Journal of Medicinal Plants Research Vol. 5(26), pp. 6218-6223, 16 November, 2011 Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/JMPR ISSN 1996-0875 ©2011 Academic Journals DOI: 10.5897/JMPR11.1040
Full Length Research Paper
Inula racemosa Hook. f: A potential medicinal crop in the cold desert agro-ecosystem of North Western Himalaya, India Yashwant S. Rawat* and Colin S. Everson School of Bioresources Engineering and Environmental Hydrology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville 3209, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Accepted 28 September, 2011
Inula racemosa Hook. f. (Manu), a critically endangered medicinal herb, was studied in terms of its uses and cultivation practices and problems in the cold desert environment of the Lahaul valley in the North Western Himalaya. The roots of I. racemosa are used in traditional medicine, but are also of great economic importance due to the large demand by the pharmaceutical industry. Energy and monetary efficiencies of I. racemosa were characterized by output/input ratios of 0.69 and 5.91, respectively. A survey was conducted to establish reasons for the decline in the cultivation of I. racemosa. The lengthy cultivation cycle, prevalence of small land holdings and continuously fluctuating market prices were the main constraints stated by the interviewed farmers. The results of this study highlight the need for technical support, the establishment of value-addition centres and farmers’ federations as well as mechanisms to strengthen and stabilize the existing market in order to promote the cultivation of this endangered medicinal herb. Key words: Inula racemosa, medicinal and aromatic plant, cultivation, cropping efficiency, Lahaul valley, cold desert. INTRODUCTION Inula racemosa Hook. f. (Asteraceae), locally called Manu, is a medicinal plant with, amongst others, antispasmodic and hypotensive properties. It is used for the treatment of cardiovascular and liver disease. It can also be used for the treatment of respiratory tract disorders, ulcers and as an antiseptic (Kaul, 1997). Manu which is endemic to North West Himalaya and its neighbouring areas, predominantly Jammu-Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh, is today a critically endangered plant (Sarin, 1996; Sood et al., 2001; IUCN, 1993; Wani et al., 2006). Three species of Inula, I. grandiflora Willd., I. obtusifolia A. Kern. (wild Manu), and I. racemosa Hook. f., (Manu) occurs naturally in the Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh (Aswal and Mehrotra, 1994), only I. racemosa Hook. f. was found under cultivation. Due to habitat
*Corresponding author. E-mail:
[email protected]. Tel: +27-33-260 6184 (O). Fax: +27-33-260 5818.
destruction and over-utilization the density and diversity of wild Manu has drastically declined in the entire NorthWest Himalayan region (Wani et al., 2006). Manu (I. racemosa Hook. f.) was domesticated in the Lahaul valley in the early parts of the twentieth century by progressive farmers and has been grown as a cash crop along with traditional food crops like buckwheat, maize, several varieties of pulses and medicinal plants such as Saussurea costus (Kuniyal et al., 2004; Rawat et al., 2004). Its cultivation flourished until the introduction of seasonal cash crops like potato and pea. Manu is currently cultivated in the Lahaul valley, at an altitude of between 2400 and 3600 m amsl, and at a few places in the Kinnaur, Chamba and Kullu districts of Himachal Pradesh (Aswal and Mehrotra, 1994) but its cultivation has declined considerably over the past 30 years. The present study was carried out to identify Manu’s uses, cultivation practices and cultivation constraints in order to recommend measures to increase the production of this valuable medicinal plant.
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Figure 1. Map of the study area (Khoksar, Jahlma, Hinsa, Kuthar in the Lahaul-Spit district of Himachal Pradesh, located at an altitude of between 2600 m and 3200 m).
MATERIALS AND METHODS I. racemosa Hook. f. (Manu)
Study area and climate
Manu is an erect perennial herb with a two to three year growth cycle. It grows up to 2 m in height. Its flowers are yellow in colour and are arranged in terminal racemes. Flowering occurs in the months of July and August and fruiting in the months of September and October. The roots of Manu contain inulin (10%), an essential oil containing isoalantolactone, di-hydralactone, alkaloids and other minor constituents like tannins and sugars. Isoalantolactone is a lactone with anti-fungal properties which is used against human pathogenic fungi (Kalsi et al., 1989; Tan et al., 1998). The essential oil from the roots is strongly aromatic and contains approximately 60% sesquiterpenes, 22% aplotaxene and 2% phenylacetonitrile (Bokadia et al., 1986). Alantolactone, β sislosterol, daucosteral and its glucosides have been determined in alcoholic extracts of the roots (Anonymous, 1986; Kalsi et al., 1989; Tan et al., 1998). Due to their high content of active ingredients, Manu roots are widely used in traditional medicine. The pounded root is used to treat rheumatism, hypertension, cardiovascular and liver disease, respiratory tract disorder, pulmonary infections, skin diseases, gastrointestinal disorders, fever and pain. Its action is antispasmodic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, antiasthmatic, anthelmintic, diuretic and antipyrectic. It also has hypoglycaemic activity (Gholap and Kar, 2005). In veterinary medicine it is used as a tonic and stomachic. The seeds of Manu taste bitter and are used as an aphrodisiac. Leaves and stems of Manu are used as fodder and fuel wood, respectively and its flowers are used as offerings to various deities in religious ceremonies. People also keep pieces of root between clothes to protect them from worms.
The study was conducted over a period of four years (2002 to 2006) in the Lahaul valley in the vicinity of the villages of Khoksar (3200 m), Jahlma (3000 m), Hinsa (2700 m) and Kuthar (2600 m) (Figure 1). The arable land in this area is restricted to the banks of the Chandra, Bhaga and Chenab rivers at 2400 m to 3600 m altitude. Climatically, the valley falls into the cold arid zone. It is characterized by low rainfall (average annual rainfall of 241.5 to 272.4 mm) and an extremely cold prolonged winter with a high average annual snowfall of 466.2 to 693.2 mm. The temperature reaches a maximum of 27.8°C in July and a minimum of -13.1°C in the month of January.
Survey, monetary and energy efficiency A survey was carried out with the help of semi-structured questionnaires and by direct interviews with the heads of farming families. The aim was to obtain information about the medicinal uses, cultivation practices and constraints in the cultivation of Manu. Information on crop rotation and decadal land use changes were also recorded. The interviews were held with the heads of all 122 households of the study villages (Khoksar 12, Jahlma 41, Hinsa 52, and Kuthar 17). They were asked about the indigenous uses and history of Manu, monetary and energy inputs and outputs, problems in the cultivation and farmers perception with regard to the decline in Manu cultivation. Three major problems, namely: (i) lengthy
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Figure 2. Cultivation of Manu in the cold desert agro-ecosystem of the Lahaul valley.
cultivation cycle, (ii) small land holdings, and (iii) low and fluctuating price were also incorporated in the questionnaire. Labour cost on the basis of wages received at the time of the field study was used to calculate monetary efficiency (output/input ratio). Energy efficiency was determined by adjusting the methods of Kuniyal et al. (2004) to the conditions of the cold desert environment of the Lahaul valley. Based personnel observations and interview results, a working time of 10 h per day was established for human and bullock labour. This long daily working time was due to the fact that all agricultural labour had to be carried out in a relatively short growing season. Since agricultural work in the Lahaul valley was carried out by men and women at a gender participation ratio of two males to three females, the caloric value per hour human labour was calculated according to Kuniyal et al. (2004) as: Caloric energy consumption per hour human labour =
(2 M )
(3 F ) 5
Where: M = hourly energy consumption of one male (0.679 MJ h -1), F = hourly energy consumption of one female (0.523 MJ h-1), 5 = Sum of the proportional gender representation of the workforce in the context of the present study (2 males + 3 females).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Cultivation practices Prior to planting, the fields were tilled two to three times to a depth of 15 cm to provide better conditions for root growth. Although, seeds germinated in the field (50 to 60%) without any hormonal and mechanical treatments, the propagation was mainly carried out through roots, and only occasionally through seeds, in the months of
October and November. It was observed that the plant performed well on sandy loam and alluvial soils, but that growth and yield were highest on blackish sandy loam (Figure 2). Roots were harvested after two to three years. The fields were generally watered before Manu was harvested in order to loosen and soften the soil, making digging easier. The total yield was recorded as 4260 and 1600 kg ha-1 for roots and fodder, respectively. Soil and scale were removed from the harvested roots and the roots were cut into small pieces and dried completely. Roots needed for cultivation in the following year were stored in pits which were covered with soil to protect them from excessive moisture and frost. They were only taken out in March or April, once the snow had melted from the agricultural fields, and planted to produce a new crop. Manu was generally cultivated in rotation with crops of potato or pea.
Monetary and energy efficiency Monetary and energy efficiencies were determined for the period of two years (2002 to 2004) and are summarized in Table 1. Manu is a labour intensive crop. Of the total monetary input, 56.94% was in the form of human labour for ploughing and other land preparation, mixing of organic manure, sowing and planting, weeding, irrigation, harvesting, drying and packaging of roots. In terms of energy 94.60% of the input was used to produce organic manure. To maintain the fertility status of the moraine soil in the cold desert climate, regular nutrient supplementation is required since large amounts of
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16 14
(ha)
12 10 8 6 4 2 0 1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
2004
Decade wise changes Khoksar
Jahlma
Hinsa
Kuthar
Figure 3. Manu cultivation (ha) in the Lahaul valley, Lahaul-Spit district, Himachal Pradesh during the period from 1960 to 2004 (1960 – 2000: average of each decade, 2004: actual value).
Table 1. Monetary and energy efficiencies of Manu crops in the Lahaul valley, Lahaul-Spiti district, Himachal Pradesh (values in parenthesis are percentages of the total).
Input total Human labour Bullock labour Seeds Organic manure (farm yard manure) Output total Roots By-products (stems, leaves, flowers) Seeds Net profit/loss Output/input ratio
Monetary value (INR* ha-1) 36868 20991 (56.94) 2286 (6.20) 5286 (14.34) 8305 (22.53) 218031 202930 (93.07) 3891 (1.78) 11210 (5.14) 181163 5.91
Energy (MJ ha-1) 45387 2050 (4.52) 276 (0.61) 125 (0.28) 42936 (94.60) 31091 13511 (43.46) 17375 (55.88) 205 (0.66) -14296 0.69
*1 INR( ) = 0.025 US$.
nutrients are leached out with the water from the melting snow every year. Roots contributed to 93.07% of the total monetary output while seeds and by-products (leaves, flowers and stems) contributed to only 5.14 and 1.78%, respectively (Table 1). In terms of energy the highest output came from by-products (55.88%), followed by roots (43.46%) and seeds (0.66%). The cropping efficiency, which is defined as the output/input ratio, was 0.69 and 5.91 for Manu in terms of energy and monetary efficiency, respectively. The monetary efficiency of 5.91 for Manu was much lower than that reported by Kuniyal et al. (2004) for 1995 and 1996 in the Lahaul valley. Lower market prices of Manu and higher input costs could have been the main reasons for the lower monetary
efficiency in the present study. Constraints to cultivation The cultivation of Manu was at its peak in the 1960s, when 13.5 ha (average of 10 years) were planted with Manu at Jahlma and 10.3 ha at Hinsa (Figure 3). Since then the cultivation has decreased sharply, especially between 1980 and 2000. Even during the course of the survey, a gradual reduction in the Manu cultivation was observed. Today easily cultivated cash crops such as pea, potato and hops dominate the agricultural land and market. According to all interviewed farmers, the lengthy
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Table 2. Farmers’ perception (%) with regard to the decline in Manu cultivation in the Lahaul valley, Lahaul-Spiti district, Himachal Pradesh.
Identified problems
Khoksar (12) b (3200 m) 69 22 9 0 0 100
1. Lengthy cultivation cycle 2. Small land holdings 3. Low and fluctuating price 4. Others 5. No response Total a
a
Villages Jahlma (41) Hinsa (52) (3000 m) (2700 m) 72 35 16 45 10 12 0 3 2 5 100 100
Kuthar (17) (2600 m) 15 45 19 5 16 100
b
Number of households interviewed. Altitude.
cultivation cycle of two to three years compared to only 3 to 6 months for pea and potato, contributed greatly to the decline in Manu production. The lengthy cultivation cycle was perceived to be a greater constraint by farmers from villages at a higher altitude (Table 2). The prevalence of small land holdings was mentioned as another major constraint for Manu cultivation, especially by the farmers of Hinsa and Kuthar. The interviewed farmers also considered fluctuating and occasionally low market prices to have a negative effect on the production of Manu. However, the higher the altitude of the farmers’ homes, the less likely was their decision to grow Manu affected by the magnitude and fluctuation of the market price. In the past Manu contributed greatly to the monetary return from farming because of the great demand by the pharmaceutical industry (Arora et al., 1980). However, with the introduction of cash crops such as pea, potato and hops in recent years, the cultivation of Manu has considerably decreased (Kuniyal et al., 2004). These cash crops gained popularity due to their early maturity in one growing season. Manu only reaches maturity after two to three years and although the cumulative profit of Manu per unit area of land is higher than that of the seasonal cash crops, the farmers prefer the early economic return after one growth season. Late returns on their investment together with fluctuating market prices made Manu cultivation risky and contributed greatly to its decline. In spite of the mentioned constraints, however, the farmers are still maintaining seed banks of Manu in small areas of the Lahaul valley. Conclusions The results of this study confirmed the trend that farmers are gradually replacing Manu with high yielding and fast growing cash crops (that is, pea and potato) due to short term high economic returns. To encourage the cultivation of this endangered medicinal plant, substantial efforts need to be made to provide technical support, establish value-addition centres and farmers’ federations and
stabilize and strengthen the existing market. To address the problems identified in this study, the support of the local administration is necessary. A supporting marketing network is also needed. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors are grateful to the G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development, KosiKatarmal, Almora (UK), India and the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa for providing research facilities. Thanks are also due to the Ministry of Environment and Forests for providing financial support and to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) of the Government of India, New Delhi, for awarding the first author with a Senior Research Fellowship. REFERENCES Anonymous (1986). The useful plants of India. CSIR, New Delhi. Arora RK, Gupta R, Maheshwari ML, Chandel KPS (1980). Mano (Inula racemosa): Little known aromatic plant of Lahaul valley, India. Econ. Bot., 34(2): 175-180. Aswal BS, Mehrotra BN (1994). Flora of Lahaul-Spiti. A Cold Desert in North West Himalaya. Bishen Singh, Mahendra Pal Sigh, Dehradun, India, p. 761. Bokadia MM, Macleod AJ, Mehta SC, Mehta BK, Patel H (1986). The essential oil of Inula racemosa. Phytochem., 25: 2887-2888. Gholap S, Kar A (2005). Regulation of cortisol and glucose concentration by some plant extract in mice. J. Med. Aromatic Plant Sci., 27: 478-482. IUCN (1993). Draft IUCN Red List Categories, IUNC, Gland Switzerland. Kalsi, Goyal SR, Talwar KK, Cabra BR (1989). Sterostructures of two biologically active sesquiterpene lactones from Inula racemosa. Phytochem., 28: 2093-2096. Kaul MK (1997). Medicinal plants of Kashmir and Ladakh. Temperate and Cold Arid Himalaya. Indus Publications, New Delhi, p. 41. Kuniyal JC, Vishvakarma SCR, Singh GS (2004). Changing crop biodiversity and resource use efficiency of traditional versus introduced crops in the cold desert of the northwestern Indian Himalaya: A case of the Lahaul valley. Biodivers. Conserv., 13(7): 1271-1304.
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