Medicinal Plant

MEDICINAL
PLANT
SPECIALIST

Conservation GROUP

Volume 15

Newsletter of the Medicinal Plant Specialist Group

of the IUCN Species Survival Commission

Chaired by Danna J. Leaman

Chair’s note........................................................................................................................................... 2
Taxon file
Conservation of the Palo Santo tree, Bulnesia sarmientoi Lorentz ex Griseb, in the South America
Chaco Region - Tomás Waller, Mariano Barros, Juan Draque & Patricio Micucci.............................. 4
Manejo Integral de poblaciones silvestres y cultivo agroecológico de Hombre grande (Quassia
amara) en el Caribe de Costa Rica, América Central - Rafael Ángel Ocampo Sánchez........................ 9
Regional file
Chilean medicinal plants - Gloria Montenegro & Sharon Rodríguez.................................................. 15
Focus on Medicinal Plants in Madagascar - Julie Le Bigot.................................................................. 25
Medicinal Plants utilisation and conservation in the Small Island States of the SW Indian Ocean with
particular emphasis on Mauritius - Ameenah Gurib-Fakim................................................................. 29
Conservation assessment and management planning of medicinal plants in Tanzania - R.L. Mahunnah,
S. Augustino, J.N. Otieno & J. Elia...................................................................................................... 35
Community based conservation of ethno-medicinal plants by tribal people of Orissa state, India -
Saujanendra Swain & Nihar Parida..................................................................................................... 41
Estado de la conservación de las plantas TRAMIL incluidas en la Farmacopea Vegetal Caribeña -
Sonia Lagos, Xinia Robles & Rafael Ángel Ocampo Sánchez.............................................................. 46
FairWild in the South Caucasus - Heiko Schindler & Bryony Morgan................................................ 52
Notices
World Health Organization Consultation on Conservation Guidelines for Medicinal Plants - Danna J..
Leaman.................................................................................................................................................. 57
Notices of publication - Helle O. Larsen.............................................................................................. 59

May 2012

Chair’s Note
Danna J. Leamann
In late March of this year I participated in the 2nd
meeting of all the chairs of IUCN Species Survival
Commission (SSC) specialist groups, held in Abu
Dhabi with support of the Abu Dhabi Environment
Agency and the Mohamed bin Zayed Species Con-
servation Fund. Like the 1st Chair’s Meeting (Al
Ain, 2008), this gathering brought together special-
ist group chairs and Red List Authorities with SSC
staff, SSC focal-points within the IUCN secretariat
programmes, and representatives of other IUCN
commissions. The meeting provided opportuni-
ties to report on MPSG’s activities and successes,
learn from experiences of other specialist groups,
explore ideas for collaboration with the IUCN pro-
grammes and other commissions, and to articulate
some future goals that will contribute to the IUCN
Species Strategic Plan for the next quadrennium
(2013-2016). The meeting was timed to promote
preparation for and participation of SSC members
in the upcoming 5th IUCN World Conservation
Congress, 6-15 September, Jeju, Republic of South
Korea. A summary of useful information presented
at the meeting a publication containing all of the
SSC specialist group summary reports is avail-
able in the new “members area” of the recently re-
structured and more accessible SSC pages on the
IUCN website: http://www.iucn.org/about/work/
programmes/species/who_we_are/about_the_spe-
cies_survival_commission_/ssc_members__area_/
Achievements and ongoing activities
Implementation of the FairWild Standard
In the previous volume of Medicinal Plant Con-
servation, Wolfgang Kathe described the process
through which the International Standard for Sus-
tainable Wild Collection of Medicinal and Aromat-
ic Plants (ISSC-MAP) became a part of the com-
prehensive FairWild Standard and the formation
of the FairWild Foundation to oversee its further
development and implementation [MPC Volume
14, pp 14-17; www.FairWild.org]. As of Decem-
Page 2
ber 2011, approximately 30 species of terrestrial
plants were being wild-harvested under FairWild
certification, involving 7 companies, and resulting
in 10 finished products on the market containing
FairWild-certified ingredients.
MPSG retains a strong interest, on behalf of IUCN,
in supporting the FairWild Standard, and indeed
many members of MPSG continue to be involved
in its management and implementation: for exam-
ple, five members of MPSG are currently FairWild
Foundation trustees. However, our formal role has
become more closely focused on providing advice
and solutions for key technical challenges. These
include:
• elaboration of a risk/resilience analysis tool
applied as a first step in the FairWild certifica-
tion process, enabling the requirements of the
standard to be applied more or less rigorously
to species at higher or lower risk of unsustain-
able wild harvest;
• adaptation of FairWild Standard and imple-
mentation tools, particularly risk/resilience
analysis and resource assessment guidance, as
guidance for undertaking non-detriment find-
ings required by the Convention on Internation-
al Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and
Flora (CITES) for perennial plant species listed
on CITES appendices I and II;
• refinements of resource assessment guidance
to address the different needs of low risk/high
resilience species compared with high risk/low
resilience species; and
• initial steps to expand the risk/resilience anal-
ysis tool and resource assessment methodology
to address sustainable wild collection of fungi
and lichens in collaboration with the SSC lichen
and fungi specialist groups and the Sustainable
Use Specialist Group.
Revised global “Guidelines on the Conservation
of Medicinal Plants”
Many MPSG members have been involved either in
developing the initial 1993 “Guidelines” or in the
revision process ongoing since 2003, or both. Re-
cent progress towards a final text agreed amongst
the four author organizations (WHO, IUCN, WWF,
and TRAFFIC) is reported in this volume of MPC
[pp. 57-58].
May 2012
Red List Assessments
Last summer the European Commission published
the European Red List of Vascular Plants (BILZ ET
AL. 2011) which includes approximately 100 spe-
cies of medicinal plants, primarily species listed in
the EU Habitats Directive and / or the Bern Con-
vention. During that assessment, coordinated by
Melanie Bilz, a member of the IUCN Red List unit
staff based in Cambridge, UK, a large number of
individuals with expert knowledge of the spatial
distribution, population sizes, and likely conser-
vation threats affecting plant species in Europe
participated in preparing and reviewing the Red
List assessments. A new project began in Decem-
ber 2011 – also with EC funding – to assess the
Red List status of 300 additional medicinal plant
species native to Europe. This assessment, to be
completed in 2014, will result in the first compre-
hensive assessment of a regional medicinal flora,
and provides an opportunity for MPSG members
with knowledge of the European medicinal flora
to contribute to and review Red List assessments.
The geographic range of this assessment extends
from Iceland in the west to the Urals in the east,
and from Franz Josef Land in the north to the Ca-
nary Islands in the south.
Future goals
Securing Useful Wild Plants
Understanding the current status and trends in con-
servation status of medicinal plants, both globally
and regionally, is an information gap that limits
our ability to facilitate and undertake conservation
action for these species. Useful plants (including
crop wild relatives, medicinal plants, and trees) are
identified as a priority for Red List assessments in
the upcoming IUCN quadrennium (2013-2016).
MPSG is working with the Crop Wild Relatives
Specialist Group and the Global Tree Specialist
Group to develop and find funding for a global
project focusing on these species important to hu-
man survival. The project as currently proposed
has the following main components:
• assessing the conservation status of at least
1,500 medicinal plant species drawn from glo-
bal, regional, and national priorities, and build-
ing capacity throughout the MPSG membership
for Red List assessment;
Page 3
• identifying conservation gaps, focusing par-
ticularly on existing protected areas and iden-
tifying important areas for medicinal plant con-
servation;
• assessing the vulnerability of medicinal plants
to climate change, and contributing to the devel-
opment of climate change vulnerability indica-
tors for plants;
• developing an integrated (in situ and ex situ)
conservation strategy for medicinal plants, with
a focus on sustainable use; and
• increasing the profile of medicinal plant con-
servation needs and actions.
Promoting involvement of MPSG members in the
development and implementation of this project
will be a priority for MPSG in the coming IUCN
quandrennium. Results of this project will support
and improve our continuing contributions to broad
global initiatives and policies, including:
• supporting progress on conservation and sus-
tainable use targets under the UN Convention
on Biological Diversity (CBD), particularly the
Global Strategy for Plant Conservation;
• reporting on a global indicator of biodiversity
used for food and medicine [see MPC Volume
14, pp. 24-29]; and
• supporting sustainable wild collection of me-
dicinal plants through the FairWild Standard.
Many thanks to Helle Overgaard Larsen for her
dedicated efforts as editor of this newsletter, and
to all of the authors for their contributions to this
volume.
References
BILZ, M., KELL, S.P., MAXTED, N. & LANSDOWN, R.V.
(2011): European Red List of Vascular Plants. – Pub-
lications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.
Available at: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/
conservation/species/redlist and http://www.iucn-
redlist.org/europe
May 2012
 Norman R. Farnsworth died in 2011
The renowned pharmacognosist and medicinal plant researcher died at 81 on Sep-
tember 10, 2011.
The MPSG owes a particular debt of gratitude to Professor Farnsworth for his con-
tribution to our Global Checklist of Medicinal Plants. In 2008, during a meeting
of the Canadian Natural Health Products Research Society in Toronto, I described
to Professor Farnsworth the challenge we face to answer questions such as “How
many species of medicinal plants are there?” and “How many of those species are
threatened with extinction?” A few weeks later, Professor Farnsworth sent a base
list of more than 20,000 species with documented medicinal uses derived from the
NAPrAlert (Natural Products Alert) Database he created in 1975. This list, together
with the MAPROW database created by former MPSG Chair Uwe Schippmann,
was an important contribution to our Global Checklist of Medicinal Plants, which
now includes more than 28,000 species of plants with well-documented medicinal
uses. Danna J. Leamann

Taxon file

Conservation of the Palo Santo tree,

Bulnesia sarmientoi Lorentz ex Griseb,
in the South American Chaco Region
Tomás Waller, Mariano Barros, Juan Draque
& Patricio Micucci

Introduction
Bulnesia sarmientoi Lorentz ex Griseb (Zygophyl-
Figure 1. Distribution range of Bulnesia sarmientoi in
laceae), locally known as Palo Santo (holy tree), is
the Gran Chaco with locality records from the Mis-
a large endemic tree of what is known as the Gran souri Botanical Garden (MOBOT) Data Base.
Chaco region of Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and,
marginally, Brazil (Figure 1). Mature individuals settlement conditions in more sparsely distributed
reach a height of 8 to 20 m and 30 to 70 cm in di- soil-specific plant communities. These communi-
ameter, and exhibit a high-density aromatic wood ties in Paraguay cover about 3.7 million ha (UNA-
(1,280 kg/m3). GTZ 1991) and in Argentina about 2.5 million ha
(FB 2010). In these areas average trunk standing
The species inhabits the semi-arid sectors of the volumes range from 0.7 to 3.3 m3/ha (MUTARELLI
Gran Chaco, where annual rainfall varies from 600 1979, GIMÉNEZ ET AL. 2007a); however, at localized
to 900 mm, sharing the area with other typical lo- spots old trees dominate the forest in relatively
cal hardwoods (ZERBATTO ET AL. 2009). The Palo dense patches known as palosantales. In very spe-
Santo can be found mixed in the forest throughout cific sites trunk timber volumes can reach up to ten
25 million hectares, but it only achieves adequate fold the regional average, i.e. 30 m3/ha (ZERBATTO
Page 4 May 2012
 bark, crust or leaves. It is locally used as a blood
cleanser, sudorific (induces perspiration), diuretic,
to heal gastric pain, syphilis, leprosy, gout, rheu-
matism, rheumatoid arthritis, lumbago and skin
wounds and diseases; moreover, to relieve stress
and depression, control blood pressure, and pre-
vent atherosclerosis and colds (MERELES & PÉREZ
DE MOLAS 2008, CITES 2010, JANZEN 2010).

Essential oil trade

B. sarmientoi extracts have been used for decades
by different industries, mainly as a fixative in per-
fumes. Residual sawdust, a by-product of the tim-
ber industry, is treated with solvents to produce
‘Palo Santo’ resin, which is used to manufacture
varnish and dark paints. Mixed with pyrethrum it is
used to make mosquito repellent coils. The essen-
Figure 2. The Palo Santo, Bulnesia sarmientoi, tree can tial oil, also known as ‘lignum vitae oil’, ‘guaiac
reach a height of 20 m and a trunk diameter of 70 cm. oil’, ‘guayacol’, ‘guajol’, or ‘guayaco’, has been
ET AL. 2009). used to perfume luxury soaps by masking the un-
pleasant smell of synthetic components and as an
The species exhibits slow growth and has the abil- excipient in the manufacturing of cosmetics. It is
ity to regenerate vegetatively; it has been estimated most widely used in the perfume industry because
that trees reach 45 cm basal diameter at 100 years of its mild and pleasant Rose (and Violet) fra-
of age (GIMÉNEZ ET AL. 2007b, Figure 2). grance. Its ethyl acetate is used as a natural fixative
The Palo Santo has historically been exploited be- in aromatic compositions (DI LELLA & RIQUE 1955,
cause of the pleasantly-smelling essential oil that MERELES & PÉREZ DE MOLAS 2008, CITES 2010,
is widely used in the perfume and soap industry. JANZEN 2010, HARBORNE & BAXTER 2011).
Commercialisation of Palo Santo timber was un- The oil of Palo Santo is highly valued in aroma-
til recently very limited; as of 2002, however, high therapy to which the following advantages are at-
demand, mainly from China, has been a driver for tributed: mood uplifting, helpful for meditation
large-scale exploitation in Argentina and Paraguay. and rest, improvement of mental clarity, calming,
As a result of increasing concerns regarding the relaxing, stress and tension reduction. It is applied
sustainability of Palo Santo trade the species was through aroma lamps, light bulb rings, massage and
listed in CITES-Appendix II at the 15th Meeting mist spray (SCHILLER & SCHILLER 2008). However,
of the Conference of the Parties to CITES (Doha, this industry treats it as ‘Guaiac oil’ in broad sense,
Qatar). grouping in this category other Zygophyllaceae
Local uses species from the Genus Guaiacum. B. sarmientoi
oil is characterized by containing a high propor-
The common name, Palo Santo (holy tree), says
tion of Bulnesol (>45%) and Guaiol (>31%). It is
it all about what local people feel for this spe-
pale yellow, waxy in consistence (solid) at room
cies, which has a very unique place in the culture
temperature and with a strong warm woody aroma.
throughout the Gran Chaco region. It has tradi-
The wood/oil yield is reported to be around 3.5 -
tionally been employed for domestic purposes:
4% in weight (JACOBS 1990, ALPACA 2010, JANZEN
the burning of its wood is used as an insect repel-
2010). It is obtained by simple steam distillation
lent and its long-lasting wood is harvested for the
of wood chips. According to JANZEN (2010) wood
production of posts to build cattle fences or for
scraps and logs are shredded into small chips the
manufacturing handicrafts. The species is highly
size of beans. These woodchips are loaded into
valued as a medicinal plant for the many healing
autoclave stainless steel distillation stills. Steam
powers attributed to infusions brewed from of its

Page 5 May 2012

is passed through the layers of chips, which is af- 2004) have mainly been destined to China: 94%
terwards cooled in condensers and separated in and 89% of each country’s exported volume, re-
Florentine vase units. spectively. According to traders, wood is used for
Argentina started the distillation of Palo Santo handcrafting top-quality furniture and for apart-
essential oil in the beginning of the last century, ment floorings. Main products exported by Argen-
but extraction stopped completely by the 1970s tina (pooled data from 2006-2008) and Paraguay
(ZERBATTO ET AL. 2009). In the beginning, Paraguay (pooled data from 2000-2006) were trunks in dif-
exported the entire logs to Europe for oil distilla- ferent stages of processing (debarked logs, cylin-
tion, but after World War II this was carried out ders and posts), representing 87% and 67% of all
locally (JANZEN 2010). Paraguay currently sup- products exported by each country, respectively.
plies most of the international demand of Guaiac Secondarily, both countries traded sawn wood
oil (MERELES & PÉREZ DE MOLAS 2008) and during (mainly tables for flooring): 13% and 33% of to-
the last decade the country exported 130-180 tons tal exports, respectively (Figure 3). Since 2008
of essential oil per year, equivalent to an annual internal provincial regulations in Argentina have
harvest of up to about 5,000 tons of timber. Main limited the sale of raw wood (logs), favouring the
destination countries for the last three years were, production of sawn wood to foster local labour (FB
in order of importance, France, Germany, United 2010).
States, India, Spain, United Kingdom, Korea, the Dynamic of Palo Santo timber harvest in
Netherlands and Switzerland. According to Para- Argentina
guayan producers, most of the wood used in the Argentina is currently the main supplier of B.
distillation of Guaiac oil is the byproduct of tim- sarmientoi timber for the international market. The
ber extraction or land clearing activities, such as species occurs in three different provinces: Chaco,
branches, fallen or useless trees, sawmill leftover Formosa and Salta. Based on MORELLO (1968) we
boards and sawdust. This information still needs to estimate the area of occupation to about 8.3 million
be corroborated (JANZEN 2010, WALLER & PUCCIO hectares, and its ecological optimum (sensu MORE-
2010). LLO 1968) to 1.7 million hectares.
Timber trade
Timber primary production (in tons of logs) of B.
sarmientoi in Argentina and Paraguay soared from
less than 500 tons in 2000 to 35,000 tons annually
in the last years, considering both countries togeth-
er. Argentina seems to be the main producer, with
more than 20,000 tons of timber harvested each
year. Most of the timber is destined to the interna-
tional market as logs or sawn wood. Export records
from Argentina diminished sharply in 2008 in the
context of a global economic crisis (FB 2010),
however, local authorities expect that trade will
reach, or even exceed, 2008s harvest levels by the
end of 2011. Trade statistics available from Para-
guay are dubious and probably under-represent ac-
tual trade volumes due to inconsistencies in report-
ing schemes (FB 2010). The recent inclusion of the
Palo Santo in CITES-Appendix II is expected to
improve trade control and reporting in both coun-
tries.
Figure 3. Bulnesia sarmientoi debarked logs being
Timber exports from Argentina (pooled data from transported to a sawmill (above); sawn wood finished
2006-2008) and Paraguay (pooled data from 2000- for flooring ready to export (bottom). Photo: T. Waller.

Page 6 May 2012

Formosa and Salta have been the main sources of 2000, 2002, 2010). Overall recorded trade in Guai-
Palo Santo timber; Formosa has accounted for 74% acum timber and extracts accounted for about 345
of all exports (data pooled for all years, Figure 4). tons in 29 years, and mostly involved Mexico as
The proportion of Palo Santo of total timber ex- the exporter and Germany as the importer and re-
ports increased from 0% in 2000 to about 9% in exporter (CITES Trade Database). There is no clear
2007 (FB 2010). indication that timber and essential oil trade in Palo
The two provinces allow harvest and transport of Santo have augmented as a result of the increased
timber under a weak enforcement system, mostly CITES-derivated controls over Guaiacum species.
based on quotas, minimum log diameter restric- In fact, current timber trade in Palo Santo is due to
tions, extraction permits and transport certificates. the increase in the demand from China since 2002,
Main constrains identified are the result of low while trade in its essential oil dates back to the be-
levels of in situ control of the harvest and of tim- ginning of the century. On the other hand, essential
ber transportation. Different taxes and rules with oil trade from Guaiacum species and B. arborea
regard to wood processing levels have indirectly has not been properly documented. It seems that
fostered smuggling activities between provincial Germany was a major importer of chips and wood
jurisdictions. Adulteration of transport permits and pulp of Guaiacum that could be attributed to this
false declaration of origin are usual practices – in industry (CITES 2000, CITES Trade Database),
fact, logs are known to rarely proceed from de- however, according to CITES statistics direct trade
clared harvest sites (FB 2010). in Guaiacum essential oil for the last two decades
seems negligible (i.e. 386 kg). B. arborea should
A recent study highlights the mining nature of the be included in Appendix II for look-alike reasons
selective B. sarmientoi logging at the local or plot and identification material either for essential oil
level (ZERBATTO ET AL. 2009). Accordingly, most and timber must be developed.
size classes of Palo Santo trees were harvested in
six sites evaluated. The volume of wood extracted Habitat trends
was, on average, 41% of the original standing vol- Deforestation has increased dramatically over the
ume, with 85% of extraction corresponding to trees last 15 years throughout the Chaco region in Ar-
larger than 30 cm in diameter (as required by the gentina and Paraguay. In Argentina the deforesta-
industry). The timber volume extracted was equal tion rate is about 1.3% per year (UMSEF 2006), but
to or higher than the volume of timber remaining mostly occurring out, or in the periphery, of the
in the forest. An analysis of the health condition distribution range of Palo Santo. Up to 2008 de-
of standing B. sarmientoi trees suggests that when forestation has affected less than 5% of the original
large trees persist in the forest these are cracked, Palo Santo distribution area, mostly in the province
hollow or have crooked logs, and would therefore of Salta (Figure 4). The situation in Paraguay is
be discarded by the industry. Large trees are thus no better, deforestation over the last 5 years has
not conserved because of forest management. Fi- reached unprecedented levels for the region. Trends
nally, it was observed that the amount of felled in Bolivia are much better: about 95% of its Chaco
logs abandoned in the forest, plus the volume of region is still under forest cover.
the thick branches of felled trees, is twice the vol-At one hand, deforestation is expected to increase
ume of timber effectively removed by the industry along the Palo Santo range area due to livestock
(ZERBATTO ET AL. 2009, Figure 3). rearing projects, but on the other hand, new legisla-
Trade in similar species tion in Argentina and Paraguay seeks to foster the
Bulnesia arborea from Northern South America progressive settlement of land management plans
and other Zygophyllacea species of the Genus to ensure forest persistence. In this scenery, the
Guaiacum from Central America and the Carib- long-term conservation of B. sarmientoi in these
bean used to be marketed under similar commer- countries will depend on land use planning and
cial names (“Lignum Vitae” or “Guaiac”) as B. regulation and the proper management of the re-
sarmientoi. All Guaiacum species are listed in maining Chaco forests (FB 2010).
CITES but this is not the case for B. arborea (CITES

Page 7 May 2012


Figure 4. Deforestation (black areas) throughout the
Palo Santo distribution range (stripped area) in North-
ern Argentina (FB, 2010).
Closing remarks
Argentina is currently the major exporter of B.
sarmientoi timber, while Paraguay is the main pro-
ducer of essential oil for the international perfumes
industry.
Under the observed pattern of extractive and selec-
tive use of Palo Santo in Argentina, conditions for
sustainability at the regional level are not yet en-
sured for this species, and much less at plot scale.
It is worth mentioning that Argentina is currently
undertaking a major effort to establish provincial
management plans aimed to protect the most im-
portant forest regions. As a result of this process
large tracts of woods are expected to persist and to
be managed for sustainable use.
Timber trade statistics in Paraguay are not reliable
to assess the magnitude of the harvest. Additional-
ly, Palo Santo inventory information is very scarce.
Producers argue that essential oil trade is not a
threatening factor for the B. sarmientoi, but for
this to be confirmed it will be necessary to clearly
demonstrate that wood used in oil distillation is by-
products of other activities (i.e. saw-mill debris,
abandoned logs, land clearing).
We hope that the recent inclusion of Palo Santo in
CITES-Appendix II will contribute to monitor in-
ternational trade and to foster internal management
schemes both in Argentina and Paraguay to warrant
the sustainable utilization of this precious species.
Acknowledgements
We would like to express our acknowledgments
to the Governments of Germany, Switzerland and
Page 8
The Netherlands for supporting our research, par-
ticularly, to Hajo Schimtz-Kretschmer (DE), Jonas
Luthy (CH), Mathias Loertscher (CH) and Stephan
Verbunt (NE). Emilio Buongermini gathered infor-
mation related to Paraguay; Juan Draque and Mari-
ano Barros carried out field-work in the provinces
of Formosa and Salta, Argentina; Marcelo Zerbatto
and Walter Degano designed field inventory activi-
ties. An anonymous reviewer provided useful com-
ments that helped us to improve this publication.
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30 Sept. 2010, Marrakech. – International Federation importante planta medicinal nativa del Trópico
of Essential Oils and Aroma Trades, London. Húmedo de América Tropical (Figura 1, 2). Con-
MERELES, F. & PÉREZ DE MOLAS, L. (2008): Bulnesia stituye una materia prima que, por más de 150
sarmientoi Lorentz ex Griseb (Zygophyllaceae): estu- años, ha sido objeto de comercio en América Lati-
dio de base para su inclusión en el Apéndice II de la na, en dos direcciones: localmente, para abastecer
Convención CITES. – WWF. Asunción, Paraguay. el mercado regional, caracterizado por volúmenes
MORELLO, J. (1968): La vegetación de la República pequeños; e internacionalmente para Europa y Es-
Argentina. Las grandes unidades de vegetación y am- tados Unidos de América, en mayores volúmenes
biente del chaco argentino. Primera parte: objetivos y (OCAMPO 1999).
metodología. – INTA, Serie Fitogeográfica 8:125pp.
MUTARELLI, E. J. (1979): Riqueza de los bosques es-
pontáneos. – In: COZZO, D. (Ed.), Arboles fore-
stales, maderas y silvicultura de la Argentina, Enciclo-
pedia Argentina de Agricultura y Jardinería, Segunda
Edición, Tomo II, Fascículo 16-1. Editorial ACME.
Buenos Aires. pp 18-33.
SCHILLER, C. & SCHILLER, D. (2008): The Aromath-
erapy Encyclopedia: A concise guide to over 385 plant
oils. – Basic Health Publications, Inc. 235pp.
UNA–GTZ. (1991): Vegetación y uso de la tierra de la
region occidental del Paraguay. – Universidad Na-
cional de Asunción and Misión Forestal Alemana, San
Lorenzo. Paraguay.
WALLER, T. & PUCCIO, G. (2010): Informe de la Fun-
dación Biodiversidad sobre la Misión a Paraguay.
Asunción, 1 al 4 de noviembre de 2010. – Fundación
Biodiversidad – Argentina, Buenos Aires.
Figura 1. Quassia amara L. (Simaroubace-
ZERBATTO, M., DEGANO, W.A., BARROS, M., DRAQUE, ae). Photo: Autor.
J., ALVARENGA, E. & WALLER, T. (2009): Situación
Las Buenas Prácticas de Cosecha de Poblaciones
de la especie Palo Santo (Bulnesia sarmientoi Lorentz
Silvestres constituyen una forma de contribuir con
ex Griseb) en la provincia de Formosa: estudio de si-
tios de extracción en los Departamentos Matacos y la conservación de la especie. Por esta razón la em-
Bermejo. – Estudio de Base para la Fundación Bio- presa Bougainvillea (Box 1) ha adoptado las nor-
diversidad con el apoyo de la Oficina Federal para la
mas creadas por el Centro Agronómico de Investi-
Protección de la Naturaleza – Alemania. Provincia degación y Enseñanza (CATIE) para su aplicación,
Formosa. bajo la supervisión técnica de un Técnico Forestal.
Tomás Waller • Fundación Biodiversidad Argenti- De igual forma se han dado acciones de domesti-
na • Juncal 754, 7th Floor, Apt. 60 • Buenos Aires • cación de la especie, por parte del Jardín Agr-
Argentina • email: biodiversidad@fibertel.com.ar oecológico de Plantas Medicinales Bougainvillea
en condiciones de cultivo agroecológico en el Car-
ibe de Costa Rica.
Page 9 May 2012
Como fortaleza de las acciones de manejo y con- La investigación va en la dirección de analizar y
servación de la especie, es importante señalar que comparar el abastecimiento de materia prima del
Q. amara tiene la capacidad de rebrotar posteri- arbusto de Q. amara, en relación con el suministro
ormente a su cosecha; por esta razón, solamente de madera proveniente de poblaciones silvestres,
estamos aprovechando el producto de cosecha, bajo un Plan de Manejo, en la Reserva Indígena
sin poner en peligro el recurso natural. Además, de Kekoldi, Talamanca, Limón, Costa Rica, y de
para completar un buen manejo del recurso natural poblaciones silvestres en Costa Rica. Estos últimas
debemos aplicar acciones en la cosecha silvestre se estima a nivel nacional en 40 ton como cosecha
que respeten árboles productores de semilla. En potencial para su comercio justo y el aprovechami-
este sentido, VILLALOBOS (1997) hace referencia ento de madera producida bajo un sistema produc-
a dejar 60 árboles mayores de 6 cm de diámetro tivo agroecológico, en asocio con el árbol mader-
por ha, con el propósito de aplicar una práctica de able, denominado laurel (Cordia alliodora), en el
cosecha silvestre bajo un Plan de Manejo. Pero el Jardín Agroecológico de Plantas Medicinales Bou-
mayor problema, que se podría relacionar con la gainvillea, en la Comunidad rural de la Esperanza,
desaparición de la Q. amara silvestre, es el cambio Matina, Limón, Costa Rica. Se analiza una estrate-
de uso del bosque húmedo tropical, para su trans gia de aprovechamiento de materia prima por un
período de 8 años, proveniente de ambos sistemas
de producción.
Características químicas de la materia prima
La industria requiere una materia prima que re-
sponda a normas de calidad, referido a la autenti-
cidad taxonómica de la especie y al contenido del
amaroide cuasina, lactona intensamente amarga.
También contiene neocuasinas y alcaloides del tipo
de la catin-6-ona.
Los radios medulares son de solo una o dos células
en el sentido de la anchura pero de hasta 30 célu-
Figura 2. Hojas de Quassia amara.
las en sentido longitudinal (TREASE & EVANS 1988,
Photo: Autor. CÁCERES 2006).
formación a otros sistemas de producción agrícola La materia prima de la Q. amara esta constituido
y ganadera. por la corteza y la madera, ambos de coloración
Bajo esta realidad latinoamericana de desaparición blanco-crema, con sabor amargo. El contenido de
de los bosques tropicales húmedos, hábitat de Q. cuasinoides en la madera proveniente de pobla-
amara, que esta poniendo la especie en peligro ciones silvestres esta entre un rango de 0.28-0.20%
de extinción y, en otra dirección, el aumento de la que corresponde a diámetros de 4.5 cm a hasta de
demanda local e internacional de la madera de Q. 1.5 cm., respectivamente.
amara, es urgente establecer sistemas de produc- La madera (xilema) tiene una humedad de 40%;
ción agroecológicas. Esto para lograr abastecer mientras la corteza contiene, en promedio, 60%
la demanda y contribuir con la conservación de (Villalobos et al. 1996) si la madera proviene de
la especie y su variabilidad genética, de las pocas poblaciones silvestres; mientras que en el material
poblaciones silvestres establecidas dentro del Sis- proveniente de rebrotes de iguales poblaciones, el
tema Nacional de Áreas de Conservación en Costa contenido de humedad promedio de la madera más
Rica. Precisamente la presión ejercida por el mer- la corteza es de 49.3% (GUZMÁN 2000).
cado internacional hacia las poblaciones silvestres Estas características de contenidos de humedad
conlleva que para el año de 1999 la materia prima constituyen aportes para lograr la industrialización
exportada ya no corresponde a la especie de Q. am- de la madera de la Q. amara como extracto estand-
ara, en su lugar se incorporan otras especies de la arizado, empleado como saborizante en la industria
Familia Simaroubaceae (OCAMPO & MORA 2012).

Page 10 May 2012

 combatir nauseas. En Italia se usa contra los piojos.
Además del uso etnomédico ya mencionado, en
Costa Rica se utiliza la madera en el uso veteri-
nario para desparasitar animales. En Nicaragua las
hojas y madera se emplean en forma externa para
el control de garrapatas.
En Costa Rica se ha desarrollado un fitofármaco
a partir de la madera y corteza autorizado por el
Ministerio de Salud.
Q. amara - producto no maderable del bosque
Figura 3. Quassia amara cultivación. Photo: Autor. Costa Rica, es un país de solamente 51,000 km2, de
los cuales un 40% corresponde a cobertura arbórea.
alimentaria, biopesticida, uso veterinario y fitofár- De esta cobertura, un 30% está bajo diversas cat-
maco. Además de su aprovechamiento como planta egorías de protección por parte del Ministerio del
ornamental por sus atractivas flores rojas, visitadas Medio Ambiente, lo que conduce a la existencia de
por aves e insectos. un 10%, de área potencial para el aprovechamiento
de poblaciones silvestres de Q. amara. Los estudios
Uso tradicional e industrial de distribución de Q. amara en Costa Rica (VILLA-
En Costa Rica, al igual que en otros países latinoa- LOBOS 1996) confirman poblaciones dispersas y de
mericanos y de Europa, hay varios usos etnomédi- tamaño reducido, en bosques de baja altitud (0-500
cos de Q. amara. metros sobre el nivel del mar), en ambas regiones
En Costa Rica, se usa tradicionalmente la infusión costeras del Caribe y Pacífica. No existen estudios
de la corteza y madera partida en trozos como técnicos que identifiquen, de manera sistemática,
tónico amargo, estimulante del apetito, febrífugo el volumen de materia prima proveniente de pobla-
y en forma de enemas. También se usa como an- ciones silvestres dentro del territorio nacional.
tihelmíntico contra oxiuros, contra las afecciones De acuerdo con la ejecución de un Plan de Aprove-
gástricas, para purificar la sangre, contra la fiebre y chamiento Sostenible, planificado en la Reserva
los parásitos intestinales. Indígena de Kekoldi (MARMILLOD ET AL. 1995), la
En Guatemala se usa la infusión, el polvo y la tin- capacidad productiva de 125 ha es de 12 ton, con
tura de la madera, el polvo y la decocción de la un corte promedio anual de 1,800 kg y una rotación
raíz y en homeopatía. El vino amargo se usa para de 6 años. Es importante aclarar que no toda el área
combatir la nausea y mejorar la digestión. de 125 ha es productiva comercialmente, además
que debido a ser plantaciones silvestres, no es ac-
En Honduras se toma la corteza hervida para el do- onsejable dar rendimientos por hectárea. De acuer-
lor de estomago, diabetes, fortificar la sangre, mal do con este estudio a nivel nacional se estima un
de orin, diarrea y migraña. También se utiliza la volumen aprovechable de 40 ton, lo que representa
corteza cocinada para lavados de heridas. una cosecha anual de 6.6 ton, igual situación se da
En Colombia se usa madera en maceración en en este caso, no es viable dar rendimientos por ha.
agua fría o infusión y es reconocido como uno de Posterior a la cosecha de la población selecciona-
los mejores tónicos amargos empleados contra la da, la Q. amara tiene la capacidad de rebrotar. Por
atonía de los órganos digestivos. esta razón se analiza el escenario de aprovechami-
En Argentina y Bolivia, la madera del palo amargo, ento de rebrotes procedentes de poblaciones silves-
macerada en alcohol se emplea en forma externa tres, en donde la situación de rendimiento es más
para el control de piojos. compleja, debido a que su crecimiento depende de
factores de luminosidad de forma natural. Sobre
En Europa se preparan vinos amargos, por mace- este manejo, existe poca investigación, que aporte
ración de una pequeña cantidad de madera, para elementos para su rendimiento.

Page 11 May 2012

A manera de estudio de caso se hace referencia a Estas producciones no contemplan la producción
una primera investigación, realizada en Talamanca de poblaciones silvestres.
(GUZMÁN 2000), en donde de acuerdo con las ta-
sas de rebrote de la especie, de 134 g/tallo/año, que Estrategia de aprovechamiento de madera de
responde a una zona productiva de alta luminosi- Q. amara
dad. Es importante señalar que al aplicar el Plan de Dos estrategias están definidas:
Aprovechamiento, el rendimiento por individuo no
se repite en el futuro, debido a lo heterogéneo del 1. Aprovechamiento de poblaciones silves-
dosel superior, ya que la respuesta va a ser muy es- tres, bajo un plan de manejo.
pecifica, determinada por las condiciones de sitio, 2. Aprovechamiento de poblaciones culti-
además, es importante señalar que no existe aún vadas bajo buenas prácticas agrícolas.
referencia sobre los contenidos de cuasinoides en la
madera. Esta situación es diferente cuando se trata El aprovechamiento en ambos casos va a estar bajo
de la primera cosecha de poblaciones silvestres, en supervisión técnica de la Empresa Bougainvillea
las cuales la primera cosecha produce volúmenes S.A. Es importante señalar que las proyecciones
entre 9-16 kilos por individuo, ya que responde a establecidas parten de un proceso de investigación
un crecimiento silvestre que ha consumido mucho en progreso y diagnósticos preliminares que, con
tiempo. el transcurso del tiempo, van a aportar elementos
técnicos para su ajuste
Cultivo agroecologico
La investigación en progreso es importante, para
Las características ecológicas de poblaciones sil-
su análisis, pues este es el caso de un arbusto que
vestres de Q. amara, de una distribución restring-
provee madera como materia prima, además de ser
ida en el sotobosque y con una alta respuesta de
objeto de extractivismo de los bosques. Para las
producción de biomasa por efecto de la luminosi-
consideraciones del estudio de proyección parti-
dad (MARMILLOD ET AL. 1995, VILLALOBOS 1995,
mos de que la empresa Bougainvillea – Extractos
LEIGUE 1997, GUZMÁN 2000), contribuyen a bus-
Vegetales, va a procesar esta especie para el mer-
car alternativas para su manejo agroecologico, con
cado; principalmente como biopesticida.
el propósito de aumentar la producción de materia
prima. Abastecimiento de Q. amara cultivado en un sis-
Por esta razón el Jardín Agroecologico de Plan- tema agroecologico y de poblaciones silvestres
tas Medicinales Bougainvillea inició acciones La empresa Bougainvillea, S.A. ha implementado
de manejo de Q. amara a partir del año 2000, acciones de domesticación de Q. amara desde 1986.
planteándose el establecimiento de 100,000 plantas Por esta razón cuenta en el Jardín Agroecológico
en un período de 10 años, con el apoyo financiero con una población aproximada de 2,000 arbustos
del Proyecto O.E.A./A.I.C.D “Desarrollo de Tec- que, para el año 2004, estarán aportando más de
nología de Cultivo de Plantas Medicinales y Pro- 8,000 semillas para su multiplicación. Al presente
ducción de Fitoterápicos”. El proyecto avanza con se cuenta con una cosecha estimada de 2 millones
el establecimiento de 62,000 individuos dentro de de semillas anual.
un modelo Agroecológico de producción. El Cuadro no. 1 muestra la población estimada de
Para el año 2012 se ha establecido el cultivo agr- siembra acumulada, a partir del año 2001 y hasta
oecológico y se cuenta con la producción de mad- 2006. Además estima la producción anual de mate-
era y hojas para abastecer la industrialización de ria prima, seis años después de la siembra, en kilos
la Q. amara, transformada en extractos estandari- de material seco, por un período de 5 años (2007
zados. En la actualidad, la empresa Bougainvillea – 2012).
esta en capacidad de producir un volumen de 20
Condiciones ecológicas y Sistema de siembra
ton de madera deshidratada, por año, para su indus-
trialización. De igual forma existen iniciativas de La empresa ha implementado el cultivo orgánico,
cultivo asociado a cultivos agrícolas por parte de utilizando semilla sexual, bajo un sistema de pro-
pequeños agricultores que aumentan el volumen. ducción agroecológica en el Caribe de Costa Rica,
con una precipitación de 4,000 mm, una temperat-
Page 12 May 2012
 Cuadro 1. Fecha de siembra de Quassia amara y primera Cuadro no. 3. Aprovechamiento de madera de Quassia
cosecha estimada. Período 2001 – 2012. amara silvestre, bajo Plan de Manejo, Costa Rica.
Año de No. acu- Año de Producción Año Cosecha, kg Volumen, kg
siembra1 mulado de cosecha2 anual, kg fresco1 seco2
plantas de material 2009 7,000 4,200
seco3
2010 7,000 4,200
1 (2001) 8,000 2007 5,280 2011 7,000 4,200
2 (2002) 10,000 2008 6,600 2012 7,000 4,200
3 (2003) 10,000 2009 6,600 2013 3,400 2,000
4 (2004) 10,000 2010 6,600 2014 3,400 2,000
5 (2005) 12,000 2011 7,920
6 (2006) 12,000 2012 7,920 razón, posterior a partir de la primera cosecha, se
1
Siembra Octubre – Diciembre
inicia el rebrote que se permite desarrollar por un
2
Referido a un período de 6 años período de dos años (determinado por la empresa),
3
Calculado para una producción de 1.1 kilos/planta y un en dondeestá lista la planta para volver a cosechar.
rendimiento de 60% Se estima, basado en observaciones previas, que
las cosechas de rebrotes se pueden realizar cada
ura media de 28 C, y una humedad relativa de 90%.
dos años, a partir de la primera cosecha, a nivel
Además se cuenta con material sembrado por me-
de la base, con un rendimiento de 1.3 kg de mate-
dio de acodos y se investigan métodos de reproduc-
rial fresco por individuo-rebrote (OCAMPO & DÍAZ
ción por estaca. El propósito de los dispositivos de
2006). No se cuenta con datos de investigación que
investigación es aumentar el rendimiento por árbol
demuestren la vida útil de la plantación, aunque en
Producción de primera cosecha de cultivo agr- forma silvestre es perenne.
oecológico El Cuadro no. 2 muestra la producción de la pob-
Para realizar las estimaciones de producción por lación por un período de 6 años (2007 – 2012), que
año, previamente se contó con un dispositivo de corresponde a una población de 62,000 individuos
investigación establecido en 1998 en donde se ob- en un área estimada de 14 ha.
tuvieron los siguientes resultados: la primera co-
secha se ejecuta a los 6 años, para un volumen pro- Cosecha sustentable de madera de poblaciones sil-
medio estimado de 1.1 kilo fresco por arbusto, con vestres
un diámetro mayor a 2.5 cm., a una altura sobre la Como se mencionó en párrafos anteriores, la pro-
superficie del suelo de 0.30 m., y un contenido de ductividad de poblaciones silvestres es estimada.
cuasina no menor a 0.20 %. También es importante señalar que para ejecutar
la primera cosecha de poblaciones silvestres, el
Cuadro no. 2. Estimación de rebrote de Quassia amara
cultivada. Período 2009 – 2014.
rendimiento es alto (9 – 16 kilos por árbol), como
consecuencia de mayor período de crecimiento. El
Año No. de plan- Rebrote año Masa de material período de cosecha silvestre, a nivel de empresa, es
tas seco, kg
estimado para un lapso de tiempo de únicamente 5
años (2009 – 2014) (Cuadro no. 3).
2001 8,000 2009 6,720 A partir del año 2013, se considera un menor volu-
2002 10,000 2010 8,400 men de aprovechamiento, estimado en 2 ton, por
2003 10,000 2011 8,400 ser rebrote con menor rendimiento. A partir de la
2004 10,000 2012 8,400 primera cosecha (2009 – 2014), se va a incentivar el
2005 12,000 2013 10,080 manejo de las poblaciones silvestres y el enriquec-
2006 12,000 2014 10,080 imiento del área para aumentar el rendimiento y su
rentabilidad. Es importante señalar, que a partir del
Cosecha de rebrotes
año 2012, la empresa únicamente está procesando
La Q. amara, tiene la capacidad de rebrotar, cuan- un 20% de material silvestre y, a partir del 2013,
do se realiza la cosecha de la madera. Por esta solamente un 10.0%.
Page 13 May 2012
Aprovechamiento integral de materia prima pro- manejo integral constituye la forma adecuada para
cedente de cultivo y poblaciones silvestres. enfrentar una demanda creciente en el futuro.
Durante el primer año de producción, en el 2007, la
Esta iniciativa desarrollada con un importante pro-
planta será abastecida con 5,280 kilos de material
ducto no maderable del bossque, propio del bosque
secos procedente de cultivo. El Cuadro No. 4 hace
tropical húmedo, que ha sido explotado de pobla-
referencia a los volúmenes de materia seca por un
ciones silvestres, demuestra que es factible desarr-
período de 8 años (2007 – 2014) y su procedenciaollar herramientas técnicas para contribuir a la con-
para una industrialización total de 132,840 kilos,
servación y desarrollo de la biodiversidad nativa.
en un período de 8 años. Es importante señalar que se cuenta con herramien-
La materia prima está constituida por corteza y tas técnicas básicas para lograr un manejo sustent-
madera con un promedio de humedad entre 12- able, pero ello implica el considerar la realización
18%. de investigaciones para lograr mejores resultados
hacia el futuro.
Cuadro no. 4. Abastecimiento estimado de madera seca Agradecimiento
de Hombre grande. Período 2007 – 2014.
Al Proyecto Desarrollo de Tecnología de Cultivo
Año Cultivado Silvestre Masa de
de Plantas Medicinales y Producción de Fitoterápi-
material
seco, kg cos O.E.A. (AICD), por el aporte financiero para
2007 5,280 0 5,280 establecer el modelo agroecologico para el cultivo
del arbusto de Q. amara en el Jardín Agroecolog-
2008 6,600 0 6,600
ico Bougainvillea, Matina, Costa Rica, al Centro
2009 6,600 + 4,200 17,520 de Investigación y enseñanza (CATIE) en Turri-
6,720 alba, Costa Rica, por la iniciativa de investigación
2010 6,600 + 4,200 19,200 de la Quassia amara como producto no maderable
8,400 del bosque (PNMB), dentro del Proyecto de Con-
2011 7,920 + 4,200 20,520 servación y Desarrollo.(OLAFO), al CIPRONA,
8,400 U,C.R. y al Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad
2012 7,920 + 4,200 20,520 (INBIO) dentro de la iniciativa del Proyecto IN-
8,400 BIO/BID/Fomin, que la empresa Bougainvillea fue
2013 7,920 + 2,000 20,000 participé.
10,080 Referencias
2014 7,920 + 2,000 20,000 CÁCERES, A. (ed.). (2006): Propuesta de Monografías
20,080 Farmacopeicas de 10 plantas medicinales Centroa-
Totales 108,840 20,800 129,640 mericanas. – Proyecto OEA/AICD/USAC-089/05.
Guatemala. 88p.
GUZMÁN, V. (2000): Evaluación del crecimiento de
Discusión
Hombre Grande (Quassia amara) como respuesta a la
Es evidente que para el aprovechamiento de la poda en “Baja Talamanca”, Limón, Costa Rica. Tesis
madera de Q. amara, existen herramientas impor- de grado. – Universidad Nacional, Escuela de Cien-
tantes para lograr un aprovechamiento integral de cias Ambientales, Heredia. 89p.
las poblaciones silvestres y cultivadas, sin poner en LEIGUE, L. (1997): Elementos ecológicos para la silvi-
peligro la especie dentro del medio ambiente y con- cultura de Quassia amara en Talamanca. Costa Rica.
tar con volúmenes adecuados en la fase de industri- Tesis Mag. Sc. – CATIE, Turrialba. 93p.
alización de la madera de Q. amara, manteniendo MARMILLOD, D., CHANG, Y., BEDOYA, R. (1995): Plan
factores de calidad. De igual forma, es evidente de aprovechamiento sostenible de Quassia amara en
la Reserva Indígena de Kékoldi. In: Ocampo, R. (ed.),
que el suministro exclusivo de materia prima de
Potencial de Quassia amara como insecticida natural.
poblaciones silvestres, al menos en Costa Rica, no Serie técnica, informe técnico 267. – CATIE, Turri-
satisface el desarrollo industrial de una pequeña alba. pp. 68-90.
empresa basado exclusivamente en poblaciones OCAMPO, R. (1999): Situación de comercio de plan-
silvestres de Q. amara. Por esta razón el lograr un tas medicinales en América Latina In: Memorias XII
Page 14 May 2012
 Seminario Nacional de Plantas Medicinales. Petén, Chile, in a surface of 155,000 km2, accounting for
Guatemala. pp. 127-132. 20 percent of the total country. This flora has a high
OCAMPO, R. & DÍAZ, R. (2006): Cultivo, conservación degree of endemism with 2,630 species, reaching
e industrialización del Hombre Grande (Quassia ama- 51,8% of the total number of species (MARTICORE-
ra). – Litografía e Imprenta LIL, San José. 70p. NA 1990). Central Chile has also supported a long
OCAMPO, R. & MORA, G. (2012): Ethnomedicine of
history of human occupation and has a relatively
Quassia and related plants in tropical America. In:
RAI, M., ACHARYA, D., RÍOS, J.L. (eds.), Ethnomedic- high density of population. In fact, 80% of the
inal plants, revitalization of traditional knowledge of country’s population is distributed in this area thus
herbs. – Science Publishers, Enfield, New Hampshire. and the high demand for land to develop cities and
pp. 301-332. agriculture has caused a significant reduction in the
TREASE, G. & EVANS, W. (1988): Tratado de Farmacog- area occupied by native wild vegetation (ARROYO
nosia 12 ed. – Editorial Interamericana México, D.F. & CAVIERES 1997). Furthermore, the survival of
VILLALOBOS, R. (1995): Distribución de Quassia ama- some species, particularly endemic species and
ra en Costa Rica y su relación con los contenidos de
those of restricted distribution, is threatened by
cuasina y neocuasina (insecticidas naturales) en sus
indiscriminate extraction for medicinal and aro-
tejidos. Tesis Mag. Sc. – CATIE, Turrialba. 174p.
VILLALOBOS, R., MARMILLOD, D., OCAMPO, R., matic uses (MONTENEGRO 2000, MONTENEGRO ET
MORA, G., ROJAS, G. (1997): Variations in the AL. 2003)
Quassin and Neoquassin content in Quassia amara In Chile, there is a vast traditional knowledge on
(Simaroubaceae) in Costa Rica: ecological and man-
medicinal plants, a fundamental resource of prima-
agement implications. In: GILBERTI, G., CRAKER,
ry health care for a great part of the population in
L., LORENZ, M., MATHÉ, A., GIULIETTI, A. (eds.), II
indigenous and rural zones, as well as an important
WOCMAP Congress Medicinal and Aromatic Plants,
source of income for these sectors. Besides wild
Part 3: Agricultural Production, Post Harvest Tech-
harvesting a source of plant material is through
niques, Biotechnology. International Society for Hor-
ticultural Science, Leuven. cultivation. As quality requirements are becom-
ing more and more stringent, standardization for
Rafael Ángel Ocampo Sánchez • Jardín Agr- pure products, extracts or crude drugs is of crucial
oecológico de Plantas Medicinales Bougainvillea • importance. In Chile a few exotic and introduced
Santo Domingo, Heredia, Costa Rica • e-mail: species of medicinal and aromatic plants are under
bougainvillea@ice.co.cr cultivation. Examples are: Matricaria chamomilla,
Hypericum perforatum, Rosa eglanteria sin. Rosa
rubiginosa, Calendula officinalis, and Rosmari-
nus officinalis. Favorable growing conditions and
Regional file public-private investments in research has enabled
increases in the national supply of plant material
and production for export.
Threats to Chilean medicinal plants
Chilean medicinal plants Wild harvesting of plant material from natural hab-
Gloria Montenegro & Sharon Rodríguez itats of the medicinal species in central Chile is a
very popular tradition and practice, and there is con-
cern due to the great amount of biomass collected
Introduction
every year; especially regarding plants classified as
Central Chile represents one of the biodiversity vulnerable (SQUEO ET AL. 2010). Concerns of me-
hotspots on earth, with high plant diversity and en- dicinal plant trade reach to policy makers and local
demism, and increasing human population density people, mainly because of the lack of knowledge
(CINCOTTA ET AL. 2000). A total of 5,082 species regarding in situ regeneration and the conservation
have been described for continental Chile (ARROYO status of species that are intensively harvested. A
& CAVIERES 1997), and around half of these are few case studies focusing on species biology have
found in the Mediterranean climate area of central been done (MONTENEGRO ET AL. 1979, 2001, 2003,

Page 15 May 2012

WILCKENS 2005, MONTENEGRO 2006, FISCHER ET
AL. 2010) to establish models of plant regeneration
based on morphology, seasonality and the position
of renewal buds, suggesting the right way to har-
vest a given species in a sustainable way.
Natural fires have not played an important role in
plant species evolution of the Chilean matorral
(ARMESTO & GUTIERREZ 1978, MUÑOZ & FUENTES
1989, MONTENEGRO ET AL. 2004). But anthropogen-
ic fires affect thousands of hectares, especially the
matorral, every year in central Chile (CONAF 2010).
Native species’ seeds generally cannot tolerate tem-
peratures above 100 degrees Celsius and the soil
seed bank is reported reduced (MUÑOZ & FUENTES
1989, GOMEZ-GONZALEZ & CAVIERES 2009). An
example is Helenium aromaticum, an important
medicinal plant growing on the herbaceous strata
of the matorral, whose seedlings do not emerge
after application of intense fire on soil samples
(GOMEZ-GONZALES ET AL. 2011). H. aromaticum
appears today as one of the most vulnerable annual
species due to severe fires and heavy commercial
harvesting during the vegetative growth period.
In the arid zones of the country charcoal produc-
tion from woody shrubs is one of the main threats
to native vegetation (ESTEVEZ ET AL. 2010). The
main species used for charcoal production in the
Figure 1. Boldo - Peamus boldus. Photo: G. Montenegro.
Page 16
Chilean Mediterranean arid and semiarid zone are:
Balsamocarpon brevifolium, Adesmia hystrix, Fa-
biana imbricata, Acacia caven, Peumus boldus,
Quillaja saponaria, Porlieria chilensis and Schi-
nus polygamus.
A history of studies of medicinal plants in Chile
The high floral diversity of Chile incorporates a
great number of species with healing properties.
The curative attributes of some plants have been
historically transmitted by indigenous populations
through many generations, mainly orally and with
great development in the 19th century. The diver-
sity of the Chilean flora made possible the natural
growth of more than a thousand species of medici-
nal plants, forming diverse pharmacological vari-
eties of astringent, diuretic, analgesic, antipyretic
and soothing, among others attributes, identified
by the doctors then. Native plants like cachanla-
gua (Centaurium cachanlahuen), paico (Chenopo-
dium ambrosioides), quinchamalí (Quinchamalium
chilense), viravira (Gnaphalium viravira) and cin-
namon tree (Drymis winteri) are some of the best-
known by their therapeutic uses during the Colo-
nial Period in Chile (CRUZ-COKE 1995).
CRUZ-COKE (1995) is one of the first authors to
compile information on medicinal plant species
used in Chile. He details the investigations of Fa-
May 2012
ther Luis Feuilleé, published in 1714, who indicated Chemical properties of native plants
medicinal uses of plants of Peru and Chile; he pro- There is an ancient knowledge regarding the iden-
vides information on the social and medical work tification, harvesting and medicinal use of Chilean
of Doctor Adolfo Murillo, mainly the publication native plants and their chemical principles (active
of the Chilean Pharmacopoeia in 1886; and he in- ingredients) that are used in fields like medicine,
forms of Guajardo’s work in the year 1890, which perfumery, cosmetics, eating industry, industrial
described chemical characteristics of some Chilean and agricultural use. Results of scientific inves-
medicinal plants. GUSINDE (1936) published works tigations ratify the efficacy of the majority of the
related to the traditional uses of medicinal plants medicinal plants used by native towns on specific
by the southern indigenous tribes of the country. illnesses, like skin and urinary infections or hy-
In the early twentieth century, plants in their natu- pertensive crisis, as well as for their antioxidant,
ral state were already part of medical studies. Sup- antirheumatic or diuretic properties (RUZ 2011).
ported by the constant development of chemistry it The Chilean flora has shown to be a good resource
was possible to investigate the active ingredients of of biologically active compounds, such as antibac-
medicinal plants. Scientific publications from the terials, antifungals, and antioxidants (MONTENE-
second half of last century strengthened medicinal GRO 2000, 2006, VOGEL 2000, MUÑOZ ET AL. 2001,
herbs through the study of the chemical components MONTENEGRO ET AL. 2001, 2003, 2005, FISCHER ET
that give value to medicinal plants, diversifying the AL. 2007, 2010, VOGEL ET AL. 2010). Because of the
medical practices (PACHECO ET AL. 1977, MONTES high degree of endemism, primarily from Chile’s
& WILKOMIRSKY 1987, MUÑOZ ET AL. 2001). central regions (ARROYO & CAVIERES 1997), it is
Recently, HOFFMAN ET AL. (2003) identified and de- reasonable to propose that products with unique
scribed medicinal plants commonly used in Chile and particular bioactive properties are likely to be
through ethnobotanical information about the tra- found. Examples are chemical compounds present
ditional medicinal uses of more than 60 species in honey and propolis, which are closely associated
of Chilean plants. LOOSER & RODRÍGUEZ (2004) with the botanical origin that they have (ÁVILA ET
described the medicinal attributes of the Chilean AL. 1993, MONTENEGRO 2000, MUÑOZ ET AL. 2001,
pteridophytes based on an unpublished manuscript 2007, MONTENEGRO ET AL. 2008, 2009, 2010).
of the naturalist Walterio Looser. The authors do Research on determining levels of antimicrobial
clarify, however, that in relation to Chilean medici- activity (HEDERRA 2011), on the antioxidant, an-
nal plants “many points that have to be clarified timicrobial and antihypertensive activity levels of
still remain”. native plants and on the identification of types of
MONTENEGRO ET AL. (2009) in their work “Secret responsible compounds for this activity through
of our plants and other species: how to use them the combination of bioassays with chemical analy-
for the benefit of the people”, made a contribution sis has been extensively developed (MONTENEGRO
to the rescue and preservation of the cultural patri- 2000, SIMONSEN ET AL. 2006, MONTENEGRO ET AL.
mony of Chile, putting together antecedents related 2008, 2009, 2010).
to the multiple uses of the plants (medicinal, cos- Extraordinary medicinal and cosmetic properties
metic, and domestic uses, among others) that form have been identified in murta or murtilla (Ugni
part of the traditions and traditional knowledge of molinae), a southern native Chilean fruit that his-
our country. In a similar trend MONTENEGRO (2000) torically has been part of the diet of native towns
and MONTENEGRO ET AL. (2010) rescue the value of (INIA 2005). It has a high content of poliphenols,
those native plants used selectively by honeybees terpenes and tannins, compounds that make murta
(Apis mellifera) for collection of nectar yielding a very attractive element for the dermatological
honey with medicinal properties (MONTENEGRO industry, given its regenerative tissue and healing
2007). Lastly, it is worth mentioning the significant qualities, besides multiple uses already applied in
contribution made by a group of experts called by the national agro food industry.
the Department of Health who carried out an em-
pirical land registry of the medicinal plants, regis- Chilean medicinal plants and their use
tering 460 different species (PROTEGE 2009). Only a few species of Chilean medicinal plants are
Page 17 May 2012
widely available in natural populations, with no distribution.
need of management for protection. Many of the The main species exported from Chile are rosa
plants that are part of Chile’s national herbarium mosqueta (Rosa aff. rubiginosa) and oregano (Ori-
are in a state of vulnerability associated mainly ganum vulgare), with a considerable increase in
with informal indiscriminate harvesting. the production of chamomile and boldo. Rosa mos-
The increase in demand for natural products (es- queta and hazelnut seed oils occupy an important
pecially plants), nationally and internationally, has place in the national and international cosmetic
positive effects in promoting the conservation of dustry, with Chile the major producer and export-
natural plant populations with commercial poten- er of rosa mosqueta oil in the world, mainly to
tial. For this reason it is useful to characterize the France, Germany and Japan. Also, the exports of
conservation state of native Chilean plants with plants extracts have considerably increased, among
medicinal potential. Table 1 was constructed with them, processed extracts of quillay, hiperico, va-
that purpose; it shows native and endemic species nilla and parsley, and also a growing production
in Chile, their taxonomic identification, growth and export of peppermint essential oils (FIA 2008).
form, and state of conservation.
Sustainable harvest: regeneration models in
Chilean medicinal plant trade plants used for medicinal purposes
Medicinal plants are traded in fairs and local mar- Research on conservation and sustainable use of
kets by fruit pickers and herbalists. The products are medicinal plants is being developed at the Catholic
hand-packed and characterized by irregular qual- University as part of the International Cooperative
ity. Data from 2007 show the entrance of medicinal Biodiversity Group (ICBG); the studies seek to
herbs in Chilean homes, with an average growth in strike a balance between exploitation and conser-
the consumption of around 20% (PROCHILE 2007). vation of natural plant resources in collaboration
This has encouraged the development of compa- with people who collect and sell medicinal plants,
nies and research institutions to use plant products with a focus on explaining the impact of local
and plant selection in areas of food, cosmetics and practices on the conservation of intensively har-
drugs, focusing mainly on folk medicine (EVENSON vested species (MONTENEGRO 1994, 2005). So far
& WESTPHAL 1995, GUZMÁN ET AL. 2004). Still the data on species threatened by overexploitation has
yearly per capita consumption of purchased me been collected: areas of exploitation, the amount
dicinal plant based material is low compared with- of biomass gathered, the frequency of collection,
Europe. and methods of plant harvesting. The biology of
these species has been studied to develop morpho-
There is in Chile a recent approach to the global logical models of regeneration based on position
market for medicinal plants (POLANCO 2011). Fig- and location on types of branches of renewal buds.
ures from the last decade (FIA 2008) indicated an Based on monitoring of experimental plots growth
increase of almost 60% in exports of medicinal dynamics have been studied to calculate rates of
herbs. Shortcomings identified in relation to trade regeneration after harvesting (MONTENEGRO ET AL.
are associated with safety and efficiency records, 2003).
standardization, and clinical knowledge, among
others (LOBOS 2011, MARLES 2011, POLANCO Sustainable medicinal plant management strategies
2011). based on regeneration models have been developed
by MONTENEGRO ET AL. (2007). The quantification
The industrialization of the medicinal herb prod- of the increment rates of the number of leaves, fo-
ucts has great potentials but entrance to the de- liar area and length of the stems provides informa-
manding markets of Europe and USA is challeng- tion on the seasonal dynamics of vegetation growth
ing and requires elaboration and implementation (MONTENEGRO ET AL. 1979, 1982, MONTENEGRO
of supportive regulations. The recognition of the 1987). Species-specific growth measurements, in
Chilean Department of Health of 52 herbs as ‘tra- combination with the information about the availa-
ditional medicine herbs’ is a measure that, besides bility of the resources, then allow determination of
recognizing officially the curative properties of the sustainable use rates and use types (cutting of trees,
plants, implies a greater control in their sale and
Page 18 May 2012
TABLE 1. Identification, description and conservation status of major Chilean plants.
Scientific name Common name Scientific name Common name

Cons. status
Cons. status

Growth
Growth

form
form
Acacia caven Espino, Aromo T, S Ephedra chilensis Pingo-pingo, Trans- S
Acaena alpina Cepacaballo, Cadillo P montana, Solupe, Sea
grape
Acaena splendens Cadillo, abrojo, amores P
secos Equisetum bogotense Yerba del platero, P
Limpia plata, Hierba de
Acantholippia deserticola Rica-rica, Kore S la plata, Canutillo
Adesmia emarginata Paramela, Paramilla P Escallonia illinita Barraco, Corontillo, S
Aloysa salvifolia Cedrón del monte/Chil- S V Ñipa
ean lemon beebrush, Escallonia pulverulenta Madroño, Corontillo, S
Lemon verbena Siete camisas
Araucaria araucana Araucaria, pehuén, T V Escallonia revoluta Lun T
Piñonero
Escallonia rubra Siete camisas colorado, S
Argemone hunnemannii Cardo santo A Ñipa, Yang-yang
Argemone subfusiformis Cardo blanco A, B Escallonia virgata Mata negra, Meki S
Aristolochia chilensis Oreja de zorro, Hierba P Eucryphia cordifolia Ulmo, muermo T
de la Virgen María,
Birthwort, Pipevine, Fabiana imbricata Pichi, Peta, Romero S
Dutchman’s pipe Francoa appendiculata Llaupangue, Vara de P
Aristotelia chilensis Maqui T mármol
Azara mycrophylla Chin-chin, Roblecillo S Fuchsia magellanica Chilco, Chilca, Palo S
blanco
Azorella compacta Llareta S V
Gaultheria mucronata Chaura S
Berberis empetrifolia Uva de la cordillera, S
Palo amarillo, Barberry Geranium
Bomarea salsilla Salsilla, Zarcilla, S core-core Geranium core-core P
Copihuito Geum quellyon Hierba del clavo, Hal- P
Buddleja globosa Matico, Pañil S V lante
Calceolaria arachnoidea Capachito morado P Gevuina avellana Avellano, Gevuín T
Calceolaria thyrsiflora Capachito, Hierba P Gnaphalium viravira Viravira, Hierba de la P
dulce vida, Hierba de la diuca
Centaurium cachanla- Cachanlahue, Cachen, A V Gunnera tinctoria Nalca, Pangue S
huen Kachan-l-awen Haplopappus baylahuen Baylahuén S
Cestrum parqui Palqui, Parqui, Hedi- S Haplopappus foliosus Cuerno de cabra S
ondilla Haplopappus multifolius Bailahuén, Cacho de S
Cheilanthes glauca Doradilla P cabra
Cissus striata Voqui colorado S Helenium aromaticum Manzanilla del cerro P V
Colletia spinosa Crucero, Yaqui, Cunco S Kageneckia oblonga Bollén T
Colliguaja odorifera Colliguay, Coliguay, S Lampaya medicinalis Lampaya S
Lechón Latua pubiflora Palo muerto, Palo de S
Convulvulus arvensis Correhuela, Correvuela P brujos, Latué
Coriaria ruscifolia Deu, Huique, Matara- S Laurelia sempervirens Laurel, Trihue T
tones Linum chamissonis Ñancolahuén, Reta- P
Corynabutilon viride Huella S milla
Corynabutilon vitifolium Huella T, S Lithrea caústica Litre T
Cryptocarya alba Peumo T Lobelia tupa Tabaco del diablo, S
Cuscuta chilensis Cabello de ángel A Tupa, Trupa
Discaria serratifolia Chacay, Espino blanco S Lomatia dentata Piñol, Avellanillo, Palo T
negro
Drimys winteri Canelo, Fuñe, Boighe, T
Boique Lomatia ferruginea Fuinque, Palmilla T
Elytropus chilensis Quilmay, Poroto del S Lomatia hirsuta Radal, Raral, Nogal T E
campo silvestre

Page 19 May 2012

TABLE 1. Continued - Chilean plants. grazing and harvest for human medicinal use) by
Scientific name Common name the community (MONTENEGRO 1986, 1987, ÁVILA-

Growth form

Cons. status
ET AL. 1988), as well as the efficiency in the use of
the available resources.
The massive extraction of certain plant species for
Lophosoria quadripinnata Ampe, Palmilla, F medicinal use, by either folk medicine or for export
Pesebre purposes requires the evaluation of the conserva-
Luma apiculata Arrayán, Palo colorado T tion status of medicinal plants. Causes of overex-
Luma chequen Chequén, Arrayán S ploitation, their potentiality and the specific rates
blanco
of regeneration after harvest must be identified
Margyricarpus pinnatus Hierba de la perilla S
(SIMONETTI & MONTENEGRO 1996). This requires
Maytenus boaria Maitén T
Mitraria coccinea Botellita, Vochi-vochi S
involvement of local communities in the recovery
Muehlenbeckia hastulata Quilo, Voqui negro, S
of the traditional knowledge about species-specific
Molleca utilization activities (TIMMERMANN & MONTENE-
Mulinum spinosum Hierba negra, Palo S GRO 1997). It is important to emphasize the local
negro, Hierba de la responsibility in the conservation of the biological
culebra
diversity, promoting programs of sustainable pro-
Myrceugenia exsucca Pitrilla, Pitra, Patagua T
duction, cultivation and protection.
Myrceugenia planipes Picha, Pitra, Patagua de T
Valdivia The study of the mechanisms of species regenera-
Nothofagus obliqua Roble T tion used in folk medicine, specifically the loca-
Oenothera stricta Flor de San José, Don P tion and activity of the renewal buds, their growth
Diego de la noche dynamics and the way and time that they sprout
amarillo, Evening
primrose allows for determination of patterns of regenera-
Passiflora pinnatistípula Granadilla, Flora de la C tion (MONTENEGRO ET AL. 2003). Also, the abil-
pasión, Pasionaria ity of a species to recover from extraction can be
Peumus boldus Boldo T established, correlating the regeneration rate with
Podanthus mitiqui Mitique, Palo negro S the frequency and amount of material removed.
Puya berteroniana Chagual, Puya, Cardón P Through an analysis of productivity per season, the
Puya chilensis Chagual, Puya, Cardón P rate of productivity per plant with the rate of remov-
Quillaja saponaria Quillay T al by harvesters can be compared. Comparing the
Quinchamalium chilense Quinchamalí P extraction and regeneration of plants at individual
Retanilla trinervia Tevo, Tebo S sites currently used by growers with the ones used
Schinus molle Pimiento, falso pi- T in the past and projecting the data to be applied at
miento
community level, it is possible to evaluate whether
Schinus latifolius Molle, Lilén T
the population of a given species is maintaining or
Senecio fistulosus Hualtata P
decreasing as result of resource extraction. Some
Solanum crispum Natre, Natri, Hierba del S
chabalongo, Common
results show that regeneration is possible when the
nightshade harvest is done allowing the renewal buds to re-
Sphacele salviae Salvia blanca, Lahuén- S main untouched in the plant (BOX 1).
lahuén
Stachys albicaulis Toronjilcillo, Hierba de P
The knowledge about the cycles of life of the spe-
Santa María cies helps using products of economic interest in
Stellaria arvalis Quilloi-quilloi P the biologically most appropriate periods. For ex-
Triptilion spinosum Siempreviva P ample, in the case of extract pieces of bark of Quil-
Tristerix corymbosus Quintral S laja saponaria, a saponin-rich species, exploiting
Ugni molinae Murta blanca, Murta, T individuals during their biological inactivity, i.e. in
Tautau, Murtilla autumn and part of winter would be a good idea. So
Weinmannia trichosperma Tineo, Palo santo T when growth resumes the extracted bark can be re-
1
P: perennial herb, A: annual herb, T: tree, S: shrub generated. Another example is the use of the leaves
2
E: endangered, V: vulnerable of Peumus boldus Mol., that are rich in boldina. Its
Page 20 May 2012
 biomass can be regenerated if renewal buds located
in apical or axillary places are kept in place.
Apart from all the procedures used to promote
sustainable use of the natural plant resources, the
reproduction through seed germination, vegeta-
tive propagation and/or tissue culture will provide
a powerful tool to recover degraded areas and to
conserve endangered species helping to preserve
the fragile plant biodiversity of our planet.
Regulatory framework
In Latin America and the Caribbean Islands coun-
tries medicinal plants are protected under regula-
tions of CITES. About 30 countries of the region,
including Chile, have become signatory of the
Convention. The permits and certificates of origin
are issued by the SAG (Agricultural and Livestock
FIGURE 2. Medicinal plant vendor. Photo: G. Service of Chile). In Chile, the Ministry of Health
Montenegro. has generated and incorporated changes in the leg-
islation to ensure the rational use of medicines de-
leaves grow from September to December, their rived from medicinal plants and natural products
extraction during the inactive time is advisable (PARADA 2011).
from a management point of view because the old
leaves have larger amounts of the active compound Existing regulations regarding medicinal plants in
and because extraction of leaves during the grow- Chile are associated (i) to the stage of production-
ing season reduces the photosynthetic activity, extraction of plant species oriented to the sustain
thereby affecting the formation of new organs. able use of plants or plant structures such as leaves
Thus, the knowledge about the life cycle of species
BOX 2. Regeneration models for different
helps to quantify, with some accuracy, the pattern
types of plants
of biomass productivity throughout the growing
season, enabling determination of the rate of accu- Regeneration model 1 represents perennial her-
mulation of dry matter at different times (MON- baceous species that develop underground stems
TENEGRO ET AL. 1988). where the reserve of renewal buds is found
Many species can tolerate the removal of a certain Regeneration model 2 represents the perennial
amount of biomass and can regenerate from renew- herbaceous species that develop a bank of buds in
al buds or other meristematic tissues. Regeneration the crown located at ground level
models that promote extraction procedures, con- Regeneration model 3 is linked to cushion plants
sistent with a sustainable use of natural resources, that have a reserve of protected buds at ground
have been elaborated for these specific cases (MON- level or underground, which help to regenerate
TENEGRO ET AL. 2003, Box 2).
their biomass if the woody structure that protects
Other models of regeneration from specific parts them is not destroyed
of the plant can be added to the previous models, Regeneration model 4 represents the woody spe-
such as a regeneration pattern of the bark from lat- cies that have between the trunk and the root, a
eral meristems (vascular cambium and phellogen) lignified tuber (lignotuber) which generates buds
located on the periphery of the trunk. These meris- from vascular cambium when the aerial part has
tems are capable of regenerating the bark removed suffered a serious environmental impact
when part of them has been allowed to remain in
place. Another example is a model related to the Regeneration model 5 represents annual plants
woody species used for their leaves: the extracted that have a reserve of renewal buds in the seeds.

Page 21 May 2012

and fruits, specifically the exploitation of quillay,
from which mainly its bark is extracted; boldo
(Peumus boldus) for the removal of its leaves, and
shrubs and native trees in general; and (ii) to the
processing of medicinal herbs for therapeutic use,
to obtain and register a pharmaceutical product with
medicinal properties. However, there is no legisla-
tion for the conservation of native germplasm of
medicinal plants that are exploited indiscriminately
(FIA 2001). It is necessary to regulate access to ge-
netic resources in Chile to prevent leakage of ma-
terial and protect traditional knowledge (MANZUR
2004).
The “Global Strategy for Plant Conservation”
(GSPC) in Latin America intends to be established
as a conceptual guideline for the conservation of
plants from the experience developed by the Latin-
American Network of Botany and also considers
the constant loss of species diversity of the world.
The work published by CHACÓN ET AL. (2011) is
a fundamental element to guide the decisions of
management that contribute to the conservation
and sustainable use of the vegetable species.
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May 2012
 Focus on Medicinal Plants in health centres (Centres de Santé de Base, CSB,
mostly practising allopathic medicine) being lo-
Madagascar cated at several hours’ walk.
Julie Le Bigot Medicinal plants can be used in different ways: by
self-medication at home in the family circle or in
This work is part of the pilot project “Madagas- consultation with a traditional practitioner (called
car: people, plants, remedies” by the association mpitsabo, mpanaody or nentin-drazana, depending
AVERTEM (Association of Valorization of Eth- on the types of practices they exercise and the com-
nopharmacology in tropical and Mediterranean ponents they use to treat). Medicinal plants do not,
regions, www.avertem.fr). The multidisciplinary however, constitute the only therapeutic contribu-
team of AVERTEM operates since 2009 in three tion of traditional practitioners. Medicinal plants,
villages around the coastal rainforest of Tampolo, or raokandro (literally meaning “action of collect-
a protected area located on the east coast of the is- ing plants every day”), carry also a meaning and a
land (Analanjirofo - clove tree’s forest - region). therapeutic efficacy, both biological and symbolic,
The three objectives of the association are the that can evolve according to their packaging, their
knowledge and valorization of the use of medicinal use and the substances to which they are associ-
plants, the return of information gathered from lo- ated. The herb-remedy can be perceived as the “ve-
cal people to improve primary health care and the hicle of representations, the receptacle of symbols”
preservation of local biodiversity. (BENOIST 1995:53). Traditional medicine also uses
Introduction animal (including insect) and mineral material.
Considered a “hot spot”, the island of Madagas- In recent years, the Malagasy Ministry of Health
car is exceptional for its biological diversity. The has wished to restructure the traditional practices in
floristic inventory, which is not yet completed, order to improve them. As part of this plan, a serv-
amounts today to 12,000 to 13,000 vascular plants ice of Pharmacopoeia and Traditional Medicine
species. This flora is also remarkable for its very (Service de la Pharmacopée et de la Médecine Tra-
high endemism which is around 90% (GSPM 2011). ditionnelle, SPMT) was created. A Malagasy phar-
Madagascar is one of the world priorities in terms macopoeia including hundreds of species has then
of biodiversity conservation. been initiated; so far the first of four volumes have
been completed. The pharmacopoeia is intended
Medicine and medicinal plants in Madagascar to be distributed to CBS in order to facilitate the
Biodiversity in Madagascar represents a consider- implementation of what is called integrative medi-
able genetic diversity, still poorly understood, and cine, in other words, “the official recognition of
which has long been used by local populations in traditional medicine and its integration with west-
particular for therapeutic purposes. Despite the ern medicine“ (MACFARLANE & ALPERS 2010).
introduction of conventional medicine, the use of
In 2007 the National Association of traditional
so-called traditional medicine and herbal remedies
practitioners was created; it was commissioned by
is still largely present. WHO (2009) has estimated
the Ministry of Health to issue diplomas to tradi-
that about 70% of the people in Madagascar use
tional practitioners recognized as “efficient” and
this form of medicine. Several reasons may explain
considered legitimate, and to deny access to this
this figure: first of all this medicine is ancestral and
official title to traditional practitioners considered
part of the Malagasy cultural practices and herit-
“charlatans”.
age; secondly, the use of medicinal plants allows
for inexpensive treatments in a country where con- We can also observe in Madagascar the develop-
ventional medication is costly (in 2005 85% of the ment of Improved Traditional Drugs (Remèdes
Malagasy people lived on less than 2 USD per day Traditionels Améliorés, RTA) which notably allow
(www.statistiques-mondiales.); and finally, tradi- optimizing component proportions to prevent tox-
tional medicine is easily accessible and provides a icity. These RTA are in the form of cream, soap,
rapid response in a country where health facilities herbal tea, balm, syrup or essential oil. Currently
are sometimes very far from villages, some basic the Ministry of Health and its Traditional Medicine

Page 25 May 2012

Department are considering the introduction of low over 900 tons of plants were exported in 2010, gen-
cost RTA in the CSB to improve primary health erating foreign exchange earnings of nearly 7.980
care. The Malagasy Institute for Applied Research million Ariary (one euro equals about 2800 Ari-
(Institut malgache de recherche appliquée, IMRA) ary). This export industry is based on 50 species, of
and Homeopharma are the two largest manufactur- which 33 are from the forest (REPUBLIC OF MADA-
ers of RTA in Madagascar. In addition, many small GASCAR 1995, FIGURE 1). Cinnamomum camphora
structures practice also this business. (in Malagasy ‘the good plant’), Catharanthus ro-
When used locally, the use of medicinal plants does seus, Centella asiatica, Aphloia theaeformis and
not appear to pose a threat to the sustainability of Drosera madagascariensis are among the species
the resource since the collecting is found to be rela- sought after for their active ingredients. Another
tively low. The results of the first investigations on species, Prunus africana, is causing great concern.
this matter by trainees from AVERTEM show that This African medicinal tree, over-exploited for its
the plants are gathered mainly in the outskirts of bark, is listed on Appendix 2 of CITES. Pending
the village and not in the forest. the results of a study which has just started, its ex-
port quota is currently zero.
It still could be considered to provide collectors
with basic tips to optimize practices (such as not
taking all the leaves from the same plant or not tak-
ing all the bark from the same tree, etc). In addi-
tion, laboratory studies could be initiated and gen-
eralized to give traditional practice a sustainable
orientation. A case was reported to us about a plant
in Madagascar whose roots were usually used as a
medicine. However laboratory studies have shown
that the leaves contain the same active ingredients
as the roots. Thus, the use of underground parts,
detrimental to the survival of the specimen was
substituted by the leafy parts.
In view of all these elements it can be recognized
that the practice of collecting medicinal plants in FIGURE 1. Harvest of Catharanthus roseus roots in
Madagascar shows to a certain degree signs of sus- south Madagascar. Photo: Author.
tainability.
Most medicinal plants are exported from Madagas-
Our data does not permit at present to determine tocar in raw form, but the island also has aromatic
what extent the use of plants at the national levelplant resources. The two non-indigenous species
threatens the resources. IMRA and Homeopharma Ylang-ylang (Cananga odorata) and clove (Syzy-
grow crops, but they also collect plants from the gium aromaticum) make up almost the entirety of
wild. Do they have wild plant supply networks? essential oil exports, both in quantity and value.
What is the proportion of cultivated plants com- These two introduced species are being planted on
pared to what is obtained from the wild? All these a large-scale. Madagascan endemics such as Cin-
questions remained unanswered for now. Malagasy namosma fragrans (mandravasarotra, literally
medicinal plants are also widely exported as they meaning “plant that overcomes the most serious
represent a quality raw material for pharmaceuticalailments”), Helichrysum gymnocephalum and
industries, including in Europe and North America. Ravensara aromatica are also much sought after
The export of Medicinal plants from Madagas- by exporters. The latter species has numerous prop-
car erties (broncho-pulmonary, anti-infective, etc.) and
all its parts are aromatic (its vernacular name ha-
Data from the National Institute of Statistics of zomanitra means “aromatic tree”).
Madagascar (Institut national de la statistique de Although the cultivation of medicinal plants is
Madagascar, http://www.instat.mg/) tell us that developing, most are still widely collected in the

Page 26 May 2012

wild. In 1995, out of the 223 most exported species of charcoal for domestic purposes and wood for
only 29 were cultivated and 43 were grown at the building material; mostly illegal logging of high
National Centre for the implementation of pharma- quality timber (e.g., Dalbergia spp., Stephanoste-
ceutical research (Centre national d’application des gia capuronii and Faucherea glutinosa); and the
recherches pharmaceutiques, CNARP) (REPUBLIC introduction of cash crops and industrial crops
OF MADAGASCAR 1995). Our recent enquiries with leading to the destruction of woodlands, for exam-
Malagasy academics have confirmed that this prac- ple in the case of Sisal (Agave sisalana), a fiber
tice of collecting in the wild is still largely wide- crop grown in the south of the country. Mining and
spread. cyclones reaching the east coast of the island are
The use of medicinal plants is regulated by a 1987 other causes of forest destruction, and invasive al-
interministerial order. Article 3 states that the col- ien species harmful to the fragile island ecosystems
lecting of wild plants for commercial purposes are of concern.
requires the granting of an “operating regulation In 1990, an Environmental Charter was enacted
document”. In principle, the harvest of more than (Law No. 90-033 of 21 October 1990) that “clearly
two individual plants, whether for commercial, sci- recognize the links between environmental pro-
entific or other purposes, requires the issue of an tection and economic development” (MONTAGNE
authorization from the Ministry of Water and For- & RAMAMONJISOA 2006:15). In 1991 a National
ests (Ministère des Eaux et Forêts). In fact, most Environmental Action Plan was launched (Plan
small collectors and roadside sellers do not comply National d’Action Environnemental, PNAE, and
with this legislation. as part of this the National Agency for Protected
The collecting frequency and the amount collected Area Management (Agence nationale de gestion
reach, at times, levels of overexploitation. The case des aires protégées, ANGAP) was created. This
of P. africana mentioned above is not unique. is known today as Madagascar National Parks, to
which the State has entrusted the management of
The widespread cultivation of medicinal plants as most protected areas. Up to that time, the State was
well as the setting up of quotas and a stricter con- the sole manager throughout the country. In 2003
trol of the amount of material collected and export- the President of the Republic of Madagascar com-
ed could partly solve the overexploitation problem. mitted to triple over five years the size of protected
The habitat destruction, in particular in the for- areas in his country. The objective of 6 million hec-
est environment that undeniably hosts most of the tares has not yet been reached; currently 5 million
biodiversity in Madagascar, is another important hectares are under some sort of protection status.
threat to the sustainability of the medicinal plant In 1997 Madagascar adopted a new forest policy
resources. (Nouvelle Politique Forestière, NPF, decree No.
Conservation policies in Madagascar 97-1200 of 2 October 1997) considered “a real
modernization of the environmental sector” (MON-
Since the second half of the 19th century, policy
TAGNE & RAMAMONJISOA 2006: 9). In line with
makers have endeavoured to put policies in place
the principle of decentralization, regions can have
to conserve Malagasy forests (MONTAGNE & RAM-
structures responsible for environmental manage-
AMONJISOA, 2006). However, 150 years later the
ment, for example Environment and Forest Re-
forest degradation is still taking place, or has even
gional Offices. In recognition of the contribution
worsened. The lack of human and financial re-
of wild environmental resources to people’s liveli-
sources mobilized for the sector is one of the argu-
hoods, but in opposition to the advice from interna-
ments put forward to justify this failure. Estimates
tional conservation NGOs, a conservation program
for the assessment of current forest cover vary but
has been established in consultation with people
range generally between 8 and 10 million hectares.
living in and around protected areas. This shift
The causes of deforestation and overexploitation from coercive conservation policies based on bans
of natural resources are mainly anthropogenic. Ex- and limitations of rights to community based con-
amples are the slash and burn cultivation, or tavy, servation is considered in line with the Convention
used to produce food crops; in some areas, the use on Biological Diversity (CBD), and in particular

Page 27 May 2012

its Article 8j recognizing the efficient role of local
practices and knowledge in biodiversity conserva-
tion. It is a form of regulation combining institu-
tional and customary laws.
Specifically, the conservation programs take place
as contract-management under the laws 96-025
and 97-017, respectively NPF (Nouvelle Politique
Forestière) and Gelose Act of 1997 (Secure Local
Management – Gestion locale sécurisée) outside
protected areas. The first contracts to the benefit of
grassroots communities were signed in 2000. As-
sisted by environmental mediators, communities
must establish a sustainable management plan and
according to the law Gelose they are “entitled to
certain benefits in the marketing and promotion of
renewable resources and their by-products”.
To implement the law Gelose, projects have been
set up by CIRAD (Centre de coopération interna-
tionale en recherche agronomique pour le dével-
oppement) and its partners to support local com-
munities’ value-addition to timber and non-timber
forest products: construction wood, charcoal, Raf-
fia palm (Raphia spp.) and essential oils. (For more
information see www.cogesformada.org and www.
gesforcom.eu). In the rural district of Didy (Ala-
otra mangoro Region) production and marketing
of the essential oil from R. aromatica, the aromatic
tree mentioned above, was established. A simpli-
fied management and working plan was developed
to put in place a judicious exploitation of R. aro-
matica. In addition, a series of technical trainings
were provided: teaching of climbing techniques to
prevent cutting down trees to collect material; pri-
or identification of chemotypes to ensure the qual-
ity of the oil produced; and better control of the
distillation process of the essential oil contained in
leaves. This collaboration has made it possible to
sustainably manage the resource while at the same
time enhance the economic value of R. aromatica
by producing good quality oil. Further value-added
may be possible through certification. The positive
results cannot be generalized to all management
transfers but Montagne and Ramamonjisoa note
that “contracts contribute significantly to improve
the environment” (MONTAGNE & RAMAMONJISOA
2006: 21). Continued assessments such as that con-
ducted by RESOLVE (2005), are expected to accu-
rately identify the adjustments needed to improve
management transfer and multiply successes.
Page 28
A public policy can only be respected if it is mean-
ingful to the people. In this regard, an interesting
point came out of an interview with the director
of a school of natural resource management from
a village in the region of Analanjirofo. In Mada-
gascar, the idea of endless and abundant natural
resources is quite widespread, especially among
coastal communities in the east. The Malagasy
proverb “Tsy mety lany raha ramboarinjagnahary “
meaning “What God has created is never depleted”
illustrates this perception. This way of thinking im-
plies that a resource taken from the wild does not
need to be replaced. However, the local coordina-
tor of AVERTEM in Madagascar has very recently
observed interesting and encouraging initiatives.
Awareness of the depletion of natural resources is
beginning to emerge and people are starting plan-
tations, including of medicinal plants.
Conclusion
In Madagascar, the conservation of medicinal
plants is important for at least three spheres: health,
environmental and economic. More financial and
human resources could be released to complete the
floristic inventory of Madagascar and the in-situ
and ex-situ conservation of threatened species de-
serves to be continued and accelerated. Meanwhile,
research on rural development could be further de-
veloped to improve the socio-economic measures
to fight against poverty. It is regrettable that public
policies, particularly in the environmental field,
are not always fully implemented and are at times
slow to materialize. But that being said, it is im-
portant to remember that Madagascar is currently
undergoing a deep crisis. Political and economic
problems are causing concern and in this context
environmental problems and the challenges they
represent are not seen as priorities.
To finish, the approach developed by MÉRAL &
REQUIER-DESJARDINS (2006) represent a possible
solution. They suggest to dwell on “the relevance
of a more patrimonial vision in which preservation
is seen as the need to protect a legacy bequeathed
by past generations to transmit to the future ones
as part of their well-being and identity“ (MÉRAL
& DESJARDINS 2006). Being then a strong element
of identity, conservation of resources could be per-
ceived as essential.
May 2012
References Medicinal Plants utilisation and
BENOIST, J. (1995): La plante-médicament, entre ses
usages et ses témoins. – Ecologie humaine VIII(2) :
conservation in the Small Island
53-61. States of the SW Indian Ocean -
GSPM. (2011): Liste rouge des plantes vasculaires with particular emphasis on
endémiques de Madagascar. – IUCN SSC Madagas-
car Plant Specialist Group. Mauritius
MACFARLANE, J. & ALPERS, M. (2010): National Poli-
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim
cy for an Integrated Health System and Local Imple-
mentation: the Case of Papua New Guinea and the
Nasioi. – Human Organization 69(4): 387-398. Introduction
MERAL, P. & REQUIER-DESJARDINS, D. (2006) : La Plants are known to be primary sources of all medi-
gestion durable de l’environnement à Madagascar : cines in the world and continue to provide man-
enjeux, opportunités et contraintes. – Économie rurale kind with new remedies. More than 80% of the
294-295: 4-8. Available at: http://economierurale.re-
world’s population in the world still depend on
vues.org/index891.html.
MINISTERE DES EAUX ET FORETS. (1997): Décret n°
traditional medicine for their primary health care
97-2000 portant adoption de la Politique forestière (WHO 1992). Natural products and their deriva-
Malagasy du 2 octobre 1997. – Antananarivo, Jour- tives represent more than 50% of all drugs in clini-
nal officiel de la République de Madagascar, p. 2324- cal use in the world (CRAGG & NEWMAN 2000).
2348. Higher plants contribute no less than 25% of the
MONTAGNE, P. & RAMAMONJISOA, B. (2006) : Poli- total. Other drugs are derived from animals and
tiques forestières à Madagascar entre répression et microorganisms. Therefore the possibilities for de-
autonomie des acteurs. – Économie rurale 294-295: veloping new drugs from forest resources should
9-26. Available at : http://economierurale.revues.org/ feature in any calculation of their true worth. All
index894.html the 119 plant-derived drugs used worldwide come
RESOLVE. (2005): Evaluation et perspectives des trans-
from fewer than 90 out of the 250,000 plant species
ferts de gestion des ressources naturelles dans le cadre
du Programme Environnemental 3. – Antananarivo,
that have been identified (DE SMET 1997) The po-
Rapport final de synthèse, 55p. tential for discovering more new chemical entities
REPUBLIQUE DE MADAGASCAR. (1987): Arrêté In- is there.
terministériel n°2915/87 portant conduite de The flora of the South West Indian Ocean belongs
l’exploitation des produits accessoires des forêts du 7 to one of the global hotspots. To this date only two
septembre 1987. – Journal officiel de la République de
internationally recognised medicinal plants have
Madagascar, p. 2092-2098.
REPUBLIQUE DE MADAGASCAR. (1995): Madagascar:
emerged from this part of the world – the Mada-
rapport de pays pour la conférence technique interna- gascan Catharanthus roseus and Centella asiatica.
tionale de la FAO sur les ressources phytogénétiques Yet the potential for the discovery of new entities
(Leipzig,1996). as well as standardised extracts is enormous.
REPUBLIQUE DE MADAGASCAR. (1996): Loi n°96-025 This paper presents the general situation of the
relative à la gestion locale des ressources naturelles
medicinal plant resources and their regulation in
renouvelables du 30 septembre 1996.
the Small Islands States of the South-West Indian
Julie Le Bigot • AVERTEM, Faculté des sciences Ocean with particular emphasis on Mauritius.
pharmaceutiques et biologiques, Département de
botanique • 3, rue du professeur Laguesse, 59000 Flora of the Small Island States of the Indian
Lille, France • email: julie.le.bigot@hotmail.fr Ocean
The flora of the Comoros Islands, which are geo-
graphically close to the African continent, tends
to show greater affinity to that of the continent,
whereas the floras of the Seychelles and the Mas-
carenes (Mauritius, Reunion and Rodrigues) are
highly specialised and rich in endemics.

Page 29 May 2012

Flora of the Comoros
The entire flora of the Comoros archipelago is es-
timated to contain some 2.000 species and a close
examination reveals a high degree of endemism.
Taxa from the Comoros illustrating the affinity to
the African flora are for example Alangium salvii-
folium ssp. salviifolium, Tabernaemontana coffe-
oides, Saba comoriensis, Combretum coccineum,
Cycas comoriensis, Phyllanthus comoriensis, Nux-
ia congesta, Tambourissa sp., Norhonia sp., Pep-
eromia sp., Piper sp., Mimusops comoriensis, and
Weinmannia bojeriana.
ADJANOHOUN ET AL. (1982) identified 120 medici-
nal plants, out of which 2 were endemic to the Co-
moros: Tambourissa leptophylla and Helichrysum
sp.
FIGURE 1. Native forest loss in Mauritius (1773-1997).
Flora of the Mascarenes [Mauritius, Rodrigues
(Mru) and Reunion (Fr.)]
The Mascarene Islands are made up of three islands,
which have never been connected to the continental
mainland. The elements making up the indigenous
flora have been introduced to the islands via ma-
rine currents, trade and cyclonic winds, jet streams
and marine and terrestrial birds during emigration.
CADET (1977) presented the phytogeographical
analysis of the Mascarene Islands and reported that
70% of the phanerogams come from Madagascar
and the African continent, 8% are of oriental ori-
gin, 12% are of indopacific origin or cosmopolitan,
while the remaining 10% are endemics. Phytogeo-
graphically, the Mascarenes can be considered an
Page 30
entity (ADJANOHOUN ET AL. 1983a, GUEHO 1988).
Mauritius has 7 phanerogames, which are endemic,
while Reunion Island has 5 and Rodrigues has 3.
With respect to the endemic species, Mauritius
has around 300 or 60-65% of the indigenous flo-
ra, while Rodrigues has around 50 or 55% of its
flora. There are 671 species of indigenous flower-
ing plants recorded in Mauritius of which 311 are
endemic (Mauritius has 8 endemic plant genera)
and 150 are endemic to the Mascarene Archipela-
go. Seventy-seven of these indigenous species are
classified as extinct. Of the extant flowering plants
about 35% are classified as threatened as per the
IUCN criteria (BACHRAZ & TEZOO 1997). Recent
classifications have revealed the following: 141
species are Critically endangered, 55 are Endan-
gered, and 98 are Vulnerable. This recent estimate
shows that at least 95 of the 141 Critically Endan-
gered species have less than 50 known adults in the
wild (FLORENS 2007). Figure 1 shows the histori-
cal development in forest cover on Mauritius.
Recent studies of lower plants have shown there to
be about 207 taxa consisting of 89 genera of moss-
es and 59 genera of hepatics (TIXIER and GUEHO
1997). There are about 200 species, subspecies and
varieties of pteridophytes of which 13 species are
endemic and 40 are extinct. Among the interesting
indigenous species in Mauritius we find the fol-
lowing: Diospyros tesselaria, Cassine orientale,
Foetidia mauritiana, Stadmania oppositifolia, Ter-
minalia bentzoe, Protium obtusifolium, Eugenia
fasciculate, Erythroxylum sideroxyloides, Scutia
myrtina amongst others.
Rodrigues (Mru.) indigenous flora is also char-
acterised by a high degree of endemism. Accord-
ing to STRAHM (1989), the island has 36-38 taxa
of endemic flowering plants but many of the in-
digenous species have now become extremely rare
and are on the verge of extinction. Among them
are Zanthoxylum paniculatum, Gouania legua-
tii, Dombeya acutangula, Hibiscus liliiflorus and
Antirhea bifurcata, which have all been reduced to
only a few individuals. Among the species, which
have been surveyed recently, and considered to be
more or less extinct are: Abrotanella rhynhocarpa,
Euphorbia daphnoides, Peperomia hirta, Syzygium
balfourii amongst others.
Reunion Island (Fr.) is the youngest of the is-
May 2012
lands of the Mascarenes. The island is entirely (1983a) identified 102 plants out of which 8 were
volcanic and still has an active volcano claimed to indigenous to the Mascarene region (MAURITIUS &
be 500,000 years old. The island is well placed to RODRIGUES). During a survey carried out between
receive wind-borne seeds and has been colonised 1990-1994 (GURIB-FAKIM ET AL. 1995-1997), it
partly by exotic plant materials. Nonetheless, the was found that reliable information is obtained
island is still blessed with some interesting indige- mostly from persons aged 55 to 70 years, suggest-
nous species like Foetidia mauritiana, Securinega ing a gradual erosion of the traditional knowledge.
durissima, Cossigna pinnata, Cassine orientale Nonetheless, over 600 plants used medicinally
amongst others. were collected and documented in the course of the
study. More than 12% of the plants for which use
Flora of the Seychelles
was documented are endemic to the South West In-
The Seychelles archipelago located to the North dian Ocean.
East of Madagascar and discovered in the 17th
century, encompass some forty islands and granitic It is also worth pointing out that local inhabitants
islets. The flora is a model in itself because of its collect most of the medicinal plants from the for-
high degree of specialisation and its rich diversity ests and that they often are unable to correctly iden-
of highly endemic species. It has a few taxonomic tify them. Whilst forest collection is not legal, it is
curiosities, for example Lodoicea maldivica which difficult for the authorities to control the collection
is a unique endemic palm tree with a unique and of plants. Many of the used plants are becoming
unusual shape growing in the Valley of May and extremely rare and whilst efforts are being made
Praslin. It is the largest seed in the plant kingdom towards their safeguard, for some plants it may be
and takes 7 years to ripen and germinate. The tree too little too late. There is always the underlying
itself takes 25 years to reach the adult stage and fear that several species may become critically en-
to produce flowers and seeds. The granitic island dangered due to over-collection.
presents a real floristic refuge. The rocks and boul- It is interesting to note that whilst the Mauritian
ders making up these islands are among the oldest population is made up of immigrants who have
on this planet (650 millions years). The insularity of brought along with them their medicinal plants
the surroundings is ancient and the flora and primi- when they landed in Mauritius almost 200 years
tive vegetation have evolved in an isolated manner ago, quite a few endemic plants also form part of
over hundreds of millions of years. The level of en- the local pharmacopoeia. Among these are: Termi-
demism has been brought to the fore by the variety nalia bentzoe ssp. bentzoe, Psiadia arguta, Chas-
and diversity in the flora and fauna. The more im- salia coriacea, Antirhea borbonica, Faujasiopsis
portant endemic plant species include Aphloia thei- flexuosa, Carissa xylopicron, Cassine orientale,
formis ssp. madagascariensis, Begonia seychel- Crinum mauritianum amongst others.
lensis, Campnosperma seychellarum, Canthium
seychellarum, Curculigo seychellensis, Diospyros Threats to the propagation of local biodiversity
seychellarum, Erythroxylum sechellarum, Gynura With human settlements, many plants have been
sechellensis, Mimusops seychellarum, Tarenna introduced intentionally as food crops, ornamen-
sechellensis amongst others. Another floristic cu- tals, forest species and as medicines from many
riosity is Medusagyne oppositifolia – the only rep- parts of the world. Others have been introduced in-
resentative of the Medusagynaceae family, which advertently to the country and have become weeds.
had previously been reported extinct (ADJANOHOUN Some had been introduced to control imported
ET AL. 1983b). In the course of their survey AD- pests, only to become pests themselves, e.g, Ligus-
JANOHOUN ET AL. (1983b) identified 76 plants out of trum robustum var walkerii. The latter was intro-
which 7 are indigenous/endemic to the Seychelles. duced to outcompete the Thorny Bramble (Rubus
alceifolius) in forest plantation. Several of the in-
Status of medicinal plants utilisation in the Mas- troduced exotic plants, such as Chinese Guava
carenes (Psidium cattleianum) and Poivre marron (Schinus
The use of Medicinal plants is still relatively com- terebinthifolius) have become naturalised in the na-
mon and growing. In 1983, ADJANOHOUN ET AL. tive forests. Over the years, they have displaced the

Page 31 May 2012

Table 1. Status of medicinal plant utilisation in Mauritius.

Botanical names Family name Common name Cons. status1 Use, trade2

Carissa xylopicron Apocynaceae Bois de ronde EN 1

Ochrosia borbonica Apocynaceae Bois de lait EN 1
Acanthophoenix Rubra Arecaceae Palmiste piquant EN 2
5
Sarcostemma viminale Asclepiadaceae Liane calé EN 2
Tylophora coriaceae “ Ipeca du pays EN 2
Psiadia arguta Asteraceae Baume du l’Ile Plate EN 2
Senecio lamarkianus “ Bois chevre EN 1
Ehretia petiolaris Boraginaceae Bois de pipe VU 1
Canarium paniculatum Burseraceae Bois colophane VU 1
Protium obtusifolium “ Bois colophane batard EN 1
Cassine orientale Celastraceae Bois d’olive VU 1
Grangeria borbonica Chrysobala-naceae Bois buis VU 1
Harungana madagascariensis Clusiaceae Bois harangue LC 3
Terminalia bentzoe Combretaceae Bois benjoin EN 3
Ipomoea pescaprae Comvolvulaceae Liane batatran LC 1
Agauria salicifolia Ericaceae Bois cabri VU 1
Erythroxylum laurifolium Erythroxylaceae Bois ronde EN 3
Antidesma madagascariensis Euphorbiaceae Bois queue de rate VU 4
Phyllanthus lanceolata “ Bois dilo VU 1
Phyllanthus phyllyreifolius “ Bois dilo VU 1
Aphloia theiformis Flacourtiaceae Bois fandamane EN, EW(R) 1
Foetidia rodriguesensis Lecythidaceae Bois puant EN 1
Lomatophyllum lomatophylloides Liliaceae Ananas marron EN(R) 1
Bakerella hoyifolia Loranthaceae Bois fier CR(M) 1
Badula balfouriana Myrsinaceae Bois papaye EN(R) 1
Jumellea fragrans Orchidaceae Faham CR(M) 1
Gouania leguatii Rhamnaceae CR(R) 1
Antirhea bifurcata Rubiaceae Bois goudron EN 1
Mussaenda arcuata “ Liane cacapoule VU 1
Ramosmania heterophylla “ Café marron CR 1
Zanthoxylum paniculatum Rutaceae Patte poule piquant CR 1
Zanthoxylum heterophyllum Rutaceae Bois catafaille EN(M), 1
EW(R)
Allophyllus cobbe Sapindaceae Bois de reinnette VU 1
Clerodendrum laciniatum Verbenaceae Bois cabri VU(R) 1
Clerodendrum heterophyllum Verbenaceae Bois cabri EN 1
1
LC - Least concern, VU - Vulnerable, EN - Endangered, CR - Critically endangered
2
1: Sold at local market, 2: Collected, 3: Bark sold, 4: Entire plant sold

native plants from their habitat through intense camara, Psidium cattleianum, Rubus alceifolia, Li-
competition. gustrum robustum, Spathodea campanulata, Syzy-
Among the other serious offenders in the Mauritian gium jambos. Among the other potential invasives
and Rodriguan forests are: Ardisia crenata, Cin- are Cinnamomum verum, Schinus terebinthifolius,
namomum verum, Hiptage benghalensis, Lantana Casuarina equisetifolia, Litsea glutonosa, Sola-

Page 32 May 2012

num mauritianum, Ulex europaeus (KUEFFER ET AL. Park and 4 are in Rodrigues. The Forest and Re-
2004). serves Act provides protection for designated areas
The regeneration of native species is compromised of state land but is inadequate to safeguard against
by exotic seed predators such as rats and monkeys loss of privately owned areas with rich biodiver-
etc.. These factors impoverish the indigenous veg- sity, as penalties are too weak to be an adequate
etation both genetically and in numbers and the net deterrent.
result is that many species are threatened with ex- Nonetheless, the Forest and Reserves Act has been
tinction. instrumental in the setting up of the Conservation
This has prompted the Mauritian Government to Management Areas (CMAs). The CMAs provide a
take measures towards the protection of its native safe haven for rare, endemic plants, such as Termi-
genetic resources through the creation of a number nalia bentzoe and Zanthoxylum sp., amongst oth-
of protected areas. With funds from the Environ- ers. The CMAs are regularly weeded of invasive
ment Investment Programme, the World Bank plants and this makes the environment particularly
funded the establishment of the first National Park suitable for slow growing endemics. Collection is
in Mauritius along with the setting up of institu- now regulated and this action has led to the safe-
tions like the National Parks and Conservation guard of many of the threatened medicinal plants
Services. on the brink of extinction.
In Rodrigues Island, where similar CMAs have
Existing legislation and framework been established, rare endemic plants, such as Ra-
Mauritius is signatory to 18 international treaties mosmania rodriguesensis (Rubiaceae), have been
and conventions on the environment and was the re-introduced after propagation by in vitro tech-
first signatory country of the 1992 Rio Convention nique at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Kew (UK).
on Biodiversity. In addition, there are four national The Wildlife and National Parks Act (1993): This
laws of relevance to terrestrial biodiversity conser- is the principal legislation for the protection of flo-
vation: ra and fauna, with the Wildlife Regulations of 1998
The Environment Protection Act (EPA) (1999 and giving effect to the CITES Convention in Mauri-
2002): This Act established the Ministry of Envi- tian law. The National Parks and Reserves Regula-
ronment as the body responsible for overall co- tions made in 1996 lay down the rules regarding
ordination of environmental management. Under activities on reserved land. The Act and its regu-
the EPA, five ministries are assigned the role of lations are currently being revised to make them
enforcement for implementation of environmental fully compliant with the provisions of CITES. The
policies. The Act covers all aspects relating to EIA opportunity is also being taken to increase the le-
procedures. gal protection of native biodiversity at the national
Through the implementation and enforcement of level.
the EPA, operators now have to resort to getting Whilst the Act makes provision for flora and fauna,
their EIA certificates prior to property develop- there are some short-comings for the plants listed.
ment. This has resulted in some biodiversity-rich To this date only rare endemic orchids figure in the
areas being protected through the non-award of de- list. It means that while one endemic medicinal
velopment permits. orchid is listed – Jumellea sp., other rare endemic
The Forest and Reserves Act (1983 amended in plants can be exported without problems. A revi-
2003): This is the principal legislation governing sion of the plant list is planned, where other plants
the management of forests resources; it established will be added so as to limit collection and export
the power to declare national forests, nature re- where needed.
serve, mountain reserves, river reserves and road The Plant Act (1976): This Act has been revised
reserves. Sixteen nature reserves have been select- recently to the Plant Protection Bill. A Black List of
ed for the purpose of maintaining vegetation cover the worst invasive weeds to be prevented entry into
and the provision of ecosystem services. Two of Mauritius has been proposed to help protect native
these nature reserves now form part of the National biodiversity. Import of plant species, especially
Page 33 May 2012
horticultural species, has been scrutinised so as to that invasive plants present. The respective govern-
avoid the inadvertent introduction of new invasive ments have been alerted to the conservation actions
plant species.
Conservation and protection measures
Various documents lay down the policy regarding References
conservation of terrestrial biodiversity:
• The White Paper for a National Conservation
Strategy (NCS) (1985). The NCS defines the
major objectives for the conservation of natural
resources but has been outdated and superseded
by Mauritius’ commitments under the CBD and
the National Environmental Action Plan (NEAP).
The NEAP contains a programme on terrestrial
biodiversity with a strategic goal to ‘ensure that
native Mauritian biodiversity survives, flourishes
and retains its genetic diversity and potential for
evolutionary development’.
• In the field of genetic diversity, priorities have
been given to:
- Avoid extinction of endangered and threat-
ened species of flora and fauna by providing
sound planning for on-site preservation in pro-
tected areas as well as off-site protection such
as in botanical gardens.
- Preserve as wide a genetic diversity as pos-
sible of many varieties of plants and animals
- Preserve as many habitats as possible
- Maintain the existing nature reserves and cre-
ate new ones
- Encourage cooperation with international
bodies in the furtherance of biosphere reserves.
Among these international organisations are:
Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust (UK), Per-
egrine Fund (USA), World Wide Fund for Na-
ture (WWF), and Kew Gardens.
Conclusion
Small Islands States like those of the South West
Indian Ocean are blessed with unique vegetation.
At the global scale, the flora of the South West In-
dian Ocean constitutes one of the planet’s hotspot.
Many unique specimens of plants are found within
and will benefit Science and Medicine as they can
potentially provide important leads for the devel-
opment of new medicine or standardised extracts.
This unique flora remains highly vulnerable not
only to habitat destruction but also to the threat
Page 34
along with the appropriate policies that need to be
put in place so as to safeguard this genetic resource.
ADJANOHOUN, E.J., AKE ASSI J., ALI AHMED, L., EYME
J., GUINKO, J., KAYONGA, A., KEITA, A. & LEBRAS,
M. (1982): Contributions aux etudes ethnobotaniques
et floristiques aux Comores. – ACCT, Paris, France.
ADJANOHOUN, E.J., AKE ASSI J., EYME J., GASSITA,
J.N., GOUDOT, E., GUEHO, J., IP, F.S.L., JACKARIA,
D., KALACHAND, S.K.K., KEITA, A., KOUDOGBO,
B., LANDEAU, D., OWADALLY, A.W. & SOOPRAM-
ANIEN, A. (1983a): Médecine traditionelle et phar-
macopée. Contribution aux études ethnobotaniques
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ADJANOHOUN, E.J., ABEL, A., AKE ASSI J., BROWN,
D., CHETTY, K.S., CHONG-SENG, L., EYME, J.,
FRIEDMANN, F., GASSITA, J.N., GOUDOTE, E.N.,
GOVINDEN, P., KEITA, A., KOUDOGBO, B., LAI SAM,
G., LANDREAU, D., LIONNET, G. & SOOPRAMAN-
IEN, A. (1983b): Contributions aux etudes ethnobota-
niques et floristiques aux Seychelles. – ACCT, Paris,
France.
BACHRAZ, V. & TEZOO, V. (1997): A review of ex-
situ conservation activities in Mauritius. In: MUNGROO
& BACHRAZ (eds.), Proceedings of the workshop on
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forests in Mauritius. – National Parks and Conserva-
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drugs and herbal medicine in health care. Drugs, 54:
801-840.
FLORENS, V. (2007): Indian Ocean Island Plant Special-
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Edition de l’Ocean Indien, Mauritius 57pp.
GURIB-FAKIM, A., GUEHO, J., SEWRAJ, M.D. & DUL-
LOO, M.E. (1994): Plantes medicinales de l’ile Rod-
rigues. – Edition de l’Ocean Indien, Mauritius 580pp.
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KUEFFER, C., VOS, P., LAVERGNE, C. & MAURE- of which is plant-based (MAHUNNAH ET AL. 2003).
MOOTOO, J. (2004): FAO Report – Forestry Depart- However, various factors, including limited access
ment. Forest & Biosecurity Working Papers. Case to information, knowledge, technology and capi-
studies on the status of invasive woody plant species tal, compromise the ability of the people to derive
in the Western Indian Ocean. Working Paper FBS/4- maximum benefits from these resources.
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STRAHM, W. (1989): Plant Red Data Book for Rod- An estimated 80% of the population in Tanzania
rigues. WWF/ IUCN. – Koeltz Scientific Books, West depend on traditional, often plant based, medicine
Germany. for health care (WHO 2002); use of medicinal plants
TIXIER, P. & GUEHO, J. (1997): Introduction to Mauri- is found in both rural and urban areas (GESSLER ET
tian Bryology a check list of mosses and liverworts. AL. 1995a, AUGUSTINO & GILLAH 2005). Depend-
– Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute, Reduit, ence is often found linked with economic and cul-
Mauritius.
tural factors so that traditional medicine is mostly
WHO. (1992): Analysis of questionnaires on tradition-
al medicine. – World Health Organisation, Geneva,
used for, and also preferred for, holistic treatments
Switzerland. (GESSLER ET AL. 1995b, OBERLÄNDER & ELVERDAN
2000). Attention on medicinal plant dependence is
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim • Centre for Phytotherapy increasing in urban Tanzania (URT 2005) and the
Research, 7th Floor, Cybertower 2, Ebene, Mauri- need is likely to increase (FOSU 1989), possibly due
tius • email: afakim@cephyr-recherche.com to the belief that plant remedies are free from unde-
sirable side effects; this trend is increasing (GOOD
& KIMANI 1980).
Conservation assessment and Medicinal plants can be symbolically significant,
management planning of medicinal being held in high cultural esteem. The concept of
the ‘medicinal plant’ carries charismatic resonance
plants in Tanzania across many societies, with the potential to be a
R.L.A. Mahunnah, S. Augustino, J.N. Otieno universal symbol for nature conservation. A poten-
& J. Elia tial problem of actively promoting integration of
traditional and modern health care in Tanzania is
that the medicinal plant resource is feared threat-
Background
ened in the wild (WHO 2001). Causes are argued
Plants are the major ingredients of medicines in to be commercial collection for livelihood security
most medical traditions. The total number of plants (CUNNINGHAM 1997) and selective intensive use of
used worldwide may be around 40,000-50,000, species for health treatment.
representing roughly one-in-six to one-in-ten of all
plant species. This represents by far the biggest hu- Threats to Tanzanian medicinal plants
man use of individually targeted species (HAMIL- The majority of Tanzanians still depend on biologi-
TON 2005). cal resources and the limited opportunities for so-
Africa is endowed with a rich biodiversity and the cio-economic development continuously put pres-
African flora is estimated to have 40,000 plant spe- sure on these (PADOCH & VAYDA 1983). Tanzanian
cies (MAHUNNAH 2002), with over 35,000 species medicinal plants are mainly derived from the wild,
in the East Africa region. In Tanzania, about 1,200 and population increase, pastoralist migration, en-
plant species, out of the total flora of 12,667 spe- ergy requirements and policy neglect are leading to
cies, are used in traditional medicines (MAHUN- their overuse and destruction of their habitat (URT
NAH 1991, MAHUNNAH & MSHIU 1991, URT 1998). 1998). The use of plants for medicine leads to se-
Medicinal and aromatic plants are key components lective consumption of specific plant species and
of biodiversity, vital for ensuring primary health their disappearance may go unnoticed in otherwise
care and livelihoods of the poor in Sub-Saharan relatively intact natural habitats, with consequences
Africa and Eastern Africa in particular. Tanzania, for the integrity and functions of ecosystems. For
like most African countries, has a high utility of example, recent claims on plant properties by Rev.
traditional medicine in primary health care, most Ambilikile Mwasapila of Samunge in Loliondo in

Page 35 May 2012

Tanzania created an increased demand for Carissa
BOX 1. Medicinal plant species increasingly marketed
spinarum (Mugaringa), that subsequently became
locally in Tanzania and internationally
threatened by overexploitation. According to in-
formation provided by local communities a similar Adansonia digitata, Afzelia quanzensis, Aloe lateritia, A.
trend can be observed for species such as Rubia secundiflora, A. volkensii, Artemisia affra, Mondia whitei,
Myrsine africana, Piper capensis,, Rauvolfia vometoria,
cordifolia, Pavetta crassipes and Crassocepha- Steganotoenia araliacea, Osyris lanceolata, Balanites ae-
lum manii in the Lake Victoria basin. The threat gyptiaca, Prunus africana, Zanthoxylum chalybeum, Zanha
to plants is increased when plants are marketed in africana, Warburgia salutaris and W. Stulhmanii.
urban areas in addition to the rural consumption.
Nine medicinal plant species are reported to be of The Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) Global
general conservation concern in Tanzania (MAR- Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC) provides a
SHALL 1998). framework to halt the current and continuing loss
Medicinal plants are also harvested for other non of plant diversity. An East Africa Regional Project
medicinal uses. Species such as Bombax rhodog- on the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation” was
naphalon, Milicia excelsa, Dalbergia melanoxylon, implemented in East Africa to advance the imple-
Ocotea usambarensis, Pterocarpus angolensis, P. mentation of the GSPC in the East African Region,
tinctorius, P. rotundifolius are heavily harvested by establishing a baseline for further investment in
for timber, most of which is used for construction, biodiversity informatics as key to biodiversity con-
furniture and production of coffins in town centres. servation and sustainable development in Kenya,
Additional pressure is the result of indiscriminate Uganda and Tanzania (NMK 2007). A major activi-
tree cutting for charcoal production. ty in the process was to conduct a Conservation As-
sessment and Management Planning (CAMP)
The demand for medicinal plants both for local and workshop in each country.
international markets is on the rise (BOX 1). For
example, Prunus Africana (used by pharmaceutical The national CAMP workshop was organized in
companies to manufacture a drug for treating pros- mid July 2010 with the support of BGCI/JRS East
tate cancer) is threatened all over Africa by debark- Africa regional project at Muhimbili University of
ing. A total of between 3,200 to 4,900 tons of its Health and Allied Sciences with representatives
bark are exported annually from African countries from 12 institutions in Tanzania and 2 from Ken-
to Europe and USA (CITES 1997). ya. The aim of the workshop was to determine the
conservation status of medicinal plants used in tra-
Local trade of medicinal plants is known to occur ditional medicine in Tanzania, based on priorities
but information on amounts traded and income derived from traditional knowledge. The purpose
generated by the local population is very limit- was to develop appropriate conservation strategies
ed, while data on export do not exist (MARSHALL and guidelines for sustainable use. The workshop
1998). STANGELAND ET AL. (2008) noted that while addressed natural resource status assessments for
many ethnobotanical studies are available, few priority actions as one of the strategies to solve
have focused on harvesting regimes, sustainability the medicinal plants conservation challenges that
of harvesting, trade and pharmacological studies. include: approaches for conservation of medicinal
Therefore, in order for Tanzania to sustain the sen- plant species and their genetic diversity; develop-
sible utilization of medicinal plants, conservation ment of sustainable harvest systems for wild me-
has to be kept as a central research focus. dicinal plants; and achievement of environmental-
Medicinal Plants Conservation Assessment and ly-friendly cultivation of medicinal plants.
management planning initiatives Prioritization of medicinal plants for conserva-
The extensive national, regional and international tion
trade in traditional medicinal plants emphasizes In realization of the threats facing medicinal plants
the global need for the conservation of medicinal in Tanzania, the general protocol for CAMP was
plants and the revitalization of the native health tra- used for prioritising species for ex-situ conserva-
ditions of local communities (GELDENHYUS 2005). tion, first using ethnobotanical parameters. Ethno-

Page 36 May 2012

botanical practices were scored as 1 or 0 according There is a lack of protection of medicinal plant and
to whether extraction was considered to have a se- traditional medical knowledge. E.g., in Tanzania
vere effect on plant diversity or not. The total score cultivation and/or domestication of medicinal wild
for each species was added to the value – index varieties is constrained by the perception embed-
(importance of species based on Red List status) ded in culture, attitudes and awareness that domes-
and the legislation-index (adequacy of legislation tication stoops the medicinal potency compared to
provisions). The Value-index includes the sum of wild plants. To some, planting of wild varieties is
all the scores associated with Red List status, key- not a priority even if knowledge on propagation ex-
stone species, sustainability of use and cultural/ ists. Further, commercialization of medicinal plants
spiritual value. The Legislation-index allows the has been projected as a sustainable means of pov-
researcher to evaluate the importance of the spe- erty alleviation, with additional value in terms of
cies in relation to whether it is adequately protected biodiversity and conservation purposes. This is still
under the legal provisions (BOX 2). A high index a challenge in Tanzania since there is no regulation
value indicates the need to protect a species; a low and monitoring for medicinal plants and products
index value may be used to rank the species low sold in the local markets. Especially in relation to
for conservation but does not necessarily disquali- supply sources and harvesting methods to ensure
fy recommending a species for conservation meas- sustainable use of the resources.
ures. A high rating for one criterion, such as the
Red List status or Sustainability of use, was consid-Research
Research and training activities for the conser-
ered sufficient to list a species for protection under
the National Forests Act. The analysis resulted in vation of medicinal plants have not received ad-
only 74 priority medicinal plants for possible com- equate support and attention in Tanzania. Various
mercialization. The list of species and the proposed researchers, including RUKANGIRA (2001), have re-
conservation strategies are presented in Table 1. ported rare successful experiences and approaches
on conservation of African medicinal plants. Fur-
Medicinal Plants Conservation Challenges thermore, in relation to medicinal plant conserva
Policy and legal frameworks tion in Tanzania several aspects are still unknown,
The Tanzania government’s political commitment including:
to promoting traditional medicine is clearly spelled (i) the documentation of all major medicinal
out in the Tanzanian Health Policy of 1996 and the plants,
Traditional and Alternative Medicine Policy and
Act of 2000 and 2002, respectively; both recog- (ii) documentation for the medicinal plants that
nize the role of traditional health practices in the have been lost and those that remain in the wild,
country’s health care system (URT 2000, 2002). (iii) knowledge on how gender issues are prop-
However, little effort has been done to address con- erly taken into consideration while planning for
servation of medicinal plant resources. There has conserving the resources,
been poor reinforcement of the existing policy and (iv) incorporation of local and traditional knowl-
legal frameworks to conserve and ensure the future edge into propagation, sustainable use and con-
sustainable use of the potential medicinal plants. servation of medicinal plants,
Support and emphasis on promoting cultivation of (v) identification of cultural practices and beliefs
potential identified medicinal plants in the coun- that are supportive of the conservation and sus-
try, both in-situ and ex-situ, have also been poor. tainable use of medicinal plants, and
The national forest policy has for a long time been (vi) knowledge on effective agro-ecological
biased towards safeguarding tradable timber plant methods for enhancing propagation and cultiva-
species. There is a strong need to harmonize vari- tion of specific medicinal plants.
ous sectorial policies and legal frameworks that in-
fluence the utilization and conservation of medici- The latter two as proposed by CUNNINGHAM (1997)
nal biodiversity in Tanzania to ensure sustainable primary health care services
in Africa.
Institutions

Page 37 May 2012

TABLE 1. Tanzania priority medicinal plants matrix for immediate conservation.
Species
Acacia xanthophloea
Adansonia digitata
Aerangis flabellifolia
Afzelia quanzensis
Albizia anthelmintica
Aloe lateritia
Aloe secundiflora
Aloe volkensii
Artemisia affra
Balanites aegyptiaca
Begonia oxyloba
Berberis holstii
Bombax rhodognaphalon
Brachylaena huillensis (hutch-
insii)
Breonadia salicina
Brucea antidysenterica
Cassia abbreviata
Catha edulis
Clausena anisata
Commiphora swynnertonii
Cordia ovalis
Crinum papillosum
Crinum kirkii
Croton dichogamus
Cucumis profetarum
Milicia excelsa
Dalbergia melanoxylon
Deinbollia borbonica
Entada abyssinica
Entada stuhlmannii
Erythrina abbyssinica
Hydnora abbyssinica
Hydnora africana
Kigelia africana
Millettia puguensis
Monanthotaxis trichocarpa
Mondia whitei
Myrsine africana
Ocotea usambarensis
Page 38
Traded Justification Recommendations
No Narrow distribution Use in agro- forestry systems, amenity
Locally Regeneration poor, Include in dryland plantations
growth slow
No Ecosystem fragile In-situ conservation of supporting trees
Yes Overexploited Legislation, in- & ex-situ conservation
No Potential demand Use in agroforestry
Locally Overexploitation Legislation, in- & ex-situ conservation
Locally Overexploitation Education of farmers
Locally Overexploitation Legislation, in- & ex-situ conservation
Locally Overexploitation, limited Large commercial plantations
ecological range
Yes Overexploitation Emphasize planting in home gardens
No (no Horticultural use, limited Consider as bio-indicator of climate change in
need) ecological range forests
No Habitat specificity In-situ conservation
Yes1 Overexploited In-situ conservation
No Overexploited National legislation
No Habitat specificity National legislation required
No Rare National legislation required
No Diverse uses Promote ex-situ cultivation
Yes Overexploited Legislation, stricter in-situ conservation
Habitat specificity Legislation, in-situ conservation
Disjunct distribution Estimate market value
Multiple uses, habitat In-situ conservation
specificity
No Narrow distribution Domestication, sustainable harvesting
No Limited distribution Domestication
No Multiple uses Domestication
Multiple uses
Yes 1
Overexploited Domestication, legislation enforcement
Yes High demand In- & ex-situ conservation
No Harvest: uprooting Use biotechnology in propagation
No Increasingly scarce Sensitization: plant in home gardens
No High demand Ex-situ conservation
No High demand, harvest: Emphasis on on farm planting
uprooting
Possibly host specific
(Acacia xanthophloea)
No Host specific
No Harvest: debarking Domestication
No Limited distribution, Try planting in other ecological regions
habitat loss
No High demand Effort to collect more data
Yes High demand
Locally High demand Emphasize ex-situ conservation
Yes High demand1 Enforce policy
May 2012
 TABLE 1. Continued, Tanzania priority medicinal plants matrix for immediate conservation
Species Traded Justification Recommendations
Osyris lanceolata Yes High demand Commercial plantations, harvest ban
Pericopsis angolensis No High demand
Piper capensis Locally High demand Sensitize, ex-situ conservation
Polyalthia stuhlmanii No Multiple treatments In-situ conservation
Prunus africana Yes High demand, multiple On farm & in-situ conservation, enforce policy
(bark) uses
Pseudospondias microcarpa No Less distribution In-situ and ex-situ conservation
Pterocarpus angolensis Yes1 High demand In- & ex-situ conservation, law enforcement
Pterocarpus tinctorius Yes1 High demand In- & ex-situ conservation, law enforcement
Pterocarpus rotundifolius Yes1 Multiple uses In-situ and ex-situ conservation
Myrsine melanophloes (Rapa- No Available in low densities
nea melanophloeos)
Rauvolfia vometoria Yes High demand, multiple On-farm, in-situ conservation, policy enforce-
uses ment
Rhamnus prinoides No Multiple treatments, uses
Rhamnus staddo No Available in low densities Domestication
Ritchiea capparoides No Available in low densities On farm planting
Rubia cordifolia No Climber dependent on Domestication
high canopy vegetation
Sansevieria bagamoyensis No Endemic to coastal areas
Shirakiopsis ellipticum No High demand, mode of
(Syn:Sapium ellipticum) harvesting
Sclerocarya birrea ssp. caffra Yes Multiple uses (wine sold) Large scale domestication
Scutia myrtina No Available in low densities
Steganotoenia araliacea Locally Rare Domestication
Stephanostema sternocarpum No Endemic to coastal areas Need national legislation
Tamarindus indica Yes Multiple uses (fruits) On-farm conservation
Tarenna littoralis No Restricted distribution To be prioritized for diversity assessment
Tephrosia vogelii No Demand: pesticidal effect Incorporated in agroforestry schemes
Toddaliopsis sansibarensis No Limited distribution
Trichilia emetica Yes Multiple uses (seeds sold) Potential: medicines, oil for soap and cosmetics
Vangueria infausta Yes Multiple uses (fruits sold) Ex-situ may solve competition with wild fruc-
tivorous
Vepris glomerata Root used in medicine Education on sustainable harvesting
Warburgia stulhmanii Yes Restricted distribution Domestication, national legislation and policy
Warburgia salutaris Yes Restricted distribution Cultivation
Ximenia caffra Yes Multiple uses Discourage the use for fuel
Xylopia arenaria No Coastal endemic Trial in different ecological regions
Zanha golungensis No Key stone species, multi-
ple uses
Zanha africana Locally Multiple uses
Zanthoxylum chalybeum Locally High demand, over-ex- Domestication
ploited in locality
serve the potential identified medicinal plants in
Community involvement/IK holders
Tanzania. There are no guidelines that take into ac-
There is little involvement of community/indig- count the Intellectual Property Rights, Access and
enous knowledge holders in collaboration with Benefit Sharing issues, and this constrains the free
research institutions and other stakeholders to con- sharing of biological information required for de-
Page 39 May 2012
veloping sustainable use of medicinal plants; fears species of Tanzania, especially those which are al-
of bio-piracy especially limits the involvement of ready under threat, require conservation measures
traditional medical practitioners in conservation to ensure their future sustainability.
initiatives.
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In Tanzania, little effort seems to have been di- in urban districts of Tanzania: plants, gender roles and
sustainable use. – International Forestry Review 7:
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the public, policy-makers, researchers, traditional port from the plants committee, Article 9.
health practitioners and end users through mass CUNNINGHAM, A.B. (1997): An Africa-wide overview of
media, tailored radio/television programmes, flyers medicinal plant harvesting, conservation and health
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FOSU, G.B. (1989): Access to health care in urban areas
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even government employees involved in trade of medicine: A Nairobi case study. – East African Medi-
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No. 14 of 2002 provides regulations on the trade of methods for medicinal plants: a research and develop-
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on Medicinal plants and Traditional medicine, 5-7 De-
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offences and penalties. The Plant Protection Act SCHAR, A., HEINRICH, M. & TANNER, M. (1995a):
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HAMILTON, A.C. (2005): The Ecohealth approach, with
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The present article presents the medicinal plant
ESARO, Nairobi, Kenya.
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The medicinal plants conservation challenges are MBWAMBO, Z.H., KAPINGU, M.C. (2006): The wealth
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 in the next decade. – In: ADENIJI, K.O. (ed.), 2001 -
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Page 41
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R.L.A. Mahunnah & J.N. Otieno • Muhimbili Uni-
vesity College of Health and Allied Sciences, Insti-
tute of Traditional Medicine • P.O.Box 65001, Dar
es Salaam, Tanzania
S. Augustino • Sokoine University of Agriculture,
Faculty of Forestry and Nature Conservation,
Department of Wood Utilization • P.O.Box 3014,
Chuo Kikuu, Morogoro, Tanzania • email: sanhe-
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Arusha, Tanzania
Community based conservation of
ethno-medicinal plants by tribal
people of Orissa state, India.
Saujanendra Swain & Nihar Parida
An ex-situ ethno-medicinal garden named Biju
Patnaik Medicinal Plants Garden and Research
Centre is established in 5 ha land donated by the
government of Orissa; it is located in Jeypore city
of Koraput district, Orissa state, India. This Gar-
den consists of nine tribal gardens devoted to nine
major tribal groups of the region: Bhatra, Bhumia,
Bonda, Gadaba, Gond, Kandha, Koya, Paroja and
Saora. Each tribal garden is being planted, main-
tained and managed by the traditional healthcare
practitioners and traditional birth attendants of the
respective tribal communities. A total of 347 me-
dicinal plants used in the traditional healthcare sys-
tems of the nine tribes of the region are conserved
in this garden (109 trees, 91 shrubs, 39 climbers,
102 herbs and 6 others - orchids, grasses, ferns etc).
The garden serves as a repository of genetic stock
of the undivided Koraput district and as a living
gene bank for the tribal people; it has immense util-
ity for the present and future generations.
May 2012
 1,200 medicinal plant species are available in the
forests of this area. Some of the endemic medicinal
plant species available are used for curing common
diseases like fever, cold, pyorrhea, gastrointestinal
disorders, skin diseases, malarial fever, etc. But
certain plant species with specific traits are used
for setting fractured bones, curing asthma, jaun-
dice, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. And many specific
plant species have anti-helminthes, anti-inflamma-
tory and anti-fertility properties for curing several
diseases (BOX 1). The tribal populations residing in
the region have their own local physicians/healers
FIGURE 1. Distribution of dominant tribes in Jeypore who have outstanding knowledge on the plant spe-
tract of Orissa, India. cies used for traditional healing. They have been
in the practice of preserving a rich heritage of in-
Introduction formation on medicinal plants and their manage-
In every ethnic group a culturally patterned tradi- ment. They have both the know-how and do-how
tional health care system exists. In rural commu- for preparing the medicine and its application. This
nities health care is the first and foremost line of local healing system is a part of the Indian tradi-
defense and the WHO has recognized the contribu- tional medicinal system. The tribal populations are
tion of traditional health care in tribal communi- poor but their endowment of bioresources is rich.
ties. It is very essential to have a proper documen- Very little research has been done so far on the vast
tation and conservation both in-situ & ex-situ of medicinal plant resources in the Koraput region,
medicinal plants and to know their potential for the particularly in the areas of conservation, sustain-
improvement of health and hygiene through an eco ability, value addition and equitable sharing of ben-
friendly system (AMBASTA 1986). efits from the medicinal plant heritage.
Despite the increasing use of medicinal plants in
primary health care in addition to allopathic drugs,
their future is being threatened in relation to their BOX 1. Medicinal plants commonly used among tribal
people in Orissa, India.
conservation, sustainable use and benefit shar-
ing. Several important species are in danger of Fever Tinospora cordifolia (Willd.) Hook. f.
extinction due to growing trade demands for new and Thoms
plant-based therapeutic products and biopharma-
Cold Ocimum sanctum L.
ceuticals. Such concerns have stimulated action in
chronicling and conserving medicinal plants and Pyorrhoea Jatropha gossypifolia L.
sharing of benefits with the indigenous tribes as a Gastrointestinal
token of acknowledgment for their contribution to disorder Aegle marmelos (L.) Corr.
the final product (JAIN 1971).
Skin diseases Azadirachta indica A. Juss
In this context the undivided Koraput district of
Malaria fever Nyctanthes arbor-tristis L.
Orissa state merits special mention as it is known
for its richness of medicinal flora and as it is a treas- Fractured
ure of useful plant resources. Tribal communities bones Cissus quandraangula L
living in this region have been conserving and uti- Asthma Justicia adhatoda L.
lizing these resources, including medicinal plants.
Gradual depletion of the forest cover in the area Jaundice Lawsonia inermis L.
is slowly eroding the indigenous/traditional knowl- Rheumatoid
edge associated with the medicinal plants (CHAUD- arthritis Paederia foetida L.
HURI ET AL. 1985). It is estimated that more than

Page 42 May 2012

The ethno-medicinal garden
TABLE 1. The nine tribes, their population and the
Realizing this M.S. Swaminathan Research Foun- number of medicinal plants used by them.
dation, Chennai, India established a Research and
Development Centre in Jeypore city of Koraput Tribe Population District No. of medici-
(2001 census) nal plants used
district in Orissa state, primarily to undertake in-
Bhatra 375,845 Nawarangpur 81
tensive and integrated studies on medicinal and
Bhumia 103,537 Koraput 69
aromatic plants, their conservation, sustainable and
Bonda 9,378 Malkangiri 55
value-added use, and equitable sharing of benefits.
The center has been dedicated to the various tribal Gadaba 782,104 Koraput 83
Gond 72,982 Nawarangpur 67
communities, residing in the area, and more spe-
cifically to the nine predominant tribes who have Kandha 1,395,643 Koraput & 124
Rayagada
been custodians of the plant genetic resources since
Koya 122,535 Malkangiri 48
time immemorial. The centre has been working
Paroja 317,301 Koraput 74
with the different tribal communities residing in
Saora 473,233 Rayagada 59
the region to document their traditional knowledge
on medicinal and other useful plants since 1997- 9 tribes 3,652,558 4 districts 660
98, to protect and safeguard the traditional knowl-
edge for potential future benefit sharing. nine different tribal groups were found in the area,
out of the total 62 in Orissa state. Their population
Area and people varies from 10,000 to 0.4 million. Out of the total
Koraput district is situated in the South-eastern re- 29 tribes 9 tribes were selected for further detailed
gion of Orissa and is located between 170 50’and study on their plant used for primary healthcare.
200 3’north latitude, and 81027’ and 840 1’ east The THPs and TBAs of the tribes were contacted,
longitudes (FIGURE 1). Administratively, the old and their traditional knowledge on use of medicinal
Koraput district is now divided into 4 districts plants for primary healthcare was systematically
namely Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur and documented. Information on 660 ethno-medicinal
Rayagada. The total geographical area of the dis- plant species was documented. It was observed that
trict is 0.84 million ha. The different areas in this nearly 50% of the plants are common to all nine
zone are situated at altitudes of 150-1,000 meters tribes, but that the same plant may be used to treat
above sea level. A major portion of the tribal habi- different diseases. During the survey 87 ethno-me-
tat is hilly and forested; the hill slopes are highly dicinal plants were found to be endangered as they
eroded and of low fertility, they are over-grazed are harvested from the wild in unsustainable ways.
and represent the symbol of poverty. The district Nearly 10% of the medicinal species reported to
is home to a large number of different tribal com- be used are not found in the wild or they are on
munities: approximately 29 tribes forming 54.30% the verge of extinction. Details of the nine tribes
of the total population of the district. and the number of medicinal plants used by them
are presented in Table 1. TABLE 2 presents the 12
The traditional health care practitioners most commonly used medicinal plants.
Most of the tribal villages have their own tradition-
After analyzing the facts and figures from the
al health care practitioners (THPs) who are known
above survey, it was decided to establish a tribe-
as Disari in the local language. Women work as tra-
wise traditional healers association to address the
ditional birth attendants (TBAs) called Gurumayi.
issues onorganized traditional healthcare prac-
They have specialized knowledge on childbirth
tice, conservation and use of medicinal plant, and
and related herbal medicines. Each and every com-
monitoring of the medicinal plant biodiversity. Till
munity/tribe has their own Desari and Gurumayi.
to date associations were established for the nine
Genesis of the ethno-medicinal Garden tribes by involving around 764 THPs and TBAs.
During the year 2006, a study was carried out by Just after the formation of association, a process
M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation to map was carried out to prioritize the ethno-medicinal
the distribution of tribes in the Koraput. Twenty- plants that need immediate attention for ex situ

Page 43 May 2012

conservation in consultation with the members of
TABLE 2. Tvelwe medicinal plants commonly used by
the association.
tribal people in Orissa state, India.
Nine tribal ethno-medicinal conservation gardens Local Botanical Name Family
With the generous support of 5 ha of land from the name
Government of Orissa, the ex-situ conservation Bhuin- Andrographis paniculata Acanthaceae
garden was established at Jeypore city of Koraput Nimba (Burm.f.) wall.ex.Nees
district in April 2007. The garden was named after Brudha- Argyreia nervosa Convolvulaceae
daraka (Burn.f.)Boj
the former Chief Minister of Orissa. The garden
Brahmi Bacopa monnieri (L.) Scrophulariaceae
was established for ex-situ genetic conservation
penn.
of ethno-medicinal plants used by major tribes of
Thalakudi Centella asiatica (L.) Apiaceae
this region under a project mode with the finan- Urban
cial support from Department of Biotechnology, Rukuna – Coleus ambonicus Lour. Lamiaceae
Government of India. The Garden was devoted to Hatapocha
the above mentioned nine major tribal groups of Basanga Justicia adhatoda L. Acanthaceae
the region and the actual garden is located in nine Patragaja Kalanchoe pinnata Crassulaceae
acres (1 acre is 4047 m2) of land. One acre of land (Lam.) Pers
was allocated to each of the tribes for conservation Podina Mentha spicata L. Labiatae
and cultivation of plants they use for their primary Tulasi Occimum sanctum L. Lamiaceae
health care needs (FIGURE 2). The THPs and TBAs Pasaruni Peaderia foetida L. Rubiaceae
from each of the tribes collected ethno-medicinal Pipali Piper longum Piperaceae
plants from their respective areas and planted them Guluchi Tinospora cordifolia Menispermaceae
in their garden. (Wild) Hook.f.& Toms
Each of the nine tribal ethno-medicinal plant gar-
dens is being maintained by the THPs and TBAs dens, the garden also has one RET (rare, endan-
of the respective community. Each garden has gered, threatened) ethno-medicinal plant garden
more than 50-60 plant species, representing herbs, having 24 RET ethno-medicinal plant species of
shrubs, creepers/climbers and trees used in the pri- the region. Additionally, a model of a Home Herb-
mary healthcare practice of the tribe. The gardens al Garden and a Women’s Medicinal Plant Garden
are rounded in shape and the plants are planted representing the plant species used in the tradition-
without any order so it looks like a forest. The en- al system of women healthcare were established in-
tire garden has nine circles for nine tribes. Each side the garden. One Spice garden was established
garden has a big signboard with a photo of the tribe to conserve the wild and cultivated spices of the
and demographic and cultural information a=bout region. One Introduced Plants Garden of the region
the tribe. Each plant species has a label depicting was developed to demonstrate the plants that have
the local name of the plant, the botanical name, been introduced in the region. One Forest Food
family, habit, parts used, and diseases for which Garden with plants yielding food for the tribal peo-
the plant is used. At the centre of these nine gar- ple, including wild edible tubers, has been devel-
dens there is a traditional tribal hut with thatched oped inside the garden. One artificial sacred groove
roof that serves as a meeting place for the THPs was established, where plants used by the tribes for
and TBAs. The management of the garden was car- religious purposes were planted and conserved.
ried out by female and male healthcare practition- A few portions of the garden are devoted to propa-
ers democratically selected from the communities. gation of ethno-medicinal plants in great demand
Every month the nominated members from the tra- through establishment of two large shade-net hous-
ditional healers association (from each of the nine es and three ultraviolet stabilized poly houses. This
tribal communities) monitor the health of garden caters to the needs of tribal people for ethno-me-
and add new plants to the garden. dicinal plants. Demonstrations on cultivation of 24
Ethno-medicinal plant diversity commercially exploited medicinal plants were laid
down inside the garden. Continuous training and
Apart from the above 9 ethno-medicinal plant gar
Page 44 May 2012
FIGURE 2. The tribal ethno-medicinal gardens. Photo: S. Swain.
ditional healthcare knowledge & conservation of
capacity building programs on conservation and
the rare genetic base of ethno-medicinal plants for
use of ethno-medicinal plants were conducted for
centuries. The authors are thankful to the Depart-
the tribal youths, THPs, TBAs and volunteers.
ment of Biotechnology (Government of India) for
Three booklets and two posters were developed, supporting the conservation activities of the tribal
both in English and local language, to create aware- people. Thanks to the Government of Orissa state
ness on conservation of ethno-medicinal plants. for their concern towards conservation of the won-
The garden also organizes campaigns on herbal derful tribal treasures of medicinal plants and as-
remedies against malaria through preparation and sociated traditional knowledge. We pay out deep
administration of herbal formulation to the tribal sense of gratitude to Dr. Ajay Parida, Executive
people. The garden facilitates information sharing Director & Dr. K.U. K . Nampoothiri, Director of
on ethno-medicinal plants between different tribal MSSRF for his periodic motivation & guidance.
groups through periodic exchange visits, meetings
and informal discussions. References
AMBASTA, S.P. (1986): The useful plants of India. –
Conclusion Publications and information, Directorate, CSIR, New
Broadly Biju Patnaik Medicinal Plants Garden and Delhi.
Research Centre is a conservation centre which pro- CHAUDHURI, H.N. Rai, PAL, D.C. & TARAFDAR, C.R.
vides a living gene bank for the tribal families and (1985): Less known uses of some plants from the trib-
gives them a sense of ownership. A participatory al areas of Orissa. –Bull. Bot. Surv. India 17: 132-136.
JAIN, S.K. (1971): Some magico-religious beliefs about
knowledge management system is slowly evolving
plants among Adibasis of Orissa. – Adibasi, 12:39-40.
which fosters genetic, trade and legal literacy. The
center has the mandate of helping the nine tribal Additional literature
communities to protect their intellectual property ANONYMOUS (1948-76): Wealth of India. Raw Materi-
rights under the provisions of the Protection of als 11. – CSIR, New Delhi.
Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act and the BRAHMAM, M. & DUTTA, P.K. (1981): Ethnobotanical
Biodiversity Act (2002). It is envisioned that this studies in Orissa. In: JAIN, S.K. (ed.), Glimpses of In-
initiative will help to convert plant resources into dian ethnobotany. – Oxford and IBH publishing Co.,
economic wealth on an ecologically sustainable New Delhi. pp. 232-244.
basis, and to overcome the prevailing dichotomy BRAHMAM, M. & SAXENA, H.O. (1990): Ethnobotany
of the poverty of the people and the prosperity of of Gandhamardan hills – some noteworthy folk-me-
dicinal uses. – Ethnobotany 2: 71-79.
Nature thereby leading to an era of biohappiness.
DAS, P.K. & KANT, R. (1998): Ethnobotanical studies
Acknowledgement of the tribal belt of Koraput (Orissa). Bull. medicoeth-
no. – Bot. Res. 9(3&4):123-128.
The paper is being dedicated to the tribal people
DAS, P.K. & MISHRA, M.K. (1987): Some medicinal
of Koraput district for their selfless sharing of tra- plants used by the tribal of Deomali and adjacent ar-

Page 45 May 2012

 En el caso de la conservación de las plantas me-
eas of Koraput District, Orissa. – Indian J.For. 10(4):
301-303. dicinales, es a partir de 1985 que diversas organ-
GIRACH, R.D. ET AL. (1998): Medico ethnobotany of izaciones (OMS, UICN, WWF) se están refiriendo
Sundargarh, Orissa. – India. Phar. Biology 36(1):20. al tema, y que han formulado e impulsado distintas
SATAPATHY, K.B. & PANDA, P.C. (1992): Medicinal estrategias y acciones conjuntas para determinar
uses of some plants among the tribals of Sundargarh
cuál es el estado de estas plantas. Estos lineamien-
Disrict, Orissa. – J. Econ. Tax. Bot. Addl. Ser. 10: 241-
249. tos están plasmados en el documento “Directrices
SAXENA, H.O. & BRAHMAM, M. (1996): The flora of sobre conservación de plantas medicinales” (OMS,
Orissa (4 Vols.). UICN, WWF 1993). Uno de los resultados con-
SAXENA, H.O. and DUTTA, P.K. (1975). Studies on the cretos es la recientemente creada Comisión para la
Conservación de las Plantas Medicinales (1994).
ethnobotany of Orissa. – Bull. Bot. v. India, 17(1-4):
124-131. Esta ha sido una iniciativa de la UICN, apoyada
por investigadores vinculados con distintas etapas
Saujanendra Swain & Nihar Parida • M. S. Swa-
del proceso de conservación y desarrollo de las
minathan Resaerch Foundation • Regional Centre:
plantas medicinales en el mundo.
Phulbad, Umuri P.O, Jeypore -764 002, Koraput
District, Odisha state, India • e-mail: saujanen- La conservación desde la óptica de un análisis
dra@rediffmail.com integrado
A pesar del gran interés demostrado a nivel inter-
nacional e interinstitucional, se ha especulado mu-
Estado de la conservación de las cho con respecto a las plantas medicinales y con
plantas TRAMIL incluidas en la razón, ya que su utilización es antigua y es parte
de una dinámica cultural compleja por la relación
Farmacopea Vegetal Caribeña existente entre las plantas medicinales y el ser hu-
mano.
Sonia Lagos, Xinia Robles & Rafael Ángel
Ocampo Sánchez El análisis sobre el estado de la conservación, no
solo debe abordarse desde la óptica biológica sino
que debe incorporarse el enfoque cultural, para ser
Antecedentes
más consecuente con la realidad y para entender la
Ante la responsabilidad que representa la extinción dinámica en que están inmersas las plantas medici-
y uso sostenible de los recursos naturales, muchas nales.
personas y organizaciones han integrado sus esfu-
erzos a nivel mundial en la promulgación de políti- Los esfuerzos técnicos para determinar el estado
cas y directrices, dirigidas hacia la conservación de de la conservación de los recursos naturales se han
la fauna y la flora. dirigido especialmente hacia los recursos nativos
de una región, área, paisaje o continente. Esta sit-
Es precisamente bajo el amparo de la Unión Mun- uación es razonable, en tanto que, cuando los re-
dial para la Naturaleza (UICN), una de las organ- cursos naturales silvestres son objeto de comercio
izaciones que mayores esfuerzos ha realizado en indiscriminado están en peligro de extinción.
este sentido, que se elaboró el tratado internacional
o convención denominado CITES en 1973, el cual En el caso de la conservación de las plantas me-
involucra aproximadamente 132 países del mundo dicinales existe un elemento muy importante, que
que están dispuestos a asumir el compromiso de está vinculado con la “cultura de las plantas medic-
regular un uso inadecuado. Los países de Cen- inales”. Hay un interés particular del ser humano
troamérica y el Caribe también han firmado esta de llevar consigo los recursos naturales (tomar una
convención, demostrando su interés por asumir el parte de la planta y luego establecerla en un nuevo
compromiso y cumplirlo. ambiente) de importancia para su salud. Por esta
razón plantas de origen africano como la Momor-
Se han creado varios instrumentos de apoyo a este dica charantia, poseen una distribución muy am-
convenio, establecido para alcanzar objetivos es- plia en el Caribe y Centroamérica. En este sentido
pecíficos a nivel global y abarcando distintas áreas. el origen de los recursos naturales posee un peso

Page 46 May 2012

 CITES y las acciones que promueven las organiza-
fundamental para la definición del estado de la con-
servación. ciones interesadas en esta problemática. Veamos
El uso y aprovechamiento de las plantas medici- en detalle algunos elementos que inducen al cues-
nales, constituye no solo un sincretismo cultural tionamiento planteado.
(al involucrar diversos grupos humanos), sino que El Convenio sobre el Comercio Internacional de
ha promovido el intercambio de recursos naturales Especies Amenazadas de la Fauna y la Flora Sil-
útiles entre las regiones del mundo. Es por este vestres (CITES), es una iniciativa que funciona con
motivo que en América existen diversas plantas base en sus cuatro apéndices. Establece diferentes
medicinales de uso popular que tienen diferentes restricciones de comercio para las especies inscri-
orígenes; caso contrario sucede con las orquídeas tas en sus Apéndices y permite el comercio sola-
(Orchidaceae) que generalmente son nativas y por mente cuando una autoridad gubernamental com-
lo tanto las acciones de conservación deben ajus- petente emite una autorización conforme al modelo
tarse a esta condición. de permiso del Apéndice IV.
La presencia de plantas medicinales en Centro- CITES es una herramienta clara en cuanto a las cat-
américa y el Caribe es la conjugación de diversos egorías definidas, tiene un mandato internacional y
orígenes geográficos del mundo. Hierbas como enfatiza en las plantas silvestres que son objeto de
el zacate de limón (Cymbopogon citratus) o el comercio. En la práctica el problema sigue siendo
árbol de limón (Citrus aurantifolia) son recursos la capacidad técnica establecida en los países, para
exóticos de amplia distribución y uso en la región. discernir cuáles recursos son objeto de comercio y,
Precisamente, las plantas medicinales que se en- en algunos casos, cuáles son los criterios que deben
cuentran en la Farmacopea Caribeña (GERMOSEN- aplicarse para saber si un recurso entra o no en de-
ROBINEAU 1996) son una excelente representación terminada categoría.
de esta situación. Por ejemplo, la palma areca o múltiple (Chrysa-
El acercamiento a la Farmacopea Caribeña, para lidocarpus lutescens) es una palma ornamental
determinar el estado de la conservación de sus plan- originaria de la Isla de Madagascar. Esta es la pal-
tas, debe involucrar criterios diferentes de los ya ma de mayor comercio en el mundo y por ende su
definidos para los recursos en su estado natural, de- distribución geográfica se ha ampliado. El prob-
ben ampliarse con el propósito de lograr establecer lema con esta especie radica en que las autoridades
una realidad más consecuente con la dinámica del de CITES de Costa Rica, solicitan un trámite para
aprovechamiento y uso de las plantas medicinales. la exportación de esta palma que ha sido introduc-
Para elaborar este documento partimos con el obje- ida y cultivada en el país. Este trámite no es nec-
tivo de analizar el estado actual de conservación de esario en estas condiciones; lo es en su país de
las plantas medicinales que están en la Farmacopea origen donde la especie silvestre está en peligro de
Caribeña. Para definir la vulnerabilidad se requirió extinción y el comercio debe regularse.
aplicar una serie de criterios tanto biológicos como Otro ejemplo lo constituye la rana venenosa (Den-
culturales, con el propósito de esclarecer con una drobates pumila y D. auratus), de la cual no se
base objetiva el cambio, no tan evidente en algunos tienen estudios detallados sobre su comportami-
casos, en la abundancia de las plantas medicinales. ento en algunos de los países centroamericanos
Esperamos que este análisis conlleve a definir nue- (ambas investigadas actualmente por su actividad
vas estrategias que contribuyan a la permanencia y farmacológica), y sin embargo no se restringe su
uso sostenible de estas especies en beneficio de la exportación. En este caso es evidente que si los
salud popular de la comunidad Caribeña, en par- países cuentan con el recurso silvestre, están en la
ticular, y del mundo en general. obligación de tener la información técnica adecua-
da que respalde la toma de decisiones en cuanto al
Ante la disyuntiva de la conservación uso sostenible y comercial de la especie, así como
Cuando se toca el tema de la conservación de los de la categoría a la que se debe asignar y los crite-
recursos naturales y la preocupación por su esta- rios por los cuales se asignó.
do, aparece la disyuntiva sobre el papel que juega Estos ejemplos nos indican que existe un dilema

Page 47 May 2012

relacionado con el estado de las especies que son gional del Caribe y Centroamérica. La aplicación
exóticas de una región y la aplicación de los Apén- de estos criterios retroalimenta los apéndices de
dices de CITES, así como ausencia de conocimien- CITES y conlleva a establecer las listas rojas no
to científico sobre la dinámica de poblaciones que por país (límites políticos) sino por regiones bio-
son objeto de comercio y que su extracción con- geográficas, respetando situaciones de endemismo
tinua podría conducir a la desaparición dentro su propias de áreas específicas.
ambiente natural. A la luz de esta realidad, diversos organismos inter-
Criterios científicos como garantía de objetivi- nacionales están promoviendo acciones de domes-
dad ticación de plantas medicinales, como un esfuerzo
Hasta ahora, distintos criterios se han utilizado para orientado hacia la conservación y aprovechamiento
definir cuándo una especie (independientemente de las especies. Por esta razón es de suma impor-
del aprovechamiento o interés comercial) está o no tancia ser consecuentes con la realidad y la necesi-
en peligro de extinción. dad de conservar nuestros recursos naturales, así
como contar con criterios aplicables y adaptados a
Probablemente, la UICN ha sido la organización nuestras condiciones.
que por más tiempo ha estado vinculada con el
tema, y por esto su madurez al plantear la necesidad Para evaluar el estado de la conservación de las
de ser objetivos en el proceso de clasificación. Re- plantas medicinales de la Farmacopea Caribeña se
cientemente esta organización acaba de establecer establecieron criterios para realizar un análisis ob-
una serie de categorías, que constituyen el método jetivo, consecuente con la realidad y, finalmente,
más acertado para brindar insumos para la toma de poder clasificar las plantas medicinales en las cat-
decisiones en cuanto a los recursos naturales se re- egorías adecuadas.
fiere. Estas categorías representan el marco teórico Criterios para su determinación
global de una situación hipotética, que aunque im- Existe en la actualidad una gran preocupación por
portante desde la óptica científica debe analizarse la conservación y aprovechamiento de las plantas
considerando la capacidad real de la región bioge- medicinales. Esta situación no solamente se refleja
ográfica del Caribe y Centroamérica. en el ámbito propiamente ambientalista (en época
Las categorías de CITES representan un marco reciente se circunscribía exclusivamente a este
teórico global de una situación hipotética, que ámbito) sino que ha alcanzado a personas de otras
aunque importante desde la óptica científica, de- disciplinas que anteriormente no se sentían involu-
ben analizarse tomando en consideración la base cradas de alguna manera con el desarrollo de los
existente, la capacidad real y las características recursos naturales; se ha reconocido que la conser-
biogeográficas y culturales a las que corresponde vación de la biodiversidad es de interés común de
el sitio. toda la humanidad.
Además es importante señalar que por la misma Es precisamente el CITES que dio la voz de alerta,
riqueza en biodiversidad, de las regiones tropi- al regular el comercio ilegal de las especies ame-
cales, se hace casi imposible documentarla to- nazadas en diferentes grados. A partir de este
talmente. Solo en Centroamérica (sin incluir el momento, y cada vez con mayor vehemencia, se
Caribe), se han reportado aproximadamente mil escuchan más intervenciones sobre la necesidad
especies medicinales. Esta situación es muy difer- de determinar el estado de la conservación de los
ente en regiones templadas, no solo con respecto a recursos naturales.
la biodiversidad sino también en cuanto a las con- Hay que recordar que CITES nace como una re-
diciones socioeconómicas, de capacidad técnica y spuesta, con enfoque conservacionista, hacia un
tecnológica. problema de uso inadecuado como lo es el com-
Es precisamente con criterios uniformes y cientí- ercio ilegal de recursos naturales (principalmente
ficamente fundamentados, que se pueden agilizar fauna), producto de las acciones de extractivismo.
acciones de conservación y desarrollo con aquellas Conforme a transcurrido el tiempo se han incor-
especies de interés sociocultural en el ámbito re- porado grandes grupos taxonómicos vegetales, por

Page 48 May 2012

ejemplo Cycadales y Orchidaceae, y recientemente
la categoría de plantas medicinales. Esta última, no
responde a un grupo biológico-taxonómico, sino a
una categoría de uso que representa una cantidad
apreciable de especies, familias, estructuras, ambi-
entes, orígenes e intereses (conservacionistas, pro-
ductivos y políticos).
Los grupos de presión también han aumentado, no
solamente en cantidad sino en diversidad cultural
y de enfoques, y van desde investigadores, cientí-
ficos, profesionales, empresarios hasta el público
en general.
Estas circunstancias nos brindan elementos impor-
tantes para tener un enfoque holístico que conlleve
a la identificación de soluciones, acordes con el
equilibrio deseado entre la conservación de los re-
cursos naturales y su explotación racional en ben-
eficio de los países productores, que son los dueños
de los recursos con actividad terapéutica.
La definición sobre el estado de la conservación es
más compleja que una simple consulta a un profe-
sional experto en un tema específico. Este análisis
debe abordarse desde la perspectiva interdiscipli-
naria. Por esta razón, y con el propósito de analizar
cuál es el estado de la conservación de las plantas
de la “Farmacopea Vegetal Caribeña”, se deter-
minaron algunos criterios que responden la reali-
dad actual en materia de conservación y desarrollo
de las plantas medicinales (Box 1). El orden de los
criterios no corresponde a ningún nivel de prioriza-
ción, cada uno cumple una función y el resultado
de la suma de criterios es el indicador del estado de
la conservación.
Criterios para evaluar el estado de la conser-
vación de las plantas medicinales incluidas en la
Farmacopea Vegetal Caribeña.
1. Identificación taxonómica
Este criterio de identificación taxonómica debe ser
prioritario, por que para clasificar el recurso y darle
el seguimiento adecuado debe tenerse definido cuál
es el nombre científico y las sinonimias que le cor-
responden. A pesar de su importancia, la situación
al respecto aún debe mejorarse en la región.
Muchas plantas carecen de información taxonómi- 2. Categorías de uso y germoplasma
ca fidedigna, tal es el caso de las especies del gén- Cuando se hace referencia a la biodiversidad veg-
ero Smilax cuya información es hasta el momento etal útil, es claro que muchas especies poseen
bastante confusa e incierta. Las especies silvestres diferentes usos para los humanos. Las plantas se
Page 49
BOX 1. Estado de conservación de las especies de la
Farmacopea Caribeña
1. Estructura morfológica – biológica
ESTRUCTURA PORCENTAJE
Hierbas 46
Arbol 28
Arbustos 18
Liana 7
Palmas 1
2. Origen
De las plantas que están en la Farmacopea Caribeña 60%
son especies nativas de América, el 40% restante son
plantas introducidas al Caribe desde otros continentes del
mundo.
3. Otras categorías de uso
Aunque el total de plantas es utilizado como recurso ter-
apeútico, es importante señalar que 77% de las plantas
tienen otros usos.
4. Estado del recurso
Se ha mencionado que cuando se hace referencia al estado
de la conservación de los recursos naturales se hace ref-
erencia a plantas silvestres. Por esta razón al analizar el
estado del recurso se observa que 50% son plantas que se
cultivan con diferentes niveles e intensidades. Sólo 37%
son plantas silvestres, que de acuerdo con el órgano co-
sechado y la intensidad de uso, así como el estado biológi-
co de la planta, podría presentar indicios de vulnerabilidad.
El 13% de las plantas es una mezcla de un estado incipiente
de cultivo con poblaciones silvestres.
5. Grado de amenaza
Al hacer el análisis final para determinar el grado de ame-
naza que tienen estas plantas se encontró que 84% no
tienen amenazas, 13% son vulnerables y 3% no cuenta con
datos suficientes para ubicarlas en una determinada cat-
egoría. Los datos detallados de cada una de las especies
que se consideraron para el análisis se puede obtener de
los autores.
que se encuentran en los bosques se están comer-
cializando a nivel local e internacional y el pro
ducto que se cosecha es la raíz. Este conjunto de
criterios hacen que la planta se considere como
vulnerable y se ubique en la categoría II de CITES;
sin embargo el problema es definir cuál o cuáles
son las especies vulnerables.
May 2012
han categorizado de acuerdo con estos usos. La in- fica de un recurso natural se amplíe, en principio se
clusión de alguna especie dentro de una categoría disminuye el riesgo de entrar en las diversas cat-
de especial importancia para la sociedad, le brinda egorías de amenaza o conservación.
a la planta mayor seguridad en su conservación. El endemismo se considera como sinónimo de au-
Por ejemplo, la okra (Abelmonchus esculentus) tóctono, indígena (FONT 1977) y nativo. Como
además de ser medicinal es alimenticia (hortaliza). antónimos se mencionan exótico e introducido.
Esta situación ha inducido a los especialistas en
mejoramiento genético a crear bancos de germo- Por ejemplo, el árbol Peltogyne purpurea Pittier
(nazareno), utilizado para aserrío, es nativo de Cos-
plasma a partir de colectas de material silvestre y a
impulsar acciones para su conservación. ta Rica y Panamá. En Costa Rica se distribuye
únicamente en la vertiente Pacífica. Por su limita-
En general la existencia de bancos de germoplasma da distribución, lo valioso de la madera y su conse-
representa un mecanismo para la conservación ex cuente sobreexplotación es una especie amnazada.
situ de la especie. Es importante señalar que las
plantas medicinales son para los investigadores en Contrariamente tenemos el ejemplo del árbol Si-
mejoramiento genético, especies no convencion- marouba glauca (aceituno), de uso medicinal y
ales (o sea especies que no han entrado a la cadena para aserrío. Posee una distribución amplia en
de comercialización “oficial” de mejoramiento, América Tropical y subtropical. Todavía no está
producción y comercialización). Bajo la categoría amenazada.
de no convencionales también se incluyen las plan- Es evidente que el origen y la distribución de una
tas nativas de los trópicos y subtrópicos, por esta especie están vinculados estrechamente con su
razón una planta que es nativa es, en consecuencia, conservación. A mayor distribución biogeográfica
vulnerable. menor vulnerabilidad.
Recientemente, se ha empezado a considerar la con- 4. Estructura morfológica - biológica
servación in situ como una alternativa viable para
Son las formas biológicas, denominadas en térmi-
conservar los recursos naturales en su medio am-
nos vulgares como árbol, arbusto, hierba, liana y
biente. El CATIE está realizando investigaciones
palma. De estas formas de vida se utilizan y comer-
con dos importantes especies medicinales, Quasia
cializan diversos órganos (hojas, flores, raíz, corte-
amara y Smilax chiriquensis en Tamalanca, Costa
za, etc.) que conducen en mayor o menor grado a
Rica. Bougainvillea SA (empresa costarricense,
la vulnerabilidad de una especie. Por ejemplo, el
véase el artículo sobre Quassia amara en este volú-
aprovechamiento de tubérculos de poblaciones sil-
men) está realizando actividades de conservación
vestres de Dracontium pone en mayor peligro la
y desarrollo con Dracontium gigas y Arrabaidea
especie que el aprovechamiento de sus hojas.
chica, en ambos casos se está promoviendo la con-
servación in situ (bancos de germoplasma). En general la tendencia que se manifiesta con re-
specto al concepto de especies medicinales es que
3. Origen y distribución geográfica son principalmente plantas arvenses. Igualmente,
El origen es una condición propia de cada especie, diversas publicaciones se refieren a la categoría de
género o familia. Responde a características am- plantas medicinales como “hierbas medicinales”.
bientales generales o específicas. Una nueva espe-
Es evidente que la mayoría de las plantas introduci-
cie puede sobrevivir si compite en un plano igual
das a América son hierbas de porte pequeño. Cuan-
o de ventaja con las poblaciones con que convive,
do se realizan investigaciones etnofarmacológicas
o bien por encontrarse en un ambiente favorable o
con grupos nativos en América, nos damos cuenta
aislado (este aislamiento puede ser ecológico, ge-
que se amplía la gama de recursos y también de
ográfico o genético) o porque tiene la protección
estructuras. Así, se puede encontrar árboles, arbus-
del ser humano.
tos, lianas y palmas, además de hierbas.
En este contexto, el endemismo constituye el fac-
El tipo de estructura morfológica – biológica posee
tor limitante para la conservación de una especie
un peso importante en la determinación del estado
o género en su ambiente natural dentro de un país,
de la conservación, relacionado con los aspectos
región o isla. Conforme la distribución biogeográ-
Page 50 May 2012
biológicos de cada especie (abundancia, ciclo de c. Agricultura avanzada: caracterizada por tec-
vida, volumen de semilla, etc). nologías que impulsan su desarrollo y modern-
ización.
5. Propagación
El factor de propagación es un elemento básico Recientemente el CATIE inició investigaciones
en la conservación y cultivo de las plantas, y los sobre recursos de la biodiversidad vegetal útil, in-
recursos naturales con actividad terapéutica no cluyendo las plantas medicinales. Estas investiga-
constituyen la excepción. Esta característica da lu- ciones están orientadas hacia el manejo de pobla-
gar para evaluar y seleccionar el mejor método de ciones silvestres en el sistema bosque.
propagación. De esta manera es común que especies medicinales
En este sentido, es importante señalar que las plan- de origen exótico sean objeto de cultivo comercial
tas medicinales que se establecen en huertos y jar- en su región de origen, y en Centroamérica y el
dines se han propagado con métodos empíricos y Caribe se cultiven en jardines con propósitos or-
que son acciones anteriores al desarrollo de inves- namentales como sucede con Zingiber purpureum,
tigaciones sobre domesticación. otras se encuentran espontáneas en sitios ruderales
(orillas de caminos) como sucede con Plantago
La facilidad de reproducción así como poder utili- major.
zar diversos métodos de propagación, representan
para la especie una forma de garantizar su conser- De igual forma ocurre con especies nativas, que
vación. debido al interés se toman del medio natural y se
establecen en medios disturbados como huertos; en
6. Estado del recurso este caso lo que existe es “protección a la especie”
Este indicador es básico para determinar el grado o sea nos ubicamos en la etapa de selección de ma-
de amenaza de una especie y está vinculado di- teriales silvestres.
rectamente con el origen biogeográfico. Por estas razones la categoría cultivada y silvestre
En el caso de los recursos naturales medicinales no en algunos casos no es tan transparente.
es tan fácil determinar este indicador como lo es Los resultados de la aplicación de los criterios
con el maíz (Zea mays), por su trayectoria histórica planteados anteriormente a las plantas incluidas en
cultural en América. Con respecto al estado de la Farmacopea Caribeña se encuentran en el Box 1.
las plantas medicinales la información es escasa.
Como ejemplo se puede citar la ipecacuana (Psyco- Literatura citada
tria ipecacuanha), que es posiblemente la especie FONT Q, P. (1977): Diccionario de botánica. – Editorial
medicinal más importante en América Central por Labor, Barcelona.
su comercio internacional y sin embargo aún no GERMOSEN-ROBINEAU, L. (ed.). (1996): Farmacopea
existe claridad sobre su estado, a pesar de acciones vegetal caribeña. – TRAMIL, Santo Domingo. 360p.
OMS/UICN/WWF. 1993. Directrices sobre conser-
dispersas de cultivo en países centroamericanos y a
vación de plantas medicinales. – UICN, Gland. 55p.
su presencia silvestre en áreas boscosas.
Según LEÓN (1968), esta situación se debe a que Sonia Lagos • PLATS, Universidad Nacional
del estado silvestre al cultivado (proceso de domes- Autónoma de Honduras • email: slagos09@gmail.
ticación) existen tres etapas básicas, que conducen com
al manejo de poblaciones de plantas:
BOX 2. TRAMIL
a. Selección de materiales silvestres: se inició TRAMIL es un programa de investigación aplicada a
en el neolítico con la aparición de la agricultura, la medicina popular del Caribe. Su misión es validar
pero en los pueblos indígenas actuales estableci- científicamente los usos tradicionales de plantas
dos en el trópico se desarrolla una actividad im- medicinales para la atención primaria de salud. Sus
investigaciones etnofarmacológicas se han extendido
portante de selección. hacia prácticamente todos los territorios que tocan el mar
b. Agricultura incipiente: el hombre establece en Caribe, a través de la realización de encuestas utilizando
una metodología uniforme. http://www.tramil.net/
el campo semillas que recoge del bosque y las
mantiene por propagación vegetativa o sexual.
Page 51 May 2012
 FairWild in the South Caucasus
Heiko Schindler & Bryony Morgan
Introduction
The Caucasus is a geopolitical region between
Europe and Asia, well known for its diversity in
cultures, languages and a high diversity of fauna
and flora. The South Caucasus comprises Armenia,
Georgia and Azerbaijan, as well as parts of Turkey
and Iran, and is also called Transcaucasia. North
Caucasus or Ciscaucasia, comprises the Russian
Republics north of the Great Caucasus mountain
range as well as some regions of Georgia and Az-
erbaijan.
Despite their great wealth, the fragile ecosystems
of the Caucasus are threatened by over-exploitation
of their natural resources. The main threats include
over-grazing of the alpine meadows, poaching
and logging as well as the construction of pipe-
lines, roads, dams and urbanisation. The wild
plant resources are especially threatened by non-
sustainable harvesting methods. Driving the over-
exploitation are the prevailing economic, political
and institutional settings, which mostly affect ru-
ral populations. The main resource users of wild
plants, collectors from villages and small towns,
often have only little economic alternative but to
exploit natural resources above their regeneration
capacity. To date, none of the countries of the Cau-
casus have managed to realize the socio- economic
potential of a sustainable use of biodiversity prod-
ucts.
There is a lack of comprehension, by both the pri-
vate sector and the responsible government insti-
tutions, that the economic use of biodiversity can
pose a threat to nature, especially in and around
protected areas. The uncontrolled pressure on
the natural resources of Armenia, Azerbaijan and
Georgia is especially high and accelerates the de-
struction of the economic base of large parts of the
rural population. The combination of poverty, high
levels of energy and raw material consumption,
rapid economic growth and a neoliberal economic
policy combined with corruption aggravate these The FairWild Standard provides a management
negative effects. tool to put sustainable collection of plants harvest-
ed from the wild into practice, and also to man-
The facilitation of sustainable but economically
age the people - collectors, workers and others in-
viable use of plant diversity is one element of a
volved in the value chains. It introduces fair trade
Page 52
strategy for the protection of biodiversity in the
South Caucasus. The economic use of wild plant
resources has been practiced for centuries, but de-
structive harvest practices were historically com-
mon. The economic benefits of collecting wild
plant resources are often small, and the collection
activities are seen as seasonal work for old people.
The low esteem and small economic benefits from
wild collection activities encourages rapid destruc-
tive harvesting practices.
Sustainable use of wild plant diversity
Through its Caucasus Initiative, the German Fed-
eral Ministry for Economic Cooperation and De-
velopment (BMZ) is actively supporting the South
Caucasus region with a wide range of activities,
partly implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft
für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ, former
GTZ). From 2008 until 2016, GIZ is implementing
a project on “Sustainable management of the bio-
diversity, South Caucasus”, which has developed
activities in various sectors such as hunting and
forestry, but also monitoring of biodiversity and
sustainable use of wild plant diversity (GTZ 2011).
From March 2010 to May 2011 the Institute for
Marketecology (IMO) was assigned by GIZ to im-
plement a project on facilitating value chains from
sustainably collected wild plant resources in Geor-
gia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. IMO is one of the
first and most experienced international bodies for
the inspection, certification and quality assurance
of sustainably produced products and has been ac-
tive in the field of organic certification world-wide
for more than 20 years. Today, IMO is a department
of the Bio-Foundation, Switzerland and is based at
Weinfelden, Switzerland.
Based on the criteria, principles and indicators of
the FairWild Standard Version 2.0 (FAIRWILD 2010
a,b), IMO developed a series of activities in co-
operation with collectors of wild plants, intermedi-
ate traders, processors and exporters. The activities
also involved consultants and local certification
bodies, as well as the competent authorities of the
three participating countries.
May 2012
principles for products marketed with the FairWild During the whole project the concept of “training
brand and logo. It unifies the International Stand- of trainers” was pursued by establishing a network
ard for Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal of national experts, such as consultants and inspec-
and Aromatic Plants (ISSC-MAP) Version 1.0 tors, with the requirements of FairWild. IMO was
(IUCN & MPSG 2007), and the FairWild Standards also assigned to facilitate the development of na-
Version 1 (MEINSHAUSEN ET AL. 2006). The purpose tional standards for wild collected plant products,
of the FairWild Standard is to “ensure the contin- and to liaise with participating governments.
ued use and long-term survival of wild species and The strategy of upgrading value chains through
populations in their habitats, while respecting the implementation of the FairWild Standard was
traditions and cultures, and supporting the liveli- determined by simultaneously implemented ap-
hoods of all stakeholders, in particular collectors proaches. One approach was to enhance the desir-
and workers” (FAIRWILD 2010a). ability of the final products through labelling cer-
The IMO activities were targeted towards improv- tified ingredients with the FairWild logo. Another
ing the quality and sustainability of harvested wild approach was to upgrade the processes of collec-
plant products, and facilitating existing and new tion and manufacturing through the improvement
value chains for these products. Knowledge trans- of harvesting and processing practices, good man-
fer was established through a series of trainings, agement and quality awareness.
workshops and seminars and through providing Plants and value chains were carefully selected,
guidance manuals to the different target groups taking into account the commitment of stakehold-
(FIGURE 1, 2). ers to the project, the complexity of each value
chain, its transparency, the accessibility of the col-
lection region and market demand. Value chains of
plants listed in TABLE 1 were selected for certifica-
tion.
Project results
The work with various stakeholders in the wild
collection sector has shown that, although chal-
lenging, implementation of the FairWild Standard
in the South Caucasus was possible and also wel-
comed. All participating collectors and companies
received training in various issues such as sustain-
FIGURE 1. Workshop with collectors in Georgia.
Photo: H. Schindler. able wild collection, the fair trade system, quality
criteria for wild collected raw and processed plant
Project implementation material, and the FairWild certification system.
In its initial phase, the project identified the rele- Thirty-four companies dealing with wild collection
vant stakeholders in the wild collection sector of in the Caucasus were trained in at least one of the
the three countries. Members of rural communities afore mentioned aspects. Altogether 340 collectors
who depend on the income from wild collection from 17 collection companies were trained in sus-
were targeted, as well as the first or second buyers tainable wild collection.
of wild collected plants - the collection companies. Selected companies were inspected during the sec-
In its second phase, collectors and collection com- ond half of 2010 and certification results are now
panies were helped to implement FairWild Prin- available for all companies. As result, 12 out of 13
ciples. The quality and traceability systems of the inspected companies could receive the FairWild
production and processing steps were scrutinized Certificate for their harvest 2010, and 16 different
for improvement. In parallel, IMO facilitated the wild collected plants species could be certified.
process of finding buyers for the selected value
The support and development of value chains has
chains.
resulted in the establishment of several relations

Page 53 May 2012

 cine, teas and cosmetics (Thyme, Mint, Haw-
TABLE 1. Origin and parts used of plants selected for
certification.
thorn, Hypericum etc)

Country of Plant scientific Common name

• Wild vegetables (Staphylea pinnata, Asparagus
origin name & plant part officinalis and other wild vegetables, mushrooms
Armenia Juglans regia Walnut, young etc.)
fruit with pericarp • Wild plants for horticulture (Normann Fir seeds,
Picea orientalis Oriental spruce, Snowdrop bulbs etc)
tree cones
Pinus sylvestris Scotch pine Wild fruits and nuts from the first group are pro-
cones, buds and duced annually and in large quantities, thus the
needles likeliness of over-harvesting these resources is low.
Pinus kochiana Pine cones, buds On the other hand, collectors do not value the re-
and needles
sources very highly because of low prices paid per
Rosa canina Rose, hip
kg. Collectors also perceive wild fruits and nuts as
Azerbaijan Cornus mas Cornelian cherry,
ubiquitous. As a result of this perception, the dam-
fruit
age to a single plant does not seem to matter since
Crataegus pen- Hawthorn, berries
tagyna
there are so many harvestable plants left, and care
Prunus cerasifera Cherry plum, fruit
during the harvest is not a priority. The collector
trainings focused on correct harvesting techniques,
Rubus fruticosus Blackberry, fruit
agg. the quality of harvested goods, personal hygiene
Urtica dioica Stinging nettle, and appropriate processing activities such as cor-
leaf rect cleaning, drying and cutting.
Georgia Abies nordman- Normann fir,
niana seeds
Castanea sativa Sweet Chestnut,
Marroni
Humulus lupulus Hop, strobile
Hypericum perfo- St. John’s Wort,
ratum herb
Mentha longifolia Horse Mint, leaf
Origanum vul- Oregano, leaf and
gare flower
Vaccinium arctos- Caucasian bil-
taphylos berry, fruit

between interested producers and importers from

FIGURE 2. Children of Bilberry collectors in Georgia.
Europe. The programme as well as the participat- Photo: H. Schindler.
ing companies were presented to the visitors of
Biofach (February 2010 and 2011 in Nuremberg, Plants from the MAP group have a much wider
Germany) and to Ecology Fair (May 2011, Izmir, scope of harvested plant parts (leaves, seed, fruit,
Turkey). roots or even the whole plant). Destructive harvest
methods are common, such as ripping out perenni-
Regarding the sustainability of wild collection, al herbs and shrubs with their roots if only leaves or
experiences have shown that wild collected plants flowers are needed. Regeneration periods and max-
from the South Caucasus can be grouped into four imum harvestable quantities need to be well de-
different groups: fined and the collection instructions need to be
• Wild fruits/ nuts for human consumption (Core- thoroughly implemented by collectors, since po-
lian Cherry, Wild Plum, Wild Apple and Pear, tentially many more mistakes can be made by col-
Bilberries, Walnut, Hazelnut etc) lectors than in the fruit/nut group. Various MAP
species or their close relatives are listed on Nation-
• Medicinal / aromatic plants (MAP) for medi- al Red Lists. Thus, the risk of unsustainable collec-

Page 54 May 2012

tion is much higher than for the wild fruit and nut Feedback from participants
group. The training activities focused on the cor- Participating wild collection companies have
rect botanical identification of targeted plants as stressed that the focus of activities needs to con-
well as defining concrete criteria for sustainable centrate more strongly on linkages to international
wild collection, plus correct processing activities. markets. Producer companies often do not have the
Wild vegetables are very traditional products of capacity or have not seen the possibility in the past
the South Caucasus, and collectors have long ex- to contact potential international buyer companies.
perience with their collection. They are mainly The main barriers from the sellers’ side are igno-
harvested for home consumption and for national rance of how international markets work, and lack
markets, thus there are few or no written quality of knowledge or inflexibility in relation to quality
standards available. In terms of risk of unsustain- requirements of the herbal industry.
able wild collection, the same conclusions as for Potential buyer companies of importing countries
the MAP group can be drawn. Since none of the se- said that prices for the raw materials have to match
lected value chains focused on wild vegetables for quality requirements; this is often a problem. Prob-
home consumption or national markets, no train- lematic or even adverse export conditions poten-
ings were developed specifically for this group. tially also impede the development of new business
However, relevant issues were covered within the links; this pushes up the prices for traded commod-
generic training material delivered. ities. Also, potential buyers were reluctant to get
Wild plants for horticultural use have a potentially involved in new business activities in the Caucasus
very high risk of non-sustainable collection prac- because they could not fully judge the reliability of
tices because of the large extent of collection due potential suppliers in terms of constant quantities at
to high prices and market demands. The collection the same quality level.
and trade of some economically important geo- Collectors’ feedback was positive throughout.
phytes are regulated through international agree- Many collectors were surprised but also pleased
ments, e.g. Snowdrops are regulated through the that somebody from “outside” was interested in
Convention on International Trade in Endangered their activities and economic situation. The train-
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). ing reached not only the active collectors but also
a young generation of potential future collectors. It
Quality criteria and risks in collection and is important to maintain active groups of collectors
processing and to recruit new collectors to maintain a supply
On the collector level, the mixing of wild collected of high quality wild collected raw materials. Im-
plants with the same species harvested from gar- plementing the FairWild principles gives addition-
dens, fields or plantations has shown to be of high al incentives for collectors if they are guaranteed
risk, especially for fruits and nuts which are often good social and economic conditions.
cultivated. The risk of contamination of cultivated
species through pesticides, herbicides and other Feedback on the fair trade component of the Fair-
agro-chemical substances as well as contamina- Wild Standard indicated that most of the partici-
tion through animal faeces and dust is comparably pants were confronted with the fair trade concept
higher than in wild resources. Also a big risk at the for the first time. Their opinion was that the Cau-
collector level is harvesting the wrong plant. Close casus region is not yet fully prepared for the imple-
relatives of the targeted plant, or even toxic plants, mentation of a fair trade certification system. It can
can accidentally be harvested. be concluded that most participants did not fully
understand the general concept of fair trade.
During processing and storage, the most common
mistakes are insufficient and incorrect drying, Participants recommended a step-wise approach to
cleaning and contamination (Box 1). In the food introducing the FairWild Standard in the South
industry, quality problems can occur through cross- Caucasus, with the principal focus initially on the
contamination due to processing equipment which sustainable management of wild collected plants.
was not properly cleaned after processing other Understanding and implementation of the social
raw materials. and fair trade aspects of the FairWild Standard

Page 55 May 2012


BOX 1. Processing and storage challenges
Insufficient drying
Moisture content too high. The danger of microbiological
contamination (aflatoxins, mould etc) increases.
Incorrect drying
Sun-drying or too slow drying alters the colour and quality
of, e.g., leaves or flowers. Too quick drying with artificial
heat can adversively affect the product quality.
Incorrect cleaning
Processed products contain foreign bodies such as stones or
other plants and plant parts.
Contamination
Through pests such as mice and insects, either already dur-
ing collection or during processing and storage.
Storage
Crushing of stored materials due to inadequate packing or
stacking.
could then be built more gradually.
The uptake of the FairWild Standard in national
processes other than certification was targeted, but
co-operation with the competent authorities of par-
ticipating countries was difficult as interest and un-
derstanding of the importance of the topic is low.
Under the “Sustainable management of biodiver-
sity in the South Caucasus” project, GIZ continues
to work at the policy level in order to facilitate the
introduction of regulatory guidance for sustainable
use of natural resources.
Feedback from national experts has shown that a
lot of knowledge can be provided by specialists
from the Caucasus itself, especially regarding the
management of wild plants. National experts are
needed for the correct identification of the targeted
plants, as well as confirmation of sustainable har-
vest limits and monitoring activities. National ex-
perts can also effectively contribute to improving
the quality of raw and processed materials through
giving input on processing efficiency.
Recommendations
It is not an easy endeavour to raise low income
economic activities using simple technologies to
an advanced level. Considerable time is needed to
change the understanding of quality and sustaina- Future Perspectives
bility both at the collector and processor levels, and The initial experiences of implementing the Fair-
more time is needed to implement changes. After Wild Standard in the Caucasus demonstrated the
Page 56
the experience of the first 15 months of implemen-
tation, IMO strongly recommends continuing to
work with the collectors and processing/exporting
companies.
Further activities need to put a much stronger fo-
cus on the marketing aspects for certified products,
with activities in the following fields:
• A marketing study is needed to investigate
the potential of wild collected products for
different markets and industries, such as the
food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical indus-
tries.
• Meetings should be organised where pro-
ducers and processors from the countries of
origin can meet their potential buyers from
food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical compa-
nies. The meetings should take place both in
the countries of origin and the countries of
import of wild collected plant products.
• Lead companies should be invited to par-
ticipate in international trade fairs such as
Biofach in Nurnberg, Germany and Anaheim
Natural Products Expo West in the US. Also
fairs with a more regional character such as
the Ecologj fair in Izmir, Turkey can be of
major importance.
• The responsible quality managers and deci-
sion makers of Caucasian companies should
be invited to visit the processing sites of po-
tential buyers, in order to understand the re-
quired traceability and quality criteria. Vice
versa, potential buyers should be invited to
visit the collection and processing sites of
Caucasian companies.
• In order to achieve results in the long term,
continuous FairWild certification needs to
be facilitated by supporting lead companies
with certification costs. Companies should
also be supported to gain organic certifica-
tion, in order to open up the organic market
segment for them in addition to the access to
the fair trade market segment provided by
FairWild certification.
May 2012
 plants (ISSC-MAP). Version 1.0. BfNSkripten 195,
Bundesamt für Naturschutz, Bonn, Germany. 36pp.
MEINSHAUSEN, F., WINKLER, S., BÄCHI, R., STAUBLI,
F. & DÜRBECK, K. (2006): FairWild Standards, Ver-
sion 1 (11/2006). FairWild Foundation, Weinfelden,
Switzerland.

Heiko Schindler • Institute for Marketecology

(IMO) • Weststr. 51, CH - 8570 Weinfelden, Swit-
zerland • email: hs@imo.ch • Switzerland www.
imo.ch • Bryony Morgan • FairWild Foundation
Secretariat c/o TRAFFIC International • 219a
Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL • email:
bryony.morgan@traffic.org

Update
FIGURE 3. Bilberry collection areas. Photo: H.
Schindler.

positive impact that such standards, and implemen-

tation pathways including certification, can have. World Health Organization Con-
However, the importance of continued support and sultation on Conservation Guide-
of linking activities such as certification into the lines for Medicinal Plants
broader context of sustainable development cannot
be underestimated. IMO will continue to support Danna J. Leaman, with background notes
FairWild certified companies by linking interest- provided by WHO
ed parties with producer companies, and is aim-
ing at continuation of the activities in the Cauca- A years-long process to revise Guidelines on the
sus. Projects of similar scope, however, can only Conservation of Medicinal Plants, first published
be realized if external funding is provided, since by WHO, IUCN, and WWF in 1993, has taken a
at present most of the participating companies do significant step towards completion with an expert
not have the necessary financial capacities to sub- consultation held in Toyama, Japan, 15-18 October,
stantially invest into sustainable management prac- 2011. The consultation was organized by the WHO
tices on their own. Most participating companies programme on Traditional Medicine, Department
stressed that they are willing to improve the currentfor Health System Governance and Service Deliv-
management system if they could sell their produce ery and the Institute of Natural Medicine, Univer-
to new markets and buyers, and if they would re- sity of Toyama, and was hosted and financed by
ceive a price premium. the Toyama Prefectural Government. Revised text
was endorsed by IUCN, WWF, and TRAFFIC in
References
2008. However, a formal expert consultation was
FAIRWILD. (2010a): FairWild Standard: Version 2.0. – required for WHO’s endorsement of the final re-
FairWild Foundation, Weinfelden, Switzerland.
vised text.
FAIRWILD. (2010b): FairWild Standard Version 2.0.,
Performance Indicators, FairWild Foundation, Swit- The Guidelines revision process was last updated
zerland. in this newsletter in the “Chair’s Note”, volume 13,
GTZ (2011): BMZ Caucasus Initiative. GTZ homepage, 1 December 2007.
accessed on 11.08.2011. URL http://www.gtz.de/en/
weltweit/europa-kaukasus-zentralasien/2829.htm International actions to address concerns regarding
IUCN & MPSG (2007): International standard for sus- unsustainable harvest of medicinal plants were ini-
tainable wild collection of medicinal and aromatic tiated by WHO, IUCN, and WWF in 1988 with

Page 57 May 2012


FIGURE 1. More than 60 experts made intensive discus-
sions in Toyama, Japan, and reached the conclusion.
Photo: K. Kanari.
the convening of the International Consultation on
Conservation of Medicinal Plants in Chiang Mai,
Thailand. Outcomes of this consultation included
the “Chiang Mai Declaration”, calling for action to
“save the plants that save lives”, the proceedings of
the meeting published in 1991, and the publication
of the first edition of the Guidelines on the Conser-
vation of Medicinal Plants in 1993.
Since their original publication, the Guidelines
have provided an agenda for national level policy
and action to increase knowledge and conservation
of medicinal plants, including through actions to
protect these resources in their natural habitats, to
conserve their genetic diversity in botanic gardens
and gene banks, and to bring commercially impor-
tant and threatened species into cultivation. In May
2003, representatives of the original three partner
institutions – WHO, IUCN and WWF – with the
addition of a fourth partner, TRAFFIC – met in
Oxford, in the United Kingdom, and agreed to up-
date these Guidelines to incorporate more recent
policies and approaches relevant to conservation
and sustainable use of medicinal plants. The re-
vised edition has been prepared with broad global
consultation and responds to significant changes
and advances that have occurred in conservation
thinking over the past two decades. The updated
Guidelines will take into account conservation
commitments such as the Convention on Biologi-
cal Diversity (CBD) and support health initiatives
such as WHO’s Traditional Medicine Strategy
2002-2005 and Medicines Strategy 2008-2013, the
latter including access to and rational use of me-
dicinal plants as two of its central objectives.
More than 60 invited experts participated in the
Page 58
consultation, drawn from a broad range of insti-
tutions and agencies involved in various research
and policy activities concerning medicinal plants,
including: university faculties of pharmacy, phar-
macognosy, and traditional medicine; centres of
research on traditional and complementary medi-
cine, botany, and materia medica; government
ministries of health and agriculture; other inter-
governmental agencies (FAO); and the co-author
organizations IUCN, WWF, and TRAFFIC. Many
of the participating experts are members of WHO’s
Advisory Panel on Traditional Medicine and WHO
Collaborating Centres for Traditional Medicine.
The Guidelines will now undergo further revisions
based on the Toyama consultation, and will be re-
leased following endorsement of the four co-author
organizations.
In May 2008, the World Health Assembly adopted
a resolution on public health, innovation, and intel-
lectual property (WHA.61.21). Traditional medi-
cine is identified as a “quick-start” programme to
implement this resolution within WHO’s Global
Strategy and Plan of Action , aiming to support
research and development and to promote stand-
ard-setting for traditional medicine in developing
countries. The revised Guidelines will support the
efforts of WHO member countries and partners
to conserve medicinal plants as an important re-
source for human health.
FIGURE 2. Dr. Andrew Rodrigues introduced the
contributions of IUCN to the Guidelines in the expert
consultation in Tokoyama, Japan. Photo: K. Kanari.
May 2012

Notices of publication
Helle O. Larsen
The list includes publications from 2011 as well
as older material not previously listed here.
ADNAN, M. & HOLSCHER, D. (2011): Medicinal
plants in old-growth, degraded and re-growth forests
of NW Pakistan. – Forest Ecology and Management
261 (11): 2105-2114.
AL-QURAN, S. (2011): Conservation of medicinal
plants in Ajlun woodland/Jordan – Journal of Me-
dicinal Plants Research 5 (24): 5857- 5862.
Alves, R.R.N. & Rosa, I.M.L. (2005): Why study
the use of animal products in traditional medicines?.
- Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 1: 5.
AREMU, A.O., CHEESMAN, L., FINNIE, J.F. & VAN
STADEN, J. (2011): Mondia whitei (Apocynaceae):
A review of its biological activities, conservation
strategies and economic potential. – South African
Journal of Botany 77 (4): 960-971.
Baniya, A. (2010): FairWild implementation in a
high risk species (Neopicrorhiza scrophulariiflora).
– WWF Nepal, Kathmandu. 18p.
BHUTYA, R.K. (2011): Ayurvedic medicinal plants of
India, Vol. 2. Scientific Publishers, Jodhpur. 298p.
BIRHANE, E., AYNEKULU, E., MEKURIA, W. & EN-
DALE, D. (2011): Management, use and ecology of
medicinal plants in the degraded dry lands of Tigray,
Northern Ethiopia. – Journal of Medicinal Plants
Research 5 (3): 309-318.
Uddin, S.B. (sd): Medicinal plants of Bangladesh.
Database. – http://www.mpbd.info/
Brendler, T., Eloff, J.N., Gurib-Fakim, A. &
Phillips, L.D. (eds.) (2010): African Herbal Phar-
macopoeia. – Graphic Press, Mauritius. 289p.
BRINCKMANN, J. (2011): Reproducible Efficacy
and Safety Depend on Reproducible Quality: Match-
ing the Various Quality Standards that have been
Established for Botanical Ingredients with their
Intended Uses in Cosmetics, Dietary Supplements,
Foods, and Medicines. – HerbalGram 91: 40-55.
BRUSCHI, P., MORGANTI, M., MANCINI, M. & SI-
GNORINI, M.A. (2011): Traditional healers and
laypeople: A qualitative and quantitative approach
to local knowledge on medicinal plants in Muda
(Mozambique) – Journal of Ethnopharmacology 138
(2): 543-563.
Page 59
BUCHER, S.F., Ghorbani, A., Langenberger, G.,
Küppers, M., & Sauerborn, J. (2011): Asparagus
spp. in traditional Chinese medicine: wild collection
and its sustainability. – TRAFFIC Bulletin 23 (2):
61-61.
BUTOLA, J. (2011): Post-cultivation evaluation of
germplasm in Himalayan threatened medicinal
herbs: Implication for ex-cultivation and conserva-
tion. – National Academy Science Letters-India 34
(1-2): 49-58.
Compton, J. & Ishihara, A. (2005): PC15 Inf. 6.
The use and trade of Agarwood in Japan. Prepared
for the CITES secretariat. TRAFFIC. Available at:
http://www.cites.org/common/com/PC/15/X-PC15-
06-Inf.pdf.
CORDELL, G.F. (2011): Sustainable medicines and
global health care. – Planta Medica 77 (11): 1129-
1138.
DE ALBUQUERQUE, U.P., SOLDATI, G.T., SIEBER,
S.S., RAMOS, M.A., DE SA, J.C. & DE SOUZA, L.C.
(2011): The use of plants in the medical system of
the Fulni-(o)over-cap people (NE Brazil): a perspec-
tive on age and gender. Journal of Ethnopharmacol-
ogy 133 (2): 866-873.
Dharani, N., Rukunga, G., Yenesew, A., Mbora,
A., Mwaura, L., Dawson, I. & Jamnadass, R.
(2010): Common antimalarial trees and shrubs of
East Africa. A description of species and a guide to
cultivation and conservation through use. – ICRAF,
Nairobi. 96 pp. Available at: http://www.worldagro-
forestry.org/downloads/publications/PDFS/B16781.
PDF.
DHARMADASA, R.M., HETTIARACHCHI, P.L. & PRE-
MAKUMARA, G.A.S. (2011): Geographical distri-
bution and conservation of a rare medicinal plant
Munronia pinnata (Wall.) Theob. (Meliaceae) in Sri
Lanka. – Bangladesh Journal of Plant Taxonomy 18
(1): 39-49.
Duke, J.A. (ed.) (2009): Duke’s handbook of medici-
nal plants of Latin America. – CRC Press, Boca
Raton. 901p.
EL MANSOURI, L., ENNABILI, A. & BOUSTA, D.
(2011): Socioeconomic interest and valorization of
medicinal plants from the Rissani oasis (SE of Mo-
rocco). – Boletin Latinoamericano y del Caribe de
Plantas Medicinales y Aromaticas 10 (1): 30-45.
ENGELS, G. & BRINCKMANN, J. (2011): Bacopa. –
HerbalGram 91: 1-4.
ENGELS, G. & BRINCKMANN, J. (2011): Dragon’s
blood. – HerbalGram 92: 1-4.
ENGELS, G. & BRINCKMANN, J. (2011): Gupta kola. –
HerbalGram 90: 1-4.
May 2012
FIFANOU, V.G., OUSMANE, C., GAUTHIER, B. &
BRICE, S. (2011): Traditional agroforestry systems
and biodiversity conservation in Benin (West Af-
rica). – Agroforestry Systems 82 (1): 1-13.
FIGUEIREDO, E., PAIVA, J., STEVART, T., OLIVEIRA, F.
& SMITH, G.F. (2011): Annotated catalogue of the
flowering plants of Sao Tome and Principe. – Both-
alia 41 (1): 41-82.
FOSTER, S. (2011): A Brief History of Adulteration
of Herbs, Spices, and Botanical Drugs. – Herbal-
Gram92: 42-57.
GAIKWAD, J., WILSON, P.D. & RANGANATHAN, S.
(2011): Ecological niche modeling of customary me-
dicinal plant species used by Australian Aborigines
to identify species-rich and culturally valuable areas
for conservation. – Ecological Modelling 222 (18):
3437-3443.
GANDOLFO, E.S. & HANAZAKI, N. (2011): Ethnobot-
any and urbanization: knowledge and use of rest-
inga plants by the native community of Distrito do
Campeche (Florianopolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil).
–Acta Botanica Brasilica 25 (1): 168-177.
GILANI, S.A., FUJII, Y., KIKUCHI, A., SHINWARI, Z.K.
& WATANABE, K.N. (2011): Ecological consequenc-
es, genetic and chemical variations in fragmented
populations of a medicinal plant, Justicia adhatoda
and implications for its conservation. – Pakistan
Journal of Botany 43: 29-37.
GRACE, O.M. (2011): Current perspectives on the
economic botany of the genus Aloe L. (Xanthor-
rhoeaceae). – South African Journal of Botany 77
(4): 980-987.
GUO, H.B., LIANG, Z.S. & ZHANG, Y.J. (2011): On-
farm conservation of genetic diversity for endan-
gered medicinal plants. – Journal of Medicinal
Plants Research 5 (24): 5667-5670.
HAMEED, M., ASHRAF, M., AL-QURIANY, F., NAWAZ,
T., AHMAD, M.S.A., YOUNIS, A. & NAZ, N. (2011):
Medicinal flora of the Cholistan desert: a review. –
Pakistan Journal of Botany 43: 39-50.
HARRIS, E.S.J., CAO, S.G., LITTLEFIELD, B.A., CRAY-
CROFT, J.A., SCHOLTEN, R., KAPTCHUK, T., FU,
Y.L., WANG, W.Q., LIU, Y., CHEN, H.B.A., ZHAO,
Z.Z., CLARDY, J. WOOLF, A.D. & EISENBERG,
D.M. (2011): Heavy metal and pesticide content in
commonly prescribed individual raw Chinese herbal
medicines. – Science of the Total Environment 409
(20): 4297-4305.
Hayashi, H., Hattori, S., Inoue, K., Sarsenbaev,
K., Ito, M. & Honda, G. (2003): Field survey of
Glycyrrhiza plants in Central Asia (1). Characteri-
zation of G. uralensis, G. glabra and the putative
Page 60
intermediate collected in Kazakhstan. - Biological &
Pharmaceutical Bulletin 26 (6): 867-871.
HOUEHANOU, T.D., ASSOGBADJO, A.E., KAKAI, R.G.,
HOUINATO, M. & SINSIN, B. (2011): Valuation of lo-
cal preferred uses and traditional ecological knowl-
edge in relation to three multipurpose tree species in
Benin (West Africa). – Forest Policy and Economics
13 (7): 554-562.
JAIN, A., SUNDRIYAL, M., ROSHNIBALA, S., KOTOKY,
R., KANJILAL, P.B., SINGH, H.B. & SUNDRIYAL,
R.C. (2011): Dietary use and conservation concern
of edible wetland plants at Indo-Burma Hotspot: a
case study from Northeast India. – Journal of Ethno-
biology and Ethnomedicine 7: 29.
JOSHI, K., JOSHI, R. & JOSHI, A.R. (2011): Indig-
enous knowledge and uses of medicinal plants in
Macchegaun, Nepal. – Indian Journal of Traditional
Knowledge 10 (2): 281-286.
KHAN, N., AHMED, M., AHMED, A., SHAUKAT, S.S.,
WAHAB, M., AJAIB, M., SIDDIQUI, M.F. & NASIR,
M. (2011): Important medicinal plants of Chitral Gol
national park (CGNP) Pakistan. – Pakistan Journal
of Botany 43 (2): 797-809.
KHAN, S.M., HARPER, D., PAGE, S. & AHMAD, H.
(2011): Residual value analyses of the medicinal
flora of the western Himalayas: the Naran valley,
Pakistan. – Pakistan Journal of Botany 43: 97-104.
KINGSTON, D.G.I. (2011): Modern natural products
drug discovery and its relevance to biodiversity
conservation. – Journal of Natural Products 74 (3):
496-211.
KUMAR, G.P., KUMAR, R., CHAURASIA, O.P. &
SINGH, S.B. (2011): Current status and potential
prospects of medicinal plant sector in trans-Hima-
layan Ladakh. – Journal of Medicinal Plants Re-
search 5 (14): 2929-2940.
LEE, R., Shere, N., Balick, M. et al. (2010): Pohn-
pei Primary Health Care Manual. Pohnpei Council
of Traditional Leaders & New York Botanical Gar-
den, New York. 178p.
LEONTI, M. (2011): The future is written: impact of
scripts on the cognition, selection, knowledge and
transmission of medicinal plant use and its implica-
tions for ethnobotany and ethnopharmacology. –
Journal of Ethnopharmacology 134 (3): 542-555.
LI, H.T., WANG, H., YANG, J.B. & LI, D.Z. (2011):
Genetic diversity of the traditional Chinese medici-
nal plant Ypsilandra thibetica (Melanthiaceae): ap-
plications for conservation. – Biochemical Systemat-
ics and Ecology 39 (4-6): 425-433.
LI, M., CAO, H., BUT, P.P.H. & SHAW, P.C. (2011):
Identification of herbal medicinal materials using
May 2012
 DNA barcodes. – Journal of Systematics and Evolu-
tion 49 (3): 271-283.
LINDSTROM, A. (2011): The Paris Kitâb al-Diryâq
- Book of Theriac: An Introduction to a Medieval
Arabic Manuscript Describing a Classic Herbal For-
mula. – HerbalGram 91: 56-67.
MAN, S.R. & SAMANT, S.S. (2011): Diversity, in-
digenous uses and conservation status of medicinal
plants in Manali wildlife sanctuary, North western
Himalaya. – Indian Journal of Traditional Knowl-
edge 10 (3): 439-459.
MATI, E. & DE BOER, H. (2011): Ethnobotany and
trade of medicinal plants in the Qaysari Market,
Kurdish Autonomous Region, Iraq. – Journal of
Ethnopharmacology 133 (2): 490-510.
MCCORMACK, J.H., MAIER, K. & WALLENS, P.B.
(2011): Bush medicine of the Bahamas: cross-cul-
tural perspective from San Salvador Island, includ-
ing pharmacology and oral histories. JHM Designs
Publications, Virginia. 396p.
MILLER, J.S. (2011): The discovery of medicines from
plants: a current biological perspective. – Economic
Botany 65 (4): 396-407.
Molares, S. & LADIO, A. (2011): Mapuche percep-
tions and conservation of Andean Nothofagus forests
and their medicinal plants: a case study from a rural
community in Patagonia, Argentina. – Biodiversity
and Conservation 21 (4): 1079-1093.
MONTEIRO, J.M., NETO, E.M.F.L., ARAUJO, E.D.,
AMORIM, E.L.C. & ALBUQUERQUE, U.P. (2011):
Bark regeneration and tannin content in Myracrod-
ruon urundeuva Allemo after simulation of extrac-
tive damages-implications to management. – Envi-
ronmental Monitoring and Assessment 180 (1-4):
31-39.
NCUBE, B., FINNIE, J.F. & VAN STADEN, J. (2011):
Seasonal variation in antimicrobial and phytochemi-
cal properties of frequently used medicinal bulbous
plants from South Africa. – South African Journal of
Botany 77 (2): 387-396.
OK, K. & OKAN, T. (2011): A review of the cultural
heritage of Anatolian civilizations for the purpose of
nature conservation. – African Journal of Agricul-
tural Research 6 (1): 89-96.
Olsen, C.S. & Helles, F. (2009): Market efficiency
and benefit distribution in medicinal plant markets.
Empirical evidence in South Asia. – International
Journal of Biodiversity Science and Management 5
(2): 53-62.
Olsen, C.S. & Larsen, H.O. (2003): Alpine medici-
nal plant trade and Himalayan mountain livelihood
strategies. – The Geographical Journal 169(3): 243-
Page 61
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PADMANABHAN, M. (2011): Institutions of agrobio-
diversity management in Kerala-gendered collec-
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174-184.
PHILANDER, L.A. (2011): An ethnobotany of Western
Cape Rasta bush medicine. – Journal of Ethnophar-
macology. 138 (2): 578-594.
PHILANDER, L.E.A., MAKUNGA, N.P. & PLATTEN,
S.J. (2011): Local medicinal plant knowledge in
South Africa preserved by apartheid. – Human Ecol-
ogy 39 (2): 203-216.
PIRONDO, A., COULLERI, J.P., KELLER, H.A. & FER-
RUCCI, M.S. (2011): External factors influence the
marketing of medicinal plants in an urban environ-
ment: the case of creoles and indigenous vendors in
Corrientes, Argentina. – Boletin Latinoamericano y
del Caribe de Plantas Medicinales y Aromaticas 10
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PRADHAN, B.K. & BADOLA, H.K. (2011): Assess-
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planting material in thirteen populations of Swertia
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Qu, B.H., Li, W., Chen, Y.Q. & Liu, J.S. (2011):
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plant resources: the case on Changbai Mountain. –
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RAY, R., GURURAJA, K.V. & RAMCHANDRA, T.V.
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SEID, M.A. & TSEGAY, B.A. (2011): Ethnobotanical
survey of traditional medicinal plants in Tehuledere
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nal Plants Research 5 (26): 6233-6242.
SHAHEEN, H., KHAN, S.M., HARPER, D.M., ULLAH,
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munity structure, and distribution patterns in western
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SHER, H., ELYEMENI, M., KHAN, A.R. & SABIR, A.
(2011): Assessment of local management practices
on the population ecology of some medicinal plants
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141-149.
SHER, H. & AL YEMENI, M. (2011): Economically
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Saslis-Lagoudakis, C.H., Klitgaard, B.B., For-
est, F., Francis, L., Savolainen V, WILLIAMSON,
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SHINWARI, Z.K. & QAISER, M. (2011): Efforts on con-
servation and sustainable use of medicinal plants of
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SHRESTHA, B.B., JHA, P.K. & KANDEL, D.R. (2011):
Reproductive ecology and conservation prospects of
Page 62
a threatened medicinal plant Curculigo orchioides
Gaertn. in Nepal. – Tropical Ecology 52 (1): 91-101.
SILVA, F.D., RAMOS, M.A., HANAZAKI, N. & DE AL-
BUQUERQUE, U.P. (2011): Dynamics of traditional
knowledge of medicinal plants in a rural community
in the Brazilian semi-arid region. – Revista Brasilei-
ra de Farmacognosia - Brazilian Journal of Pharma-
cognosy 21 (3): 382-391.
SINGH, H., GAHLAN, P., DUTT, S., AHUJA, P.S. & KU-
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STANGELAND, T., TABUTI, J. & LYE, K.A. (2011):
The framework tree species approach to conserve
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The Medicinal Plant Specialist Group is chaired by Danna J. Leamann • 98 Russel Avenue • Ot-
tawa, Ontario K1N 7X1 • Canada • Tel. +1/61/235-7213 • Fax +1/61/235-9622 • E-mail: djl@
green-world.org.

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Medicinal Plant Conservation is edited by Helle O. Larsen • University of Copenhagen •

Rolighedsvej 23 • 1958 Frederiksberg C • Denmark • email: hol@life.ku.dk

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