Abstract:
Ethnobotany is the study of interaction between people and medicinal plants.This research
was done to document the medicinal plants and associated indigenous knowledge of the local
people in Moretna jiru district of Amhara Region, Ethiopia.Ethnobotanical data were
collected by preparing semistructured interview.Guided field work was performed.Informant
consensuses factors , fidelity level, preference ranking, direct matrix ranksing and paired
comparision were applied. A total of 90 medicinal plants belonging to 87 genera and 49
families were collected to treat human ailments.The majority of medicinal plants were
collected from the wild habitat. Data were analyzed using basic analytical tools and
descriptive statistics. The family Lamiaceae occupied the first rank with eight species
followed by Fabaceae with seven species,Asteraceae with six species and Solanaceae with
four species.The most frequently used plant parts were leaves (49.77%)followed by seeds
(17.32%) and roots (15.02%).Freshly harvested plant parts (69.06%) were mostly used for
remedy preparation compared to dried forms (29.28%).Crushing( 47.71%) and powdering
(19.3%) were the most widely used methods of remedy preparation.Oral routes of
administration was the most common used routes of administration which accounts
49.01%,followed by dermal routes of administration (24.5%) in the study area. Allium
sativum is the most commonly used medicinal plants to treat different human ailments,which
cited by 65(86.66%) informants.Informant consensus factor analysis indicates that fibril
illness ranked first was treated by 11 medicinal plants.Fidelity level analysis indicates that
Linum ustitatissimum ranked first and the most effective medicinal plants to treat herps
zoster.Preference ranking analysis indicates that Clerodendrum myricoides ranked first to
treat rabies.Paired comparison analysis also indicates that Allium sativum ranked first to
treat wound.There were multi purpose and marketed medicinal plants in the study area.The
principal threatening factors for medicinal plants were farm land expansion(83.3%),followed
by fire wood(74.6%) and charcol production(72%).
