Traditional knowledge of the wild flora in the rural communities of the Pampa de Ayacucho Historic Sanctuary (Quinua, Ayacucho, Peru)

Abstract

This study records the use, traditional knowledge and distribution of the wild flora in the eight Andean rural communities surrounding the Pampa de Ayacucho Historic Sanctuary, placed in the Quinua District, Peru. The methodology was based on the collection of the wild flora used by local people, open and semi-structured interviews. A total of 137 species used, grouped in 49 families and 101 genera, were registered; Asteraceae, Poaceae and Fabaceae are the families with the highest number of species, with 34, 11 and 9 species respectively. The species were classified into nine categories of uses; being the categories Medicinal (91 species), Social (46 species) and Food (35 species) being the most representative by the number of species present. We conclude that people living in the study area still maintaining the traditional knowledge of their vegetal resources, evidenced by the number of species and the diversity of uses that they present.