Cross-cultural comparison of plant use knowledge in Baitadi and Darchula districts, Nepal Himalaya

Abstract

Background: This study seeks to better understand the human-nature interface and to measure the variability of plant use knowledge among cultures, through inter- and intracultural analyses. We compared plant collection, use, and management of two culturally distinct groups (Baitadi and Darchula) of the Nepal Himalaya. They inhabit different physiographic regions, yet share the same ecological landscape, environmental resources, and livelihood challenges. We hypothesized that the elderly, native, and traditional healers living in remote and rural places possess more diverse and detailed knowledge of plant use and conservation than young, non-native, and non-healers.

Methods: A total of 106 people were contacted for interviews, and 100 (68 men and 32 women) agreed to share ethnobotanical, demographic, and socioeconomic information. They were asked about the three most important plants for their socioeconomic benefit, culture, primary health care, and livelihood.

Results: The knowledge of plant collection, use, and its transfer was strongly associated with the cultural heritage whereas the ecogeographical condition influences the ways in which plants are collected and used. The divergent knowledge of plant collection, use, and transfer between the participants of Baitadi and Darchula was significantly (p < 0.001) attributed to the cultural heritage of the area. The low consensus of plant use (FiC 0-0.87; IASc 0-0.67) between Baitadi and Darchula district could be due to cultural divergence, varied accessibility, physiographic heterogeneity, and biodiversity uniqueness.

Conclusions: Differences in plant use knowledge may help in diversifying the strategies of plant use in accordance with the livelihood, culture, and environment, and therefore, more studies measuring these aspects can further the ecosystem and cultural health of the region.

Keywords: Consensus; Intracultural; Medicinal plants; Nepal Himalaya; Transhumance; Use reports.

Fig. 1

Map showing the location and physiography of the study area and village-wise frequency of respondents

Fig. 2

Species-use curve showing the records of the number of useful species against the number of respondents leveled off after 50th participant

Fig. 3

Cultural consensus matrix of two groups (Baitadi and Darchula participants). Right—species: Abi.pin = A. pindrow, Ang.arc = A. archangelica, Ber.cil = B. ciliata, Chr.aci = C. aciculatus, Fic.rel = F. religiosa, Neo.scr = N. scrophulariflora, Par.pol = P. polyphylla, Pol.aby = P. abyssinica, Pru.cer = P. cerasoides, Que.lan = Q. lanata, and Swe.chi = S. chirayita. Left—use category: Cir = circulatory, Dig = digestive, Eco = economic, End = endocrine; Foo = food, Gen = genito-urinary, Imm = immune, Inf = infections, Liv = livestock, Mus = musculoskeleton, Ner = nervous, Pai = pain, Poi = antipoisoning, Rep = reproductive, Res = respiratory, Rit = ritual, Ski = skin-cutaneous, Sen = sensory, and Soc = social

Fig. 4

Generalized linear model regression of plant use knowledge of participants along the gradients of sociocultural asset, length of residence, and the time required to access resources. Column represents number of use reports cited by participants