Botanical Knowledge

The old Bhutanese who grew up in close touch with nature has a very deep and extensive knowledge of the natural surroundings and local fauna. They not only know the types of trees, bushes and grasses but also know the herbal use and significance of plants, the geological composition of forests, the quality of wood from different plants, the varieties of flowers, mushrooms, fruits and berries, and can tell the temperature, season and condition of fauna through reading wild plants. They use this ethno-botanical knowledge to obtain timber and other forest products, to predict time for farming, weather patterns and also to treat different health problems.