Biodiversity and Conservation 13: 985–995, 2004.

© 2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Pastoralism, plant conservation, and conflicts on

proliferation of Himalayan knotweed in high altitude
protected areas of the Western Himalaya, India

CHANDRA PRAKASH KALA

G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment & Development, Kosi-Katarmal, 263643 Almora, Utt-
aranchal, India (e-mail: cpkala@yahoo.co.uk; cpkala@rediffmail.com)

Received 27 September 2002; accepted in revised form 20 March 2003

Key words: Altitudinal gradient, Pastoralism, Polygonum polystachyum, Protected areas, Western Hi-
malaya

Abstract. The conservation policy of banning pastoral grazing, and subsequently emerging conflicts be-
tween conservationists and pastoral communities regarding the proliferation of Himalayan knotweed
(Polygonum polystachyum), was studied in the Valley of Flowers National Park, a high altitude pro-
tected area of the Western Himalaya, India. A total of 10 habitat types identified in the study area were
sampled using quadrats along an altitudinal gradient between 3000 and 4500 m. Plant species richness
decreases with altitude and also varies across habitat types. The highest density of P. polystachyum and
its associated species, Impatiens sulcata, was found between 3300 and 3500 m in the disturbed habitat
types, viz., bouldery areas, fragmented treeline zone, avalanche-prone areas and eroded slopes. Eradi-
cation of P. polystachyum from the national park by managers is not going to serve any meaningful
purpose to the long-term conservation; rather it initiates soil erosion and instability, hindering the es-
tablishment of natural plant communities.

Introduction

Pastoralism, a traditional way of management and utilization of grazing resources

through domestication of animals, has been practised by various ethnic communi-
ties of the Indian Himalayan region, such as the Bakarwals, Gujjars, Gaddis, Lep-
chas, Tawang Monpas, Tolchhas, Merchhas, Shoukas and Jadhs (Farooquee 1994;
Hoon 1996; Kala 2002). Before the creation of the Protected Area network, policy-
makers perceived that pastoral practices are mainly responsible for loss of natural
resources in the Himalaya (Chakravarty-Kaul 1998), thus these practices must be
discontinued in the protected areas.
Conservation of biological diversity is important for local as well as national
and global dimensions of sustainable development, albeit that the ban on pastoral
practices in protected areas has given rise to conflicts between pastoral communi-
ties and protected area managers. The proliferation of a few indigenous species,
such as Polygonum polystachyum (Himalayan knotweed), Impatiens sulcata and
Osmunda clatoniana, is the centre of the ongoing conflict in the protected areas
across the high altitudes of the Western Himalaya, including the world-famous Val-
986

ley of Flowers National Park (VOF). However, the concerns raised on this issue by
conservationists, ecologists, pastoral communities and protected area managers are
not unanimous.
As per the mandate of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, the policy-
makers advocate a blanket ban on pastoral practices in protected areas, and opine
that wild herbivores, even though low in numbers, can compensate the pastoral
grazing in maintaining the alpine ecosystem. Other groups of researchers (e.g.,
Singh and Kaur 1983; Naithani et al. 1992) suggest that pastoral grazing is neces-
sary to maintain the alpine meadows, as it suppresses the overgrowth of indigenous
opportunistic herbs such as P. polystachyum, I. sulcata and O. clatoniana. This
conclusion led the authorities to uproot the P. polystachyum from the VOF on an
experimental basis. Subsequently this was stopped, however, as the uprooting of P.
polystachyum possibly causes soil erosion and loss of soil nutrients. The authorities
thus restricted the control to cutting of aerial stems.
Although in recent years a number of studies have been conducted on the inva-
sion of alien species in natural environments (Planty-Tabacchi et al. 1996; Raj-
manek and Richardson 1996; Grime 1997; Mauchamp 1997; Higgins et al. 1998;
Richardson 1998; Goodwin et al. 1999; Davis et al. 2000; Harrison et al. 2001;
Vila and Pujadas 2001), apart from a few occasional remarks by conservationists
(Singh and Kaur 1983; Naithani et al. 1992; Saberwal 1996), there is a lack of eco-
logical studies on the proliferation of indigenous herbaceous species and their im-
pact on the other native species, especially in the Himalaya. The present study aims
to ascertain which view is more correct, (i) that P. polystachyum is an aggressive
invading species, suppressing other plant species in all existing habitat types and
altitudes, or (ii) that it proliferates in limited habitat types and altitudinal zones.
Attempts were made to decide whether P. polystachyum should be eradicated from
the national parks of the Western Himalaya or not. The main purpose was to aid
the protected area managers in the long-term conservation of alpine ecosystems.

Methods

Study area

The present study was focussed in the VOF and its adjacent areas, representing the
alpine and sub-alpine ecosystem of the Western Himalaya. VOF is located in the
newly created Indian State of Uttaranchal, between 30°41⬘–30°48⬘ N and 79°33⬘–
79°46⬘ E, at altitudes from 3150 to 6590 m (Gauri Parvat). It forms the upper
catchments of River Bhyundar that drains into Alaknanda, a major tributary of the
Ganga.
Since the VOF received widespread attention from nature lovers and plant ex-
plorers from all over the world, the State Government of Uttar Pradesh proclaimed
the 87.5 km 2 area a national park in 1982. With the upgraded status of the valley
from reserve forest to national park, and its subsequent inclusion in the Nanda Devi
 987

Biosphere Reserve, the conservation of floral diversity, as well as the resident fauna,
such as Himalayan musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster), serow (Nemorhaedus
sumatraensis), Himalayan tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus), Himalayan black bear
(Ursus thibetanus), bharal (Pseudois nayaur), mouse hare (Ochotona roylei), red
fox (Vulpes vulpes), Himalayan weasel (Mustela sibirica) and a variety of birds,
has been ensured. According to the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, domestic
livestock grazing has been stopped within the national park.
Glaciers enclose 73% of the VOF, alpine meadows cover 21%, and sub-alpine
forest covers 6% (Kala 1999). The VOF is reputed for harbouring 520 vascular
plants, of which 498 are flowering species, 4 gymnosperms and 18 pteridophytes
(Kala 1998). Geologically, the VOF falls in the Zanskar range have primarily sedi-
mentary rocks, with mica schists and shales (Wadia 1966). The soil is acidic in
nature (pH 3.8–6.2), with a higher percentage of organic carbon (4.29–33.87; Kala
1998) than the grazed alpine meadows of the Western Himalaya (5.0–15.60; Ram
and Singh 1994). The mean temperature during the peak growing season (July) is
13 °C, with 415 mm rainfall (Table 1). Snowfall begins in November and contin-
ues until April, but on the high mountain peaks, snow falls throughout the year.
There are no human settlements within the national park boundaries. About 5000
tourists visit VOF every year during the growing season (June–October).

Sampling

Stratification
The field work was carried out in the VOF from 1993 to 2001. For the study of
vegetation trends, the entire VOF was stratified into different habitat types and al-
titudinal limits. The characteristics of each habitat type are given in Table 2.

Vegetation sampling with respect to colonised species

The quadrat method was used to study the plant species diversity, density and rich-
ness across the altitudinal gradient and habitat types. The quadrat size was deter-
mined following a species–area curve (Misra 1968), and the running mean method
(Mueller-Dombois and Ellenberg 1974) was adopted for determination of the mini-
mum number of quadrats to be laid down for maximum species sampling. At least
15–25 quadrats were required to cover the maximum species in any given habitat
type and altitude. Therefore, in each habitat type, at every 100 m altitudinal inter-
val (from 3000 to 4500 m), a minimum of 25 randomly placed quadrats of 0.25 m 2
(50 × 50 cm 2) were laid for sampling, as the vegetation was herbaceous. Due to
seasonality and the short life cycle of alpine plants (about 3 months), the sampling
was designed in such a way that all major habitat types and altitudes could be cov-
ered, by sampling different habitat types and altitudes over several years. A total of
1250 quadrats were laid, in which individuals of each herb species were enumer-
ated. Species richness was calculated for each habitat type and altitude by direct
counts of number of species. Mean density (individuals of each species per unit
area) for all the three ‘controversial’ herbs (P. polystachyum, I. sulcata, and O. cla-
toniana) were calculated across the identified habitat types, and also at every 100
Table 1. Physical and biological characteristics of the Valley of Flowers National Park, Western Himalaya, India.
988
Environmental
Total geographical area (km 2) 87.5
Altitudinal range (m) 3150–6590
Total area under glaciers (km 2) 63.58
Length of growing season (months) 3–4
Mean temperature in July (°C) 13
Total rainfall in July (mm) 415
Humidity (%) 80–100
Soil pH 3.8–6.2
Soil nitrogen (%) 0.28–4.46
Soil organic carbon (%) 4.29–33.87
Biological
Total area under sub-alpine forests (km 2) 5.29
Total area under alpine meadows (km 2) 18.63
Vascular plant flora (number of species) 520
Angiosperms (number of species) 498
Gymnosperms (number of species) 4
Pteridophytes (number of species) 18
Medicinal plants (number of species) 112
Rare and endangered plants (number of species) 31

Ground flora cover (%) FG a 100 TR 90 ES 60 BA 100 APA 80 MA 100 RB 55 MO 50 SUA 100 SS 100

Species diversity (Shannon–Wiener index H⬘) 3.23 2.68 1.90 2.15 2.00 2.07 2.38 2.29 2.86 3.04
Species richness (number of species) 67 51 37 19 32 19 50 42 62 54
Mean density of P. polystachyum 0.32 32.8 14.0 36.8 23.05 10.4 4.64 4.0 3.49 0.8
(individuals/m 2)
Mean height of ground flora (cm) 35 100 110 150 100 130 40 45 50 35
Common vascular plant growth forms Cushion, rosette, graminoid
Wild animals Snow leopard, musk deer, blue sheep, Himalayan tahr, serow, Himalayan black bear, Himalayan brown bear, red fox, Hi-
malayan weasel, flying squirrel, mouse hare, yellow throated marten, common langur
Avian fauna (number of species) 41
a
FG – forest gap; TR – tree line (fragmented); ES – eroded slope; BA – bouldery area; APA – avalanche-prone area; MA – manipulated area; RB – river bed; MO –
moraine; SUA – stable undulating area; SS – stable slope.
Table 2. Characteristics of classified habitat types in the Valley of Flowers National Park, Western Himalaya, India.
Sl. No. Habitat type
1 Forest gap
2 Treeline (fragmented)
3 Eroded slope
4 Bouldery area
5 Avalanche-prone area
6 Manipulated area
7 Riverbed
8 Moraine
9 Stable undulating area
10 Stable slope
Characteristics
Pastureland in sub-alpine forested area; also known as sub-alpine meadow, which is formed due to anthropogenic activities
and located between 3000 and 3250 m altitude.
Upper altitudinal limit of sub-alpine forest. It is fragmented due to natural and man-made disturbances.
Landslide mountain slope covered with small and loose stones.
High proportion of small and huge boulders in the valley bottom and moderate slopes with very thin soil layer.
Narrow to broad gullies on mountain slopes through which accumulated snow on the upper mountain slopes slides down to
flat areas.
Generally bouldery area in which management is trying to suppress the growth and occurrence of P. polystachyum by cutting
its aerial stems.
Essentially river banks and valley bottoms; characterized by deposition of sand and stones.
Glacier-driven boulders of small to huge dimensions on lower slope of mountains. It also includes loose rocks and stone de-
bris on riverbeds.
Rolling ground in valley bottoms, connecting relatively flat valleys to high-rising mountains; comparatively thick soil depth.
Stable mountain slopes with thick vegetation cover of both grass-sedge and herbaceous communities.
989
990

Figure 1. Species richness across the various altitudes in the VOF.

m altitudinal interval. Plant species diversity was calculated through the Shannon–
Wiener diversity index (Shannon and Weaver 1949), and a t-test was used for com-
parison.

Results

A total of 260 herbaceous plant species were sampled in the study area. These spe-
cies were distributed over various habitat types and altitudes. There were two trends
in the vegetation pattern.

Altitudinal trend

The distribution of plant species in the alpine and sub-alpine meadows exhibited
two major species-rich altitudinal zones, viz., 3100 m, and the categories between
3500 and 3700 m. Around 3100 m, there was a high species richness (62 species)
due to intermingling of sub-alpine forest and meadow vegetation. The region be-
tween 3500 and 3700 m had 59–62 species. Above 3700 m, there was a gradual
fall in species richness (Figure 1). The density of P. polystachyum and I. sulcata
was significantly greater at 3500 m than at higher and lower elevations (P = 0.001
for P. polystachyum and 0.01 for I. sulcata). Therefore, 3500 m is the vital altitu-
dinal zone, with high mean densities of P. polystachyum (33.6 individuals/m 2) and
I. sulcata (56.58 individuals/m 2), as well as high plant species richness (59 spe-
cies). The mean density of O. clatoniana was highest at 3600 m (Figure 2).
 991

Figure 2. Mean density (m −2) of colonized species along the altitudes in the VOF.

Figure 3. Species richness across the various habitat types in the VOF. FG – forest gap; SUA – stable
undulating area; SS – stable slope; TR – tree line (fragmentary); RB – riverbed; MO – moraine; ES –
eroded slope; APA – avalanche-prone area; BA – bouldery area; MA – manipulated area.

Habitat type trend

Species richness of alpine plants was lowest (19 species) in both bouldery and ma-
nipulated habitat types, and highest (67 species) in forest gaps close to the treeline
(Figure 3). Stable undulating areas formed the next most species-rich habitat type
(62 species), followed by stable slopes (54 species). The treeline was also species-
rich (51 species), as it was a transition zone.
The density of P. polystachyum varied across different habitat types. Its density
was highest in the bouldery areas (36.8/m 2), followed by the treeline area (32.8/
m 2) and avalanche-prone areas (23.05/m 2) (Figure 4). The disturbed habitat types
(treeline, eroded slope, bouldery and avalanche-prone area) accounted for 90% of
992

Figure 4. Mean density (m −2) of colonized species across the various habitat types in the VOF. FG –
forest gap; TR – tree line (fragmentary); ES – eroded slope; BA – bouldery area; APA – avalanche-
prone area; MA – manipulated area; RB – riverbed; MO – moraine; SUA – stable undulating area; SS
– stable slope.

the total mean density of P. polystachyum. The density of P. polystachyum was

relatively low on the stable undulating areas (3.49 individuals/m 2) and slopes (0.8
individuals/m 2), and least in forest gaps (0.32/m 2). There was a significant differ-
ence in density of P. polystachyum (P = 0.001) and I. sulcata (P = 0.05) between
stable and disturbed habitat types. Besides manipulated habitat types, there was no
significant difference in density of P. polystachyum and I. sulcata within the dis-
turbed habitat types.
The higher density of I. sulcata in manipulated areas (68.32 individuals/m 2)
compared to bouldery areas (56.58 individuals/m 2) indicates that removal of P.
polystachyum was beneficial to the growth of I. sulcata. O. clatoniana was low in
density across all the habitat types, indicating that this fern is not a colonizer like P.
polystachyum and I. sulcata. The highest mean density of O. clatoniana was found
in stable undulating areas (4.1 individuals/m 2), followed by stable slopes (2.3
individuals/m 2) and moraines (0.29 individuals/m 2), which indicates that it does not
share habitats with P. polystachyum and I. sulcata.

Discussion

Before being included in the Protected Area network, any land area might have
undergone human, livestock and/or natural disturbances. After notification of some
national parks in the high altitudes of the Western Himalaya, such as the VOF,
Nanda Devi National Park and Great Himalayan National Park, human and human-
associated animal disturbances have been removed, providing an opportunity for
the re-establishment of native plant communities, and recovery of the fragmented
treeline and sub-alpine forests. There are some localities in VOF close to the frag-
 993

mented treeline zone, in which the density of birch (Betula utilis) saplings is very
high (25–30 individuals/m 2), and in some localities, a birch–rhododendron com-
munity has established over a decade. The prevalence of colonized plant species,
such as Polygonum polystachyum along a limited altitudinal range (3300–3500 m)
on the disturbed habitat types, is evidence of secondary succession, which will lead
to the subsequent establishment of native plant communities.
P. polystachyum is a perennial, rhizomatous and gregarious herb, which com-
monly obtains a height of 30–250 cm at the treeline (3300 ± 200 m). Its height
reduces to 30–50 cm above 3800 m. It is distributed widely from Sikkim to Af-
ghanistan, between 3000 and 3800 m (Polunin and Stainton 1984), and is also
known to occur in Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts and California as a B-rated
pest plant, classified by the California Department of Food and Agriculture in the
USA (Peter Zika and Andrea Williams, personal communication). A total of 70
species of Polygonum have been reported from India, of which more than 20 spe-
cies are of Himalayan origin. During the present investigation, the altitudinal range
for the distribution of P. polystachyum was found to be between 2600 and 4400 m,
yet it does not grow profusely below 3300 and above 3500 m. I. sulcata has taken
over the places from where P. polystachyum has been eradicated by the Protected
Area management in VOF for a decade.
The alpine meadows are generally nutrient poor due to low accumulation of
biomass and leaching of nutrients with water (Ram and Singh 1994). P. polys-
tachyum accumulates biomass faster, and retains water at the base, thus preventing
leaching of nutrients from the soil (Kala 1998). Its proliferation in mostly the
eroded, avalanche-prone and fragmented treeline areas prevents soil erosion and
helps in stabilizing the slopes with its strong, thick and large rhizomes. There are
reports on decrease in soil organic matter and moisture content in grazed areas
(Kutiel et al. 2000), whereas removal of pastoral grazing and subsequent high pro-
duction of biomass is leading to accumulation of high organic matter content in
soil in national parks of the Himalaya. In VOF, the organic carbon in the soil was
highest in the P. polystachyum-dominated habitat types (22–33.87%) due to accu-
mulation of its high biomass (480 g/m 2), compared to 350 g/m 2 in the grazed al-
pine meadows (Kala 1998). The high foliage cover and proliferation of P. polys-
tachyum between the gaps and edges of the fragmented treeline zone may cause a
decline in associated herbs. This has been the main reason of controversy over P.
polystachyum, as many people believe that livestock grazing may suppress the
growth of this herb (Singh and Kaur 1983; Naithani et al. 1992), while policy-mak-
ers think that pastoral practices are responsible for loss of natural resources
(Chakravarty-Kaul 1998).

Conclusions

A greater prevalence of the two colonizers, P. polystachyum and I. sulcata, was

seen between 3300 and 3500 m. Furthermore, dense colonies of both herbs were
994

restricted to disturbed habitat types (i.e. eroded, avalanche-prone, fragmented

treeline and bouldery), occurring least in stable areas (stable undulating areas and
slopes), even between 3300 and 3500 m elevation. The instability of land in the
alpine meadows, whether due to natural disturbances or past anthropogenic pres-
sures, is the major cause of high densities of P. polystachyum and I. sulcata. Land
instability also influences plant species richness, which was lower in disturbed ar-
eas than in stable areas (Figure 3). The variation in species richness may also be
due to various biotic and abiotic factors, such as level of disturbance, productivity,
soil pH and life forms (Huston 1994; Forbes et al. 2001). In addition, species rich-
ness decreases gradually with altitude. In general, P. polystachyum is a successional
species in most of the habitat types, so the fact that it has increased in some areas
after cessation of pastoral grazing is not really a threat to native biodiversity. The
manual removal of P. polystachyum in order to alleviate this pseudo-threat will be
counter-productive, because (1) it may increase erosion and have other direct harm-
ful impacts, and (2) P. polystachyum will simply be replaced by another weed, I.
sulcata. Thus, before eradicating P. polystachyum, it has to be established that in
the past, these habitat types had a high diversity of flowering plants, as speculated.
Only scientific studies will lead to a better understanding of the system, for the
effective conservation and management of alpine ecosystems.

Acknowledgements

I acknowledge the help rendered by various institutions during the course of this
study, especially the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Environment and Mountain
Development Institute (EMODI), Forest Research Institute (FRI), Botanical Survey
of India (BSI), International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICI-
MOD) and G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development (GB-
PIHED). I thank Dr. Nima Manjrekar for editing the manuscript. The comments
and suggestions provided by two anonymous referees are greatly acknowledged.

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