Abstract:
The indigenous knowledge of the utilization of plants as a source of medicine is important to
conserve useful plants and preserve indigenous knowledge for the next generation. Therefore,
an ethnobotanical study of medicinal plant species was conducted to identify and document
traditional medicinal plants in Soro District, Hadiya Zone, and southern Ethiopia. A total of
120 informants (age ≥30 years) were interviewed to collect information on medicinal plant
use from six sampled kebeles. Of these, 12 key informants were selected purposively from the
information gathered from the local people. The rest were selected randomly. Ethnobotanical
data was gathered using semi-structured interviews, group discussions, and guided field
walks with key informants for field observations. Direct matrix ranking, preference ranking,
Informant consensus factor, and fidelity level were calculated. In this study, it was reported
that 75 plant species belonging to 70 genera and 40 families were commonly used to treat
various human and livestock ailments. Out of these, 31 were obtained from the wild, 18 were
collected from home gardens, 16 were from agricultural fields, and 10 were from the road
side. From the total medicinal plants species, 29 species were herbs, followed by 25 species of
trees, and 21 species of shrubs. The most frequently used plant parts were leaves (31.67%),
followed by roots (20.83%), and plants were used mostly in fresh form for remedy
preparation. The most widely used method of preparation was crushing (18.33%) and
pounding (16.66%). The common route of medicine administration was oral (70%), followed
by dermal (20 %) oral and dermal (5.38%), and nasal (4.17%). Informants determined
dosage based on age, physical appearance, and the strength of diseases. The main
threatening factors reported were firewood, charcoal production, construction, fencing
materials, human settlement, agricultural expansion, and overharvesting. Documenting the
threating plants and related local knowledge can be used as a source for developing
management methods for conservation and sustainable use of traditional medicinal plants in
the area
