Plants and Culture: Plant utilization among the local communities in Kabayan, Benguet Province, Philippines

Abstract

The Cordillera region occupies a mountainous and forested area in the northern most part of the Philippines. With a favorable temperate climatic regime, the region is endowed with a rich and diverse flora and fauna. Moreover, the region is inhabited by local communities with a diverse culture. With an intimate interaction with the environment, the communities have developed inherent indigenous uses of the plant resources around them. The main aim of this project is to determine the useful plants in Kabayan, Benguet province and document the traditional knowledge that are associated with the useful plants, Kabayan is one of the 13 municipalities in Benguet province. The municipality is predominantly peopled by three ethnolonguistic groups namely: <em>Ibaloi, Kankanaey</em> and <em>Kalanguya, </em>that demonstrate inimitable indigenous knowledge on plant utilization. Ethnobotanical survey was conducted using a structured questionnaire which was used as a guide for the individual interviews and focused group discussions. Plant uses range from food, shelter, clothing, rituals, medicine and many more. They also preserve their dead using various plant extracts. This indigenous knowledge is currently endangered because these are held by the older generation and if not documented, this ethnobotanical knowledge will be irreversibly lost.