AN ETHNO-BOTANICAL STUDY OF MEDICINAL PLANTS OF TONK DISTRICT

The ethno botanically important and economic plants of Tonk district of Rajasthan, India were identified and documented. The tribes and rural people of Tonk district of Rajasthan state of India use a number of medicinal plants available locally as ‘traditional medicine’ for curing common ailments. The ethno botanical information was collected by field survey among tribal and rural communities, by study of rituals and folklores and through market survey followed by identification with herbaria and flora, 200 respondents were selected randomly for the purpose. The paper presents 95 medicinal plants belonging to 51 families utilized by these people .Fresh leaves, stem, bark, flowers, fruits, seeds, roots and even whole plants were reported to be used. The present record on the traditional medicine of Tonk district of Rajasthan emphasizes that many people of the region still depend upon flora of the region for treatment of human diseases. There is a need to focus on more ethno botanical research, conservation and documentation of traditional medicinal knowledge among indigenous communities of the state as this knowledge is limited only to Hakeems, Ojhas and elderly people of the area.