Ethnobotanical knowledge of medicinal plants of Pasargad County, Fars province

Recording ethnobotanical knowledge of medicinal plants preserves the scientific heritage of medicinal and aromatic plants. This unique and valuable knowledge has long been passed down from generation to generation but is eroded as societies modernize. In this regard, the present study was conducted to identify medicinal plants used by residents. It also identified cultures, methods of use, and the therapeutic context of the mentioned plants in Pasargad County. In this region, herbal medicines are common, especially with the Basri nomadic tribe. To understand the factors affecting the differentiation and segregation of the region, such as ecological, cultural, historical, and land use conditions, a field visit was first conducted in the Pasargad region. Ethnobotanical information was obtained using a semi-structured questionnaire and interviews with knowledgeable people. A total of 101 informants participated in the study. The target areas for sampling were determined after dividing the region into two central parts (Saadshahr) and Madras Sulaiman based on local guides' information. Demographic information about people, such as education, gender, age group, and registered status, was considered. This research seeks local knowledge and traditional applications for identifying medicinal samples. In this regard, information was collected from native people of the region, attars, and knowledgeable people about traditional medicine and medicinal plants. The necessary interviews were conducted. To quantitatively examine the ethnobotanical information, the indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants was classified using software (Excel 2021). Quantitative indices used in ethnobotanical studies allow the selection of the most influential species of medicinal plants for conducting medicinal research. In this regard, a quantitative analysis of the ethnobotanical information of local knowledge of medicinal plants based on indicators including the relative frequency of citations (RFC), usage value (UV), cultural importance (CI), and the consensus index of informants (ICF) is carried out. The collected plants belonged to 18 families, the most abundant of which were Lamiaceae, Apiaceae, Asteraceae, Amaryllidaceae, Rosaceae, Fabaceae, and Malvaceae families. The most common herbal medicine consumption method was boiled (30%), followed by infusion (30%) and cooking (15%). The most used medicinal parts of plants in this region were leaves and flowers, with 44% and 21%, respectively. According to this study, Shirazi thyme, Stachys inflate, and Prangos ferulacea had the highest relative frequency of citations (RFC). Plants with the highest index of cultural importance in the region included species that show their high importance in the culture of using medicinal plants. The region's local people used two species, Zataria multiflora and Matricaria chamomilla. Recorded diseases and traditional remedies from medicinal plants were classified according to the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC-2). The ICF index was calculated in 9 disease classes based on the usage report and the number of species applied to each disease class. Thus, nine categories of diseases, including digestive (GAS-D), respiratory (RES-R), nervous (NER-N), skin and hair (DER-S), general and unspecified (OTH-A), urology and kidney (URO-U), endocrine/metabolic and nutrition (MET-T, gynecological diseases (GYN-X), cardiovascular (CAR-K) were determined. The highest amount of ICF is related to three groups of gastrointestinal diseases. It was respiratory and nervous with an ICF value (of 0.92). High ICF of digestive diseases is due to the high UR of Zataria multiflora, Carum copticum, Pistacia atlantica, Mentha longifolia, and Glycyrrhiza glabra for digestive disorders. The second rank of ICF of respiratory diseases is related to the high UR of Zataria multiflora, Achillea eriophora, and Stachys lavandulifolia. Also, the high UR of Matricaria chamomilla, Salvia officinalis, Rosa damaescena, and Ballota oucheri accounts for the high ranking. These findings are due to the high UR of medicinal plants to treat the diseases of the three mentioned ailments categories. This can have ecological and sociological reasons.