Medicinal Plants
Leontopodium brachyactis
Fam.: Asteraceae (Compositae)Tibetan: spra thog
- Altitude:
- 3840 m (12,598 foot)
- Location:
- Maddow by a river, between Carex, Juncus, Pedicularis
- Medical usage:
- Against mineral poisons
There is lots of Edelweiss in the Himalayas! Sometimes, there are meadows full of it. Finally a plant of which I guess it is not yet in danger of getting extincted. But please don't tell any Austrian souvenir shop keeper....
No jokes, the Himalayan flora is really in danger, I have to
keep repeating it.
India itself with its rapidly growing population is the largest
consumer of these plants. Rare plants like Saussurea
lappa have almost vanished from the wild and are mentioned
in CITES already. But to put plants on a list alone won't be of
much help unless the people, who will keep collecting these
plants anyhow, will receive a proper training and do the
collection in a more ecofriendly manner.
To provide such training, I hope, will be one of the future
engagements of Yuthog Foundation for Tibetan Medicine and other
organizations with a feeling of responsibility for humans and
nature.
