Sustainable forest management through floristic study (Case study: Darkesh Forest, Northern Khorasan Province, Iran)

Floristic study of plants in each site is one the most important role in keeping natural resources of each country. Plant species were collected from field sites that representing major habitats of study area. Surveys were managed during active growth periods in 2013 and 2014. A total of 140 medicinal plant species were documented. These species were scattered in 39 families and 116 genera. Families of Lamiaceae with 26 species, Asteraceae with 21 species and Rosaceae with 13 species were the most dominant families of medicinal plants in the study area. Hemicryphtophytes with 40%, therophytes with 18.4%, geophytes with 14.25%, phanerophytes with 13.57% and chamaephytes with 6.42%. The phyto-geographically of the medicinal plant showed that these species belonging to the regions of Irano-Turanian, Euro-Siberian and Mediterranean. The results of the present study showed that medicinal plants and wild fruit as Non Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) documented in this study, play an important role in the rural community welfare and sustainable forest management.