ETHNOVETERINARY-Conservation of Medicinal Plants Important for our Use now and Posterity of Future Generations
Monday, 31. August 2009, 09:17:10
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profarms.wainaina@gmail.com
CELL;+254723364135
Africa is known to be well endowed with many natural resources especially minerals. We at PROFARMS CONSULTANTS believe that our richest natural resource is Our Biodiversity in wild plants,wild and farm animals and the indigeneous knowledge among the citizens of this continent in conservation and sustainable use of this rare resource. We must therefore restrain our greed and overexploitation of our biodiversity resource for our immediate use and consider the posterity of our future generations both inside and outside African Continent. Each continent is well endowed with a fair share of biodiversity as a resource but Africa has a LION's share of plants that are known to have medicinal value by default mainly due to slow adoption of modern methods of agriculture which has left vast areas of land under their natural conditions harbouring natural plants. Its these remaining medicinal plants that must be conserved and multiplied to ensure their sustainable use now and in future. In this post,we will look at some approaches that can be used to conserve and multiply these valuable plants.
profarms.wainaina@gmail.com
CELL;+254723364135
Africa is known to be well endowed with many natural resources especially minerals. We at PROFARMS CONSULTANTS believe that our richest natural resource is Our Biodiversity in wild plants,wild and farm animals and the indigeneous knowledge among the citizens of this continent in conservation and sustainable use of this rare resource. We must therefore restrain our greed and overexploitation of our biodiversity resource for our immediate use and consider the posterity of our future generations both inside and outside African Continent. Each continent is well endowed with a fair share of biodiversity as a resource but Africa has a LION's share of plants that are known to have medicinal value by default mainly due to slow adoption of modern methods of agriculture which has left vast areas of land under their natural conditions harbouring natural plants. Its these remaining medicinal plants that must be conserved and multiplied to ensure their sustainable use now and in future. In this post,we will look at some approaches that can be used to conserve and multiply these valuable plants.
Signs that medicinal plants are fast disappearing from the environment include;
-The long distances covered to find them when required for use.
-Some plants have completely disappeared from the environment.
-Once deeply forested areas have been reduced to sparse bush.
-Medicinal plants are not being allowed to mature before harvesting thus denying them the chance to propagate themselves thro seeding.
-Their use in Ethnoveterinary is decreasing due to scarcity of readily available raw materials.
Causes of reduction in Medicinal Plants;
-Competition for agricultural and settling land that involves bush clearing and enchroachment of forest land which is rich in Biodiversity as a resource.
-Poor harvesting methods that destroy or kill the whole plant.
-Bush fires which are either deliberate or accidental during dry season or in as primary land preparation method.
-Commercialisation in use of medicinal plants without replenishing the take off by planting and conservation.
-Poverty that leads to charcoal burning and use of medicinal plants as wood fuel.
-Lack of awareness that even some conventional medicines in both human and livestock are derived from plant sources.
-Lack of government policy and legislation to protect our biodiversity resource.
-Ignorance based on belief and perception of Herbal based therapies as a backward practice hence no need to conserve and protect medicinal plants.
Recommended Methods of Conservation
-Protection of Medicinal Plants thro proper harvesting methods,avoiding unnecessary bush fires,forest protection against encroachment,controlled grazing and weeding or removal of undesirable plant species that prevent proper growth.
-Botanical Herbal gardens can be established in small scale farms,churches and mosques,road reserves,schools and colleges,hospitals and be incorporated in reaforestation programmes. This would especially work well on protected areas like game parks and wild life reserves as well as gazetted museum areas.
-Legislation against removal and export of medicinal plants thro poaching and protection of intellectual property rights of practising Herbal vets and healers.
-Research and education to validate potency and efficacy of herbal therapies in order to gain confidence for extensive usage both in school curricula and applied sciences.
There are many more methods of conservation that have not been included here but this only form the basic guidelines to this approach.PROFARMS CONSULTANTS,NAIROBI-KENYA
WIDGETIZE
Claire Bleakley # 9. July 2009, 02:07