with a dense growth of mosses.

Epiphytes are very common.

3.1.4.5. Grasslands

Grasslands can be classified into two types, viz. low-level grasslands and high-level

grasslands. Low-level grasslands are seen distributed along with the evergreen forests at

altitudes 1000-1800 m at Silent Valley, Munnar, Wayanad, Agsthyamala, etc.; repeated annual

fires prevent these grasslands from progression towards woodlands. Those occurring in the

margin of evergreen forests very often get burnt and fire invades the evergreen forests. The

trees present in this area are pyroresistant with thick bark and stunted growth. High-level

grasslands are encountered above1800 m at Silent Valley, Munnar, Eravikulam, Wayanad,

Agasthyamala, etc. and are characterized by carpet like formation. Rainfall is quite high, often

above 6000 mm and due to sloppy nature of the terrain, runoff is also high. Heavy wind and

frost are common. These grasslands are interspersed with patches of evergreen forests,

commonly called as 'sholas'.

3.2. Methodology

In the present study, the area within the political boundary of Kerala has been taken into

consideration. As the first effort, a comprehensive checklist of the endemic species of Kerala

was prepared with reference to the Floras/floristic checklists, revisions and monographs

pertaining to the State of Kerala. From this, the endemic species reported to be having

exclusive distribution in the State were enumerated with details on their type locality,

distribution pattern and habitat specificity. Herbarium studies were made subsequently for

detailed observation of the characteristics of the species, the confirmation of type localities

and other data. This was followed by a series of field explorations with special emphasis to the

type locality and other areas of.distribution of each species. The data generated through field

study were analyzed with reference to the information gathered from ~ublished Floras that

covered the geographical area of Kerala, reversionary/ monographic works that dealt with

flowering plants occurring in the State, and other relevant information from journals that

provide details of plants in Kerala.

Eventhough some sporadic reports on the endemic plants of certain areas within the

State or of a few families have appeared from time to time (Karthikeyan, 1983; Henry et al.,

1984; Singh & Subramaniam, 1991; Basha & Nair, 1991; Sreekumar & Nair, 1991; Mohanan &

Nair, 1999), there is no authentic estimate on the exact number of exclusive endemic

angiosperm taxa in Kerala, which is also practically difficult to achieve as the distribution of

such species often extend to the adjoining parts of the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu and

Karnataka States. To analyze this extended distribution of such endemic species, the

Floras/Floristic checklists and herbarium details pertaining to adjacent regions/neighbouring

States, have been referred.

3.2.1. Herbarium study

Herbarium scrutiny was carried out from the relevant herbaria in India, where the

specimens of endemic species represented from the state are deposited. Most of them are

deposited at the herbaria of Botanical Survey of India [Central National Herbarium, Howrah

(CAL), Madras Herbarium of Southern Circle of BSI, Coimbatore (MH)]. A very good

representation of political region endemics, including their type specimens is gathered at the

herbaria of the Calicut University (CALI), Kerala, the Tropical Botanic Garden and Research

Institute, Palode, (TBGT), and the Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi (KFRI). A major

constraint faced was with respect to the verification of type collections and old collections by

the British botanists which are deposited in Kew Herbarium, UK, except for a few (numbering

eight) referred from the web catalogue of the Kew Herbarium. The list of noted herbaria of

India having Kerala flora are given below in Table 5.

Table 5. Details of herbarium consulted having specimens from Kerala

No. Herbaria Major collectors

1 Central National Herbarium, R. H. Beddome, J. D. Hooker, C. B. Clarke,

Howrah (CAL) A. N. Henry, J. S. Gamble, S. K. Mukharjee

2 Calicut University Herbarium, K. S. Manila, B. K. Nair,V. V. Sivarajan,

Malappuram (CALI) M. Sivadasan, Philip Mathew, M. Sabu,

A. K. Pradeep, N. Anil Kumar,

Jomy Augustine, V. A. Jaleel, P. Sunojkumar

3 Institute of Forest genetics and T. F. Bourdillon, C. E. C. Fischer,

Tree Breeding, Coimbatore (FRC) M. Rama Rao, K. N. Subramanyam

4 Kerala Forest Research Institute, K. K. Nair, M. G. Nair, V. P. K. Nambiar,

Peechi (KFRI) C. Renuka, N. Sasidharan, Muktesh Kumar,

Stephen Sequeria

5 Madras Herbarium, R. H. Beddome, T. F. Bourdillon, J. L. Ellis,

Botanical survey of India, C. E. C. Fischer, J. S. Gamble, Southern Circle, G. H. K. Thwaites, R. Wight, J. D. Hooker, Coimbatore (MH) M. A. Lawson, K. M. Sebastine, K. C. Jacob,

A. N. Henry, V. J. Nair, N. C. Nair,

K. Ramamurthy, N. C. Radhakrishnan,

N. P. Balakrishnan, B. D. Sharma,

E. Vajravelu, B. V. Shetty, K. Vivekananthan,

P. V. Sreekumar, A. G. Pandurangan,

No. Herbaria Major collectors

M. Mohanan, C. N. Mohanan

6 Tropical Botanic Garden and M. Rama Rao,K. Venkoba Rao,

Research Institute, T. F. Bourdillon, V. Narayanaswamy,

Palode (TBGT) N. Ravi, N. Mohanan, C. Sathish Kumar,

A. E. Shanavas, E. S. Santhosh Kumar,

Mathew Dan, G. Rajkumar,

M. P. Geetha Kumary

7 Department of Botany, T. F. Bourdillon, M. Rama Rao,

University of Kerala, (UCT) K. Venkoba Rao, Thiruvananthapuram

Apart from the above herbaria, herbarium collections of other research /educational

institutes like Govt. Victoria College (Palakkad), Sree Narayana College (Kollam), Union

Christian College (Aluva), C M S College (Kottayam), S. N. M. College (Maliankara), Centre

for Advanced Study in Botany of Madras University (Mudalaivayal, Chennai), Community

Agrobiodiversity Centre, M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (Kalpetta), and

Environmental Resources Research Centre (Thiruvananthapuram) have also been referred

covering type collections, specimens representing rediscoveries, and other personal

collections available.

3.2.2. Field study

As stated above, field explorations for the present study have been carried out based on

the preliminary knowledge gathered from published reports and herbarium records on

distribution patterns and habitat preferences of exclusive endemic plants within the State.

Several field trips (47 exploration trips during 1996-2000 and 33 trips during 2004-2007) were

made at regular intervals covering all seasons to different ecosystems where the endemics

inhabited. Based on available distributional data on exclusive endemic species of the state,

district-wise exploration trips (Table 6) were conducted to specific localities and other

biodiversity-rich areas including hotspots, protected areas like national parks, wildlife

sanctuaries and biosphere reserves (Fig. 6), and wetlands including Ramsar sites.

Table 6. District-wise field explorations

Name of District Areas of Field Exploration

Thiruvananthapuram Agasthyamala-Chemunji Hills, Ponmudi hills (Merchiston Estate),

Peppara WLS, Neyyar WLS, Palode forests, Kallar forests, Kottur

forests.

Ernakulam

Palakkad

Malappuram

Kozhikode

Wayanad

Kannur

Kasaragod

Shendurney WLS, Aryankavu (Palaruvi), Thenmala (Dam site),

Kulathupuzha (Myristica swamps, Sankili) and Achenkovil forests,

Sacred groves (Aika kavu, Edamon kavu) and some wetland areas

including Sasthamkotta, Perukulam, Ashtamudi, etc.

Pathanamthitta Ranni and Konni forests (Perumthenaruvi, Kakki hills), Moozhiar,

Sabarimala, Arampa, Kottampara, Gurunathanmannu,

Chelikallar, Vakkallar, Ponnambalamedu, etc.

Alappuzha Pallana, Kalavoor, Kuttanadu

Kottayam Vaikom, Vallikkode, Erumeli

Idukki Idukki WLS, Chinnar WLS, Periyar WLS, Eravikulam National

Park, Puyankutty, Mamkulam, Kulamavu, Devikulam,

Peerumedu, Thekkady

Aluva, Kochi, Kothamangalm, Nerymangalam Thattekkad,

Bhuthathankettu, Idamalayar, Iringole Sacred grove.

Peechi-Vazhani WLS, Athirapally -Vazhachal, Sholayar,

Peringalkuthu.

Silent Valley, Pathrakkadavu, Attappady

Nilambur, Meppadi, Nadukani

Kakkayam, Thusharagiri, Chempukadavu, Eliyottimala,

Pokkunnamala

Thirunelli (Pakshipathalam), Periya, Mananthavadi, Kalpetta,

Wythiri

Ezhimala, Valapattanam, Irutti, Madai, Sacred groves and lowland

regions.

Low-level dry grasslad areas at Bekkal, Cherkalam, Seethamgoli,

Elkanna river basin, Paramba and some sacred groves of

Neeleswaram

Eventhough repeated seasonal field trips were made concentrating on the type localities

and other floristically rich areas for collection and documentation of exclusive endemic taxa of

the state, only a few species (numbering slightly over 70) could be collected from the field in

their generative stage, i.e. in flowering/fruiting or both, with 1-2 extra specimens.

For collection and preservation, the general procedures given by Jain & Rao (1977) and

van Baloogy (1987) were followed. Field notes such as date of collection, locality, altitude,

habit, habitat, colour of leaves, flowers, fruits, etc. and dominance and associations were also

made during the exploration trips. Same taxa were collected from different available localities

for ascertaining the range of variation, local distribution, commonness/rarity, etc. of the taxa.

For preservation at field, wet method (Fosberg & Sachet, 1965) using 70% methyl

alcohol was employed. Drying and processing were done at the herbarium, following standard

methods. Identification, description, illustration and other critical analyses were made from

dried specimens as well as specimens pickled in 70% alcohol. The herbarium prepared during

the present study were deposited in the Herbarium of the Tropical Botanic Garden and

Research Institute, Thiru~anantha~uram ('I'BGT), and a few relevant specimens deposited at

the Herbarium of the Southern Circle of the Botanical Survey of India (MH), at Coimbatore.

Along with the exploration trips, available information on ethnobotanical uses of

exclusive endemic species of the state were also collected through personal interviews,

especially while exploring tribal inhabited forest areas.

3.2.3. Plan of Presentation of Data

The format proposed by Radford et al. (1974) was followed for general taxonomic

presentation of the taxa. The families were classified according to Bentham & Hooker's

system of classification (1862-1883). Artificial keys were provided for families, genera, species

and varieties. Keys are strictly dichotomous and indented, and are relevant only to the taxa

included. As far as possible, both vegetative and generative characters readily observable were

utilised for the preparation of keys. Full citation of the generic name has been given referring

to Index Nominum Genericorum (Farr et al., 1979) and International Code of Botanical

Nomenclature [Tokyo Code (Mc Neil1 et al., 2006)l. Alphabetical order is followed in the

treatment of genera with in families and species with in genera. Each species is provided with

detailed nomenclatural citations including reference from Flora of British India (Hooker,

1872-1879), Flora of the Presidency of Madras (Gamble & Fischer, 1915-1936) and other

published Floras, such as Flora of Cannanore District (Nair & Ramachandran, 1988), Flora of

Calicut (Manilal & Sivarajan, 1982), Flora of Palghat District (Vajravelu, 1990), Flora of

Mdppuram District (Babu, 1990), Flora of Kottayam District (Antony, 1989), Flora of

Pathanamthitta District (Anil Kumar et al., 2005), Flora of Thiru~anantha~uram District (

Mohanan & Henry, 1995), Flora of Nilambur (Sivarajan & Philip Mathew, 1996), Flowering

Plants of Thrissur Forest (Sasidharan & Sivarajan, 1996), Flora of Ala~puzha District (Sunil &

Sivadasan, 2009), Flora of Silent Valley (Manilal, 1988), Flora of Agasthyamala (Mohanan &

Sivadasan, 2002). Besides these floras, relevant monographs, revisions, etc. were also cited.

Icones of Wight (1839-1853) and Beddome (1868-1874) were cited wherever relevant.

Synonyms were given in italics. Local names, if available, were given at the end of the

nomenclatural citations. For the abbreviations of periodicals, Botanico Periodicum

Huntianum (B-P-H) (Lawrence et al., 1968) and for name citation of authors, Authors of Plant

names (Brummitt & Powell, 1992) were referred and cited. Illustrations and photographs of

Flg. 6. PROTECTED AREAS & BIOMVERSIlY HOTSPOtS OF KERAU

selected plants and photographs of most of the type specimens were also provided.

The following abbreviations and symbols were used in the treatment:

BSI : Botanical Survey of India

BM : British Museum of Natural History, London

BRSL : Breslau Herbarium, Poland

c. : (+) more or less

cm : Centimeter

CAS : Centre for Advance Studies in Botany, Chennai

CALI : Calicut University Herbarium

CNH : Central National Herbarium

ERRC : Environmental Resources Research Centre, Thiruvananthapuram

FRLHT : Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions, Bangalore

K : Kew

KFRI : Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi

m : meter

mm : millimeter

MH : Madras Herbarium

SNCH : Sree Narayana College Herbarium, Kollam

TBGT : Herbarium of Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute,

Thiruvananthapuram

FRC : Herbarium of Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore

UCT : Herbarium of Department of Botany, University College,

Thiruvananthapuram

UCC : Union Christian College, Aluva

SD : Sanatana Dharma College, Alappuzha

W : Naturhistorisches Museum Wein, Austria, Wein

Z : Universitil Ziirich, Switzerland, Zurich

Ethnobotanical information gathered was presented as per the medicinal and economic

uses of the resources.