USEFUL PLANTSOF SOUTHERN

EUROPEDiego Rivera Núñez and Concepción Obón de Castro

Universidad de Murcia (Spain) and Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche (Spain)

INTRODUCTIONAims and main sections

INTRODUCTION

Over the last forty years, they have been published hundreds of papers and books covering the useful plants of Italy, Spain, France and Portugal.

In most of these papers focus was set on traditional uses and wild plants.

Thus, rural areas and natural parks and reserves were the main zones where research was conducted.

Although ethnobotany and ethnopharmacology were more commonly adopted approaches, and those which offered more exhaustive information, linguistic, pharmacological, agricultural and other fields contributed further relevant evidence on useful plants.

CONTENTS

Med

icin

al p

lan

ts

Wild

fo

od

pla

nts

Loca

l cu

ltiv

ars

Eth

nic

min

ori

ties

Enci

clo

ped

ic w

ork

s

Local studies

Dictionaries

Traditional uses

Gastronomy

NutraceuticalsTraditional uses

LegislativeTraditional agriculture

Organic farming

Plants diversity

IECT We will review useful plants according to five main themes or sections with social development in the last years

USEFUL PLANTS ANDETHNIC GROUPS

Plant names and uses

ETHNIC GROUPS

With regard to ethnic and linguistic groups numerous are the works devoted to the study of names and uses of plants in various ethnic minorities (Grecanic, Arberesche, Mocheni, Ladins, Cimbrians, etc.).

Dictionaries have been published of names of plants in Catalonian, Occitan, Franco-Provenzal, and others are on the way.

Emigrations from other continents are generating new ethnic minorities in Western Europe, particularly in cities, but also in the field (Maghreb, sub-Saharan Africans, Eritreans, Ethiopians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Russians, Ukrainians, Romanians, Latinos, etc). These minorities have other priorities on useful plants and this determines and will determine in the future the profile of the useful plants in the region.

NOMS DE PLANTES

(THE DICTIONARY

OF CATALAN NAMES

OF PLANTS)Within a broader enviroment of Catalan dictionaries, known as Termcat, there is a online dictionary of plant names.

This exhaustive dictionary gives the correspondence vernacular – scientific names, allowing searchs in both senses, and the areas where each vernacular name’s use was recorded

http://www.termcat.cat/ca/Diccionaris_En_Linia/191/

https://www.sites.google.com/site/botanique24/publications-1/nom-occitan-des-plantes-des-causses-et-des-truffieres

http://www.unitheque.com/Livre/lucien_souny/Botanique_occitane_et_noms_de_lieux-13609.html

http://www.erbariopiemontese.com/Dizionario.pdf

Occitan Piedmontese

OCCITAN, FRANCO-PROVENÇAL AND

FRENCH

Thr Atlante linguistico ed Etnografico del Piemonte Occidentale – ALEPO. I.I-III Il mondo vegetale. Funghi e licheni offers a comprensive record of local plant names

http://www.alepo.unito.it/default.htm

OCCITAN, FRANCO-PROVENÇAL AND

FRENCH

Atlante linguistico ed Etnografico del Piemonte Occidentale – ALEPO.

SO FAR PUBLISHED

I-I Trees and Shrubs

I-II Herbaceous plants

I-III Mushrooms and Lichens

FORTHCOMING

I –Several Agriculture and Agricultural plants

http://www.alepo.unito.it/default.htm

AOSTAN FRANCO-PROVENÇAL, ITALIAN, OCCITAN

The monumental work Flora e Glossologia degli Alpi by Ivo Lavoyer, which was published by the Centre d’Ètudes Franco-Provençals of Aosta (Italy) is a relevant source of information within the western Alps and is also available online at the «glossario»

http://www.patoisvda.org/it/index.cfm/dizionario-francoprovenzale-parole-patois.html

WILD FOOD PLANTSKnowledge and valorisation

WILD FOOD PLANTS

During the las twenty years gathered wild food plants and local foods received special attention in connection with their potential as healthy foods or even nutraceuticals, but it was also on account of their cultural relevance among local communities.

These studies involved not only fieldwork and collection of recipes but also phytochemical screening and pharmacological research.

Recently these became a fashionable subject and numerous printed books, booklets and web pages were devoted to recipes with such kind of food

WILD FOOD PLANTS

IN EARLY

LITERATURE

A pioneer in this field is the Phytoalimurgia Pedemontana by OresteMattirolo published in 1918, had a great impact and was recently reedited.

However the previous classical Catalogue des substances végétales qui peuvent servir à la Nourriture de l’Homme et qui se trouvent dans les Départemens de l’Isere, La Drôme et les Hautes-Alpes published by Dominique Villars in 1794 was badly received by the population of Grenoble.

http://www.bibliotheque-dauphinoise.com/catalogue_substances_vegetales_villars.html

Numerous are the works which analyse the use of wild fruits and other plant foods in the context of ethnobotanical or anthropological studies of traditional communities in rural zones.

WILD FOOD PLANTS

IN THE CONTEXT OF

TRADITIONAL AND

LOCAL FOODS

Gastronomy and top-chefs paid attention to wild food plants, traditionally gathered and consumed in southern Europe as a source of ideas for innovative recipes.

Generally these chefs are associated to ethnobotanist which gather or grow these plants for them. E.g. Rodrigo de La Calle and Santiago Orts, Yannick Alleno and Stéphane Meyer. However others set focus on caring themselves this aspect: Marc Veyrat, Chris Hruskova, etc.

WILD FOOD PLANTS

IN THE CONTEXT OF

INNOVATIVE

GASTRONOMY

http://www.tasteoflifemag.com/articles/wild-plant-genius

Different research projects, books and papers addressed the potential as nutraceuticals of local food plants of southern Europe, including wild food plants (gathered or cultivated)

This proceeded through phytochemical analysis and different pharmacological and clinical tests

WILD FOOD PLANTS

IN THE CONTEXT OF

NUTRACEUTICALS

MEDICINAL PLANTSTraditional uses, conservation and legal status

MEDICINAL PLANTS

Medicinal plants were subject to numerous studies ranging from the recording of traditional uses (including gathering practices and prescriptions for preparation and administration) to more sophisticated laboratory studies.

The European Medicines Agency issued the European Union herbal monographs based on the scientific opinion of the Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products considering traditional use. These monographs represent a way of formalizing long-standing use and experience of medicinal plants in the European Union.

However there is still much to be done for making widely available to the urban population in Southwest Europe this wealth of local medicinal plants according to criteria of safety and efficacy

MEDICINAL PLANTS

Studies focus either on medicinal properties of the flora based on their chemical compounds or, alternatively, on ethnopharmacological grounds considering traditional local uses

However a not yet resolved issue is the access of the population to these medicinal resources within the European legislative framework which covers, both, herbal medicines and protection of species and habitats being extremely restrictive in both sides

MEDICINAL PLANTS

AND HERBAL

MEDICINES

EU legislation on pharmaceutical products for human use also applies in general to traditional herbal medicines. However, in order to overcome difficulties encountered by Member States in applying pharmaceutical legislation to traditional herbal medicinal products in a uniform manner, a simplified registration procedure was introduced by Directive 2004/24/ECpdfof the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004.http://ec.europa.eu/health/human-use/herbal-medicines/index_en.htm

MEDICINAL PLANTS

AND HERBAL

MEDICINES

The Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC) is the committee at the European Medicines Agency that is responsible for preparing the Agency's opinions on herbal medicines. It was established in September 2004, replacing the Committee for Proprietary Medicinal Products' Working Party on Herbal Medicinal Products, in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 and Directive 2004/24/EC, which introduced the simplified registration procedure for traditional herbal medicines in European Union (EU) Member States

MEDICINAL PLANTS

CONSERVATION

7 320

346

23

2 0 2 91

Endangered (EN) Vulnerable (VU) Near Threatened(NT)

Least Concern (LC) Data Deficient (DD)

Species Europe 27 Endemic species EU 27

The IUCN and the European Commission issued in 2014 the European Red List of Medicinal Plants compiled by D. Allen et al.

The medicinal plants red list records not extinct (EX), extinct in the Wild (EW), Regionally Extinct (RE) or Critically Endangered (CR) medicinal plant species in Europe

MEDICINAL PLANTS

CONSERVATION

European Endangered species concentrate in southern Europe and in particular in the Iberian Peninsula

LOCAL CULTIVARSInventory, conservation and valorisation

LOCAL CULTIVARS

Local cultivars, ethnovarieties or landraces of cultivated plants, mostly vegetables and fruits, attracted the attention of numerous researchers.

These published numerous studies, especially well illustrated books, addressed to raise awareness of this diversity and contribute to their conservation and sustainable use.

These works have contributed to the emergence of appellations of origin based on those varieties with relevance in the local economies and the development of specialized collections and nurseries.

LOCAL CULTIVARS

Numerous monographs on fruits, vegetable and grain crops are available online.

Also are reports and lists of collections and accessions at NGOs, Botanic Gardens and Germplasm repositories and networks.

LOCAL CULTIVARS

Numerous specialized nurseries in Southern Europe offer to growers the opportunity of cultivating a wide array of ancient and local cultivars.

However the criteria about what is a traditional local cultivar, ethnovariety or similar are still obscure. Thus confuse

http://www.vivaibelfiore.it/fruttiantichi/collezioni.shtml http://www.maiolipiante.it/frutti-antichi.php http://www.arboreco.net/wp-content/uploads/pdf/catalogo.pdf

IGP, DOC, AOCSeveral figures were developed in the different countries in order to valorise local products usually based on determined cultivars of restricted distribution area, although, often, not exclusive

REVIEWS ANDENCICLOPEDIC WORKS

General works, reviews and databases

REVIEWS AND

ENCICLOPEDIC

WORKS

In recent years, there have been published several books and developed projects devoted to the review and synthesis of the available information on useful plants in southern Europe.

Among these, it is noteworthy the Spanish Inventory of Traditional Knowledge Related to Biodiversity.

INVENTARIO ESPAÑOL DE LOS CONOCIMIENTOS

TRADICIONALES RELATIVOS A LA BIODIVERSIDAD

Organized in form a long-term, low funding, contract-project covering (exclusively) all wild species of vascular plants (and fungi) and main ecosystems in form of multiauthor monographs.

Ellaborated by a team of over 60 researchers belonging to universities, administration and research institutes. Led by Prof. Manuel Pardo-Santayana (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid).

The monographs are downloadable single or in volumes in pdf format at: http://www.magrama.gob.es/es/biodiversidad/temas/inventarios-nacionales/inventario-espanol-de-los-conocimientos-tradicionales/inventario_esp_conocimientos_tradicionales.aspx

THE SPANISH

INVENTORY OF

TRADITIONAL

KNOWLEDGE

RELATED TO

BIODIVERSITY

Being an ambitious much time-consuming task and having a low funding scheme, although new volumes are forthcoming, the complete work will not be available before 2020.

In parallel an online data base is scheduled.

http://www.magrama.gob.es/es/biodiversidad/temas/inventarios-nacionales/inventario-espanol-de-los-conocimientos-tradicionales/inventario_esp_conocimientos_tradicionales.aspx

REVIEWS AND

SOURCES FOR USEFUL

PLANTS IN FRANCE, ITALY AND PORTUGAL

Particularly exhaustive is the book of Guarrera on Uses and Traditions of the Italian Flora.

The collection of Pierre Lieuthaghi’sworks at Actes Sud and Salagon

The working Group on Portuguese Ethnobotany offers at http://www.etnobotanica.uevora.pt/a repertory of papers, theses and monographs on Portuguese ethnobotany

THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION!

SEE YOU IN BRAGANÇA (PORTUGAL) NEXT JUNE 4-9TH,2017

The joint 58th meeting of the Society for Economic

Botany and the 2nd Encontro Hispano Português de

Etnobiologia (EHPE) (2º Encuentro Hispano

Portugués de Etnobiología) will be hosted by the

Polytechnic Institute of Bragança (IPB) and the

Mountain Research Centre (CIMO).

More information on the host institution is available

here:

http://portal3.ipb.pt/index.php/pt/ipb

http://cimo.esa.ipb.pt/portal/