An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in chiro district, West Hararghe, Ethiopia

Abstract

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants is inadequate in Ethiopia in general, and in Chiro District in particular. Therefore, this study documents medicinal plant utilization, management and the threats encountered on them. The study was conducted from April 2017 to June 2018. Forty eight informants were purposively selected. Socio-economic and botanical data were gathered using group discussions, semi-structured interviews, and field observations and analysed using informant consensus factor, preference ranking and paired comparison methods. The result revealed that 60 plant species from 42 families and 58 genera were used as trational medicine to treat human and animal diseases. The Euphorbiaceae were represented by 7 species, followed by Asteraceae (5 species), Myrtaceae and Solanaceae (3 species each), Lamiaceae, Brassicaceae and Polygonaceae (two species each). Of the 60 species, 22 (36.67%) were herbs, followed by shrubs (n=19, 31.67%), trees (n=16, 26.66%) and climbers (n=3, 5.0%). In the study area the most significant threat to medicinal plants is agricultural expansion. Even though the study revealed that the area is enriched with medicinal plant diversity, awareness should be done to enhance the conservation of medicinal plants.   Key words: Ethnomedicine, Chiro district, medicinal plants.