Abstract:
Medicinal plants have been utilized as a source of medicine to treat illnesses in humans as well
as animals. The main objective of this study was to document the traditional medicinal plants
used in the Quarit District. Semi-structured questionnaires, focus group discussions, and direct
field observations of the local study areas were used as a primary resource to gather the data. A
total of 182 general informants, 136 males and 46 females, over the age of 20, were purposively
selected to gather data on the use of medicinal plants. Descriptive statistics like percentage and
frequency were used to analyze the data. A total of 84 medicinal plant species belonging to 80
genera and 51 families were documented. In terms of families, Solanaceae and Fabaceae had the
highest number of species, with 5, followed by Euphorbiaceae, with four (4). Out of these
medicinal plants, 67 species were exclusively used to cure 46 human ailments, 10 species were
mainly used for the treatment of 9 livestock ailments, and the remaining 7 species were used to
treat both humans and livestock 6 different ailments. The majority of 55 (65.5%) species were
collected from the wild areas, and 29 (34.5%) were collected from cultivated areas. From the
total medicinal plant species, shrubs constitute the largest number, with 33 (39.3%) species,
followed by herbs. The most frequently used plant parts were leaves, which accounted for
43(32.8%), followed by roots 35 (26.7%). Freshly harvested plant parts (60%) compared to dry
form (34%) were commonly used. The most commonly used remedy preparation was crushing
(31.7%) followed by pounding or powdering (16.7%). The major routes of administration were
orally accounted for 65 (55.1%) followed by dermal 38 (32.2%), nasal 5(4.2%), and others
10(8.5%). In the disease category, the highest (0.90) ICF value was sudden sickness. There was
the highest preference (51) for Phytolacca dodecandra to treat rabies. Hygenia abyssinica was
shown to be the top multipurpose species, while agricultural expansion, firewood collection, and
charcoal-making were considered the major threats to medicinal plants. This study demonstrates
that the people living there continued to treat human and animal diseases with traditional plant based remedies. The participation of the local people, awareness rising through training or
education on sustainable utilization and management of plant resources, and establishment of
forest-protected areas should be encouraged.