Abstract
This chapter explored medicinally, culturally, and economically important edible plant species of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). GB is in extreme north of Pakistan with diverse mountain landscapes 72,971 km2 on earth. The area is surrounded by three important countries: India to the east, China to the north, and Afghanistan to the west. It constitutes one of the world’s highest mountain regions. The junction of three great mountain systems, i.e. Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindukush (HKH), meets at Juglot, Gilgit. The region is known for highly enriched natural resources and appeared as a hotspot for global tourism. Among the natural resources, endemic flora, minerals, glaciers, forests, rare fauna, and freshwater rivers are ranked as highly valuable assets of the area. The diverse climatic conditions of Gilgit-Baltistan reflect in distinctive biodiversity and ecosystem. Almost 6000 plants species represented by 222 families, out of them almost 30% of the endemic plants grow in Gilgit-Baltistan with therapeutic and nutritional value. Most of these plants are used as folk medicines for treatment of various diseases. In addition, many plants species are part of cultural practices and rural economy of the region. The area is needed to be explored for important medicinal plants through which a certain life challenging ailments can be addressed.
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Hussain, S., Ali, S., Raiz, G., Ali, S. (2022). Cultural, Practical, and Economic Significance of Some Edible Medicinal Plants from Gilgit-Baltistan Pakistan. In: Masoodi, M.H., Rehman, M.U. (eds) Edible Plants in Health and Diseases . Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4880-9_15
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4880-9_15
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