Taxo-ethnomedicinal diversity of Asteraceae family of Dir Upper, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

In the present study diversity of Asteraceae was studied throughout the Dir Valley. Some species of the selected family is widely distributed in the study area i.e Senecio chrysanthemoides , Xanthium strumarium, Artemisia scoparia , Silybum marianum , Cichorium intybus , Taraxacum officinale and Achillea millefolium . The species of the selected family grown both in wild and cultivated form majority of them are grown wild. A total of 45 species and 34 genera of the Asteraceae were collected and identified. Eleven species of the family are cultivated in the study area and the remeaning 34 species are naturally/wild-grown in the research area. Furthermore, all the species are a new records from the selected area and some species are a new records from Pakistan. All the species are identified with the help of the taxonomic key . The ethnobotanical survey was conducted through an open-ended and semi-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire collected information about plant species, its therapeutic uses and data about the regular uses of these species. Mostly people belonging to rural areas and of more than 40 years of age were interviewed due to their vast experience and knowledge. Several informants were interviewed to confirm information regarding the uses of each plant species. These plants were taken to the local hakims and pansaris additionally. In the majority of cases, single plant species were found to be used in several ways. On the basis of collected data, a total of 45 plant species of the selected family were documented in the area which plays a key role in improving the health and wealth of local inhabitants. The selected family being ranked on the top as it contributes numbers to collected species. Out of 45 plant species, some species were recorded best for medicinal purposes, some plant species were found good as fodder, ornamental purposes, food and vegetable, firewood and fence. The study area is found rich in terms of floral diversity. Local inhabitants of the area use the plant species in traditional ways for the curving of different diseases since early times. Due to anthropogenic pressure and natural disasters flora of the area facing huge pressure of extinction.