Available online 30 May 2015
Plants, people and traditions: Ethnobotanical survey in the Lombard Stelvio national park and neighbouring areas (central Alps, Italy)
Abstract
Ethnopharmacological relevance
The
value of ethnobotanical information is now increasingly acknowledged.
Our investigation added new data to the traditional knowledge on the
plant uses in Italian alpine areas, where only in recent years the
awareness of losing such valuable heritage stimulated interest of the
scientific community and land managers in its recovery and enhancement.
To this end, the present study aimed to collect and analyse information
on plant species employed in Northern Italy (Lombardy region),
particularly in Alta Valtellina, an area of high naturalistic interest,
where ethnobotanical knowledge is at the risk of passing covering a
secondary role compared to other aspects of the local culture.
Materials and methods
A
total of 328 people from six municipalities were interviewed using
semi-structured questionnaires. Data were evaluated by quantitative
parameters such as ethnobotanicity and ethnophytonomic indices, factor
informant consensus (Fic), fidelity level (Fl). Abandoned and current
uses were compared. Herbarium materials were prepared and conserved.
Results
Inhabitants
of Alta Valtellina used 212 plant species, including 19 mushrooms and 1
lichen for medicinal, food and cosmetic purposes. Despite half of
medicinal uses has fallen into disuse, this category was that for which
the largest number of species was still collected. Digestive,
respiratory and skin systems were the most frequently treated. Fic and
Fl values, in addition to simple percentage data confirmed this finding.
Although 40% of the known uses is now abandoned, a considerable number
of them was recorded for the first time in an alpine area.
Conclusions
The
study revealed that the popular knowledge of plant species is still
alive in the Alta Valtellina. The prerogatives of some species are now
outdated, but leave room for other uses of the plant resources that may
provide new opportunities from the scientific, cultural and economic
points of view.
Graphical abstract
Keywords
- Alta Valtellina;
- Cultural heritage;
- Ethnomedicine;
- Nature reserve;
- Northern Italy;
- Phytoalimurgia
- Correspondence
to: Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie e Ambientali, Università degli
Studi di Milano, via G. Celoria 2, I-20133 Milano, Italy. Tel.:
+39 02 50316766; fax: +39 02 50316781.
- 1
- Co-first authors.
Copyright © 2015 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.
