Abstract
An ethnobotanical study was conducted in the Uttarakhand state of India, through questionnaire survey, to investigate various plant species and their parts used for making chutney- a special spicy condiment made of fruits or vegetables. Thirty eight plant species belonging to 19 families were documented during the survey. Polygonaceae, Rosaceae and Rutaceae were the most dominant families in terms of use of number of species for making chutney. The fruits of majority of such species were used for this purpose, followed by flowers and leaves. Apart from making chutney, these species were also used for treatment of over 32 types of ailments, including indigestion, blood purification, cough and toothache. Most of the species were collected from the wild. Of the 38 species Rheum webbianum and Berberis asiatica are endangered.
Keywords
Ethnobotany, Uttarakhand, Traditional knowledge, Chutney, Management, Western Himalaya