A preliminary report on the use of leafy vegetables by the native of Bargarh district, Western Odisha, India

The study was conducted on four dominant tribal communities namely Sahara, Binjhal, Kondh and Gond of Bargarh district, Western Odisha, to assess the diversity of plant species consumed as ‘leafy vegetables’. A total of 39 plant species, belonging to 31 genus and 26 families were recorded in the interviews and enquiries. The dominant families were Amaranthaceae and Brassicaceae contributing five species each. The Cucurbitaceae family contributed three species and the families Chenopodiaceae, Convolvulaceae and Fabaceae contributed two species each respectively. Rest of the 20 families contributed one species each. The leafy vegetables consumed by these four tribes include 29 nos. of herbs (74%), 05 nos. of trees (13%), 04 nos. of climbers (10%) and one shrub (3%). Species like Amaranthus oleraceous, Amaranthus viridis L., Basella alba L., Chenopodium album L., Cucurbita maxima Duchesne., Coriandrum sativum L., Glinus oppositifolius (L.) A.DC., Ipomoea aquatica Forssk., Marsilea minuta L., Moringa oleifera Lam. and Spinacia oleracea L., were used most extensively. Most of the tribal people depend on wild leafy vegetables than the cultivated ones. Many wild leafy vegetables were used for medicinal purposes as well, e.g. Alternanthera sessilis L.R. Br., Glinus oppositifolius (L.) A.DC. Ipomoea aquatica Forssk., Azadirachta indica A. Juss., Enhydra fluctuans Lour., Hygrophila auriculata Schum. (Heine.), Murraya koenigii L. Spreng and Oxalis corniculata L. Domestication of these reported species will not only improve the economic condition of the people but will also aid in conservation of biodiversity, sustainability and food security.