Documenting the ethnobotanical plants of the Masherbrum valley along the Saltoro Glaciers, Karakorum Mountains

Authors

  • Muhammad Naseem Department of Botany, University of Baltistan, Skardu, Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan
  • Zaheer Abbas Department of Botany, Hazara University, Mansehra Pakistan
  • Ishtiaq Hussain Department of Botany, University of Baltistan, Skardu, Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan
  • Muhammad Uzair Department of Botany, Division of Science and Technology, University of Education Lahore, Pakistan
  • Shujaul Mulk Khan Department of Plant Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan
  • Afiya Afzal Chughtai Department of Botany, Division of Science and Technology, University of Education Lahore, Pakistan
  • Abdullah Abdullah Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
  • Alain Cuerrier Department of Biological Sciences, University of Montreal, Canada

Abstract

Background: The present study focused on documenting the ethnomedicinal knowledge originating from the Masherbrum valley Karakoram Range in Ghanche District, Baltistan region-Pakistan with an emphasis on the use of indigenous plant species prospective.

Methods: Questionnaire semi-structured interviews were used to gather information from 217 participants encompassing 23 localities with 82.9% of men and 17.1% women. The majority of respondents (35.5%) were over 60 years, 54.4 % were illiterate and engaged with agriculture. A total of 129 species of medicinal plants from 48 families were mentioned.

Results: Apiaceae, Lamiaceae and polygonaceae (7 each), Rosaceae (13) and Asteraceae (18) species were the most prominent families. A majority of plants were used to treat circulatory, gastrointestinal and cutaneous disorders with high informant consensus factor (ICF) values (0.970, 0.964 and 0.962, respectively. Regarding preparations, powders or used fresh stood out; for plant parts, leaves (31%), fruits (28%) and roots (19%) were preferred. Among the ten most distinctive plants, Bistorta vivipara (L.) Delarbre, Nepeta longibracteata Benth. and Inula rhizocephala Schrenk ex Fischer & C. A. Meyer were exclusive for medicinal uses. Allardia tridactylites (0.839), Rosa webbiana (0.774), and Acantholimon lycopodioides (0.705) have shown high relative frequency of citation (RFC) values denoting their cultural and medicinal importance.

Conclusions: Traditional knowledge, however, is clearly fading among younger generations with less knowledge holders for transmission. Food security and sustainable healthcare in the study area depend on preserving this biocultural legacy as well as supporting research species of interest.

Keywords: Ethnobotany, Medicinal Plants, Masherbrum Valley, Karakorum Mountain

Author Biography

Zaheer Abbas, Department of Botany, Hazara University, Mansehra Pakistan

Botany

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Published

2026-08-19

How to Cite

Naseem, M. ., Abbas, Z., Hussain, I. ., Uzair , M. ., Mulk Khan, S. ., Chughtai, A. A. ., Abdullah , A. ., & Cuerrier, A. . (2026). Documenting the ethnobotanical plants of the Masherbrum valley along the Saltoro Glaciers, Karakorum Mountains. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 35, 1–23. Retrieved from https://ethnobotanyjournal.org/index.php/era/article/view/8700

Issue

Vol. 35 (2026)

Section

Research

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