Bio-Diversity of Wild Fruits in Chamba District of Himachal Pradesh

Abstract

Wild fruits were the valuable source of food for the prehistoric man, who nestled in caves. As the civilization flourished, they gathered and passed on important information on the use of these fruits from generation to generations. Consequently, the present dayhorticulture came into existence. The wild species of these fruit plants yield edible fruits and grow throughout the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, contributed a lot directly or indirectly to cultural heritage of the state (Table-I). These fruits are consumed in abundance by the local people, residing in the remote areas of the district, as these are in plenty in their natural habitat (CSIR 1950; Parmar and Kaushal, 1982). Some of these