DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2022.v10i12.005

Pages: 260-267

This study was carried out in the Plateaux Department. It consisted in improving the knowledge of the use of medicinal plants by the populations of the said Department. A series of ethnobotanical surveys were conducted using a questionnaire and 300 informants were interviewed. The results show that 98 medicinal species divided into 84 genera and 56 families were inventoried. Rubiaceae (8.91%) followed by Asteraceae (7.80%), Fabaceae (7.05%) and Zingiberaceae (4%) are the most representative families. Among these species, spontaneous species are widely used. Leaves (46.53%) followed by barks (13.56%) and roots (13.32%) are the most commonly used parts and decoction (47.79%) is the most common method of preparation. Concerning the diseases treated, malaria (16.39%), stomach ache (8.47%), cough (8.44%), fever (6.57%), haemorrhoids (6.31%) and diarrhoea (5.80%) are the most treated diseases. Nauclea latifolia Sm., Morinda morindoides (Baker) Milne-Redh, Mangifera indica L., Chromolaena odorata (L.) King & H. Rob. are the plants most involved in the constitution of the recipes. This study will allow the establishment of a Congolese pharmacopoeia in the future and will constitute a source of information for scientific research in the fields of phytochemistry and pharmacology.