Browsing by Author "Echenique, P"

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    Mechanisms towards a sustainable use of Chorizanthe vaginata Benth. var. maritima Remy: a medicinal plant from Chile
    (FUNDACION ROMULO RAGGIO, 2001) Gloria, M; Patrick, G; Echenique, P; Gomez, M; Timmermann, B
    Regeneration of Chorizanthe vaginata Benth. var. maritima Remy, a medicinal plant intensively traded in Chile, was analyzed to address the potential for sustainable harvest. We analyzed individual productivity per season, extrapolated results to four populations. We visited collecting sites with harvesters from a traditional market in Santiago and learned traditional collecting procedure. Relative species cover in four sites of the coastal scrub was measured to obtain estimates of remaining biomass until November 1998. Results show that plants are able to regenerate in about three years when cut above the site of the buds in the root-crown. More than 50% of plants are harvested unsustainably, and are usually between the ages of 8 and 12 years. Around 3.44 tons of C. vaginata were available in four populations. Since 5 tons are traded per year, C. vaginata is in danger of disappearing, unless proper harvesting and cultivation in degraded areas starts, as proposed by our group.