Identification and documentation of wild plant species with ornamental potentials at Mount Prau, Central Java, Indonesia

Abstract

Indonesia has diverse flora and fauna, and many species remain largely undiscovered. Documentation and identification of threatened wild ornamental species are increasingly difficult due to ongoing exploitation and land conversion. Mount Prau is one of thepopular destinations in Central Java, Indonesia for tourism. Understanding plant biodiversity has enormous value for the economy,ecology, culture, science, and recreation. Our study is aimed to record the diversity and identify the flowering plant species intheir native habitat at Mount Prau, Central Java, Indonesia. Our field surveys demonstrated that Mount Prau has abundant wildornamental plants with wide diversity of taxa, growth habits, and forms. A total of 103 species representing 51 families and 95genera are identified including trees, shrubs, herbs, and lianas. We also found that among the plant species found in Mount Prau,24 have morphological characters suitable to be cultivated as ornamental flowers, and 12 as ornamental foliages, and 63 speciesare medicinal plants. The ornamental criteria of these species were based on the literature describing the morphological and uniquecharacters of leaves and flowers that made them potential to be developed as ornamental plants. In this paper we have provided thecurrent conservation status of the plant species identified and recommendations on their conservation. This study provides baselinedata of species found in the Mount Prau areas, and this information could be helpful for further conservations efforts and initiatives