Diversity of Unani medicinal plants in Southern Western Ghats of Coimbatore District, Tamil Nadu, India.

Abstract

The Unani system of medicine owes its origin in Greece and it was developed by Arabs in to an elaborated medical sciences. The principal source of drugs in Unani system of medicine is plant origin drugs. A survey was conducted to study the diversity and status of Unani medicinal plants in the Southern Western Ghats of Coimbatore District, Tamil Nadu. The present paper deals with the 131 numbers of the Unani medicinal plants of 115 genera belonging to 64 families. Based on the distribution status of the Unani medicinal plants it is categorized as common, common and cultivated, vulnerable, rare, sporadic, and endangered. Those plants falls under the vulnerable, rare and endangered category are recommended for germplasm collection and to take up cultivation and propagation activities through modern agronomical techniques. Further the extensive field studies may also help to the discovery of new plant species used in the Unani system of medicine for the betterment of health care needs.