European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

A STUDY ON THE DIVERSITY OF MEDICINAL PLANTS IN PALAMALAI HILLS, SALEM DISTRICT, TAMIL NADU

*R. Lakshmanan, M. Thiruvalluvar, M. Padma Sorna Subramanian and A. Saravana Ganthi

ABSTRACT

Medicinal plants form the major resource base of our indigenous healthcare traditions. The conservation of biodiversity needs the knowledge in living organisms and creation of awareness in their protection. A Preliminary study on the diversity of medicinal plants was undertaken in the hills of Palamalai, Salem district.A total of 320 angiosperm plant species belonging to 246 genera under 90 families have been identified and recorded for ethnobotanical uses. Out of the total 320 flowering species 78 are trees, 68 shrubs, 136 herbs, 10 twiner and 28 are climbers. 30 Medicinal plants were used to cure fever and 25 plants were used to cure various skin diseases. The present study shows several important medicinal plants which require protection. The conservation program should include restoration of native plant species richness and diversity to maintain stable productivity in ecosystem.

Keywords: Palamalai hills, Medicinal plants, Conservation of biodiversity.