Ethnobotanical investigation of therapeutic plants in Thiruthuraipoondi, Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Field surveys were conducted in 25 villages of Thiruthuraipoondi, Tiruvarur district, Tamil Nadu, India, to methodically record and enumerate the traditional knowledge (TK) that the villagers had about the use of medicinal plants in treating various human ailments. A comprehensive collection of ethnomedical data was accomplished, including botanical names, vernacular names, family information, habits, parts used, modes of application, use value (UV), Relative frequency citation (RFC) and therapeutic uses. A thorough documentation of the medicinal uses of 63 plant species from 28 families was presented out of the exploration. The study area was dominated by Fabaceae (12.7%), Malvaceae (9.5%), Asteraceae and Euphorbiaceae (7.9%), Apocynaceae, Lamiaceae and Solanaceae (6.3%) plant families. Based on habit, the majority of plants were shrubs (40%), succeeded by herbs (37%), trees (17%) and climbers (6%). Amongst the various plant components used to treat ailments, the most popular ones were the leaves (65%), trailed by whole plants (11%), fruits (8%), roots (5%), seeds (5%), flowers and bark (3% each). The various forms of drug preparations include cooked (24%), decoction (24%), paste (22%), juice (14%), raw (8%), powder (6%), and oil (2%). The most common form of administration was oral. With the highest UV of 0.13 and RFC of 0.33, Acalypha indica L. became the most often utilized species. This plant, in particular, attracted a lot of interest from the local population because of its reputation for treating a variety of ailments.