Ethnobotanical investigation of 'wild' food plants used by rice farmers in Kalasin, Northeast Thailand

Data was collected using focus groups and key informant interviews with women locally recognized as knowledgeable about contemporarily gathered plants. Plant species were identified by local taxonomists.A total of 87 wild food plants, belonging to 47 families were reported, mainly trees, herbs (terrestrial and aquatic) and climbers. Rice fields constitute the most important growth location where 70% of the plants are found, followed by secondary woody areas and home gardens. The majority of species (80%) can be found in multiple growth locations, which is partly explained by villagers moving selected species from one place to another and engaging in different degrees of management. Wild food plants have multiple edible parts varying from reproductive structures to vegetative organs. More than two thirds of species are reported as having diverse additional uses and more than half of them are also regarded as medicine.This study shows the remarkable importance of anthropogenic areas in providing wild food plants. This is reflected in the great diversity of species found, contributing to the food and nutritional security of rice farmers in Northeast Thailand.The collection and consumption of 'wild' plant foods from agricultural and non-agricultural ecosystems has been documented in multiple cultural contexts, illustrating their use and importance among farming households throughout the world [1-3]. The evidence to date suggests that gathering by farmers occurs in various environments, ranging from intensively farmed areas, to more subsistence oriented horticultural systems, and finally in more pristine areas such as forests. This is certainly the case of rice farmers in Asia [4]. For example, Ogle et al. [5,6] found that in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam 90% of women eat wild vegetables, uncovering a total of 94 species. Kosaka [7], in his research on flora from the paddy rice fields in Savannakhet, Laos, recorded 11 edible species from a total of 19 herbaceous useful pla