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Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences

Year: 2004 | Volume: 7 | Issue: 6 | Page No.: 1010-1023
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Research Article

Potential Uses of Plant Species of the Coastal Mediterranean Region, Egypt

S.Z. Heneidy and L.M. Bidak

ABSTRACT

Two hundreds and thirty species belonging to forty eight families were recorded in the study area. The families of high representation are Compositae (17%), Leguminosae (11.4%), Gramineae and Chenopodiaceae (10.5 and 7.9% respectively). Sixty two percent of the studied species are common and about 24.9% are occasional, while 13% are rare. Sixty percent of the studied species are perennials (includes 1.8 and 12.7%, phanerophytes and geophytes, respectively) and 2.2% are biennials while, 40.2% are annuals. All rare and most of the occasional species and even some of the common ones are going to disappear as a result of over uses. Most of the studied species have multipurposes uses in our daily lives. For example, 89% of the studied species have medicinal value, 80% are used as forage (40% highly palatable species), 10.5% are edible for both human and birds, 16.6 are aromatic sources (42% have unpleasant smell) while, 31% are used as fuel wood and energy source. Eighty nine percent of the studied species have multi-ecological uses such as sand accumulation, windbreak, reducing the erosion, increase the fertility of soil, shading, as refuge for some plant species, salinity tolerant and save as microclimate effect. This type of study has the potential to provide guidance for developing appropriate management techniques for arid lands and for transferring, exchanging and propagating of multipurpose species to combat decertification in Egypt and arid land countries.
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