Quantitative ethnobotanical appraisal of important plant species in Balh valley in District Mandi of Himachal Pradesh

An ethnobotanical survey was conducted in Balh valley in Himachal Pradesh from March 2022 to February 2023. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews, group discussions, and field surveys. The data for different ethnobotanical indices were evaluated through quantitative methods ie Used Value (UV), Frequency of Citation (FC), Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC), Fidelity level (FD) and Informant consensus factor (ICF). A total of 68 plants, which come under 42 families, were recorded, and Fabaceae and Lamiaceae were important families, and each had 5 useful species. The UV ranged from 0.009 to 0.055. The taxa recorded with the highest used values were Ocimum tenuiflorum (UV 0.055) and Psidium guajava (UV 0.045). The RFC was recorded between 0.006 to 0.035, highest for Ocimumtenui florum (0.035), and lowest for Psidium guajava (0.029). The six species showing 100% fidelity are highly cited for commonly occurring ailments like diabetes, hypertension and, stomach aches, etc. The health disorders were categorized into 11 categories, and informant consensus factors recorded the highest for the category gastro-intestinal disorders (0.82), followed by ailments like respiratory disorders (0.81). The recorded plant species showed their rich density and are utilized in day-to-day uses. So these species should be raised in ex-situ environments. It would also help in improving the livelihoods of the local inhabitants.