Ethnobotanical study in the protected landscape “Serra de Montejunto” (Portugal)

Abstract

Since ancient times, the human being has been using plants for their benefit, as food, condiments, drugs and flavors, accumulating knowledge that allowed him to add other applications, whose memory, in some cases, could reach present time. In order to investigate the surviving contents of this collective memory, this work reports an ethnobotanical survey that was carried out in 2014 in the Protected Landscape “Serra de Montejunto”, distributed in the western part of the Iberian Peninsula, which comprises approximately 5000 ha. Working with 78 informants, we obtained data on 191 useful plants, belonging to 62 botanical families. Local uses were identified and grouped into the following categories: aromatic, food, ornamental, combustible, diversion, construction, fertilizer, tools and articles and other uses.