Summary
In the Xiangxi region of western Hunan province, China, 335 taxa belonging to 87 families and 119 genera are utilised as wild vegetables. In order to take advantage of this naturally occurring resource we examined the horticultural and the associated socio-economic aspects of these taxa. Wild vegetables, as the mainstay of human diet and Chinese traditional medicines, have played an important role in the daily life and income of local ethnic groups for centuries. We examine candidate species for their prevalence and their potential to offer returns, for example in cereal production and tourism, and indicate horticultural management and processing technologies which may exploit wild vegetable availability.
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Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support provided by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 6091079) and the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Program, Grant No. 2008AA10Z208). We also acknowledge the many people who helped to identify the plants. We are also very grateful to Dr Mel Holmes (University of Leeds) for thoroughly checking the English.
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Zou, X., Huang, F., Hao, L. et al. The socio-economic importance of wild vegetable resources and their conservation: a case study from China. Kew Bull 65, 577–582 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12225-010-9239-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12225-010-9239-7