• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.85-91
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• 2009

About 83% of the total population of Lao PDR lives in rural areas. People living near forest are highly dependent on the forest resources closed to their villages. Especially non-timber forest products (NTFPs) provide a wide range of subsistence needs and are the main source of their cash income. They also make a significant contribution to the country economy. The annual export value of NTFPs is considerably high. 708 edible NTFP species (238 edible plants and 470 animals) have been recorded so far, and about 400 plants have been reported and used as medicinal plants by Lao people. One hundred NTFP species are considered as commercial forest products. The striking trend in NTFP resources is the decline of some commercial species due to increased demand on them for commercialization, and the loss of forest by rapid population growth. To sustainablely manage the NTFPs resources, a number of new management systems are under development and support in progress by the government.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.272-280
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• 2019

Forest medicinal resources, which constitute one of the non-timber forest products, have been regarded as healthy and highly valued products. To meet the increasing demand of the medicinal resources, it is necessary to improve the propagation methods of medicinal plants. In vitro propagation not only allows an opportunity for propagating plants in large numbers but also allows for enhancing the quality and quantity of the desired functional component of a plant by altering the growth factors, such as medium, carbon source, and plant growth regulators influence plant. There have been several studies of in vitro propagation methods, such as axillary bud culture, shooting, and embryogenesis, on Kalopanax septemlobus, Eleutherococcus sessiliflorus, Hovenia dulcis, and Schisandra chinensis in Korea between from 2000 through 2010. Furthermore, there have been attempts to proliferate callus and plantlets for producing useful natural compounds by using bioreactors. Here, we provide an account of the in vitro propagation methods of medicinal trees in Korea based on a review of several micropropagation studies.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.104 no.3
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• pp.337-351
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• 2015

The articles, published in the Journal of Korean Forest Society from Volume 1 (1962) to Volume 102 (2013), were investigated for the research trend analysis about forest plants for special purposes, i.e., edible plants, medicinal plants, feed resources, landscape plants, fiber plants, industrial usage, bee plants, bioenergy/phytoremediation uses, dye materials, and rare/endangered/endemic plants. These research articles were classified again based on the contents of research into following categories - habitat environment, ecology, physiology, propagation, silviculture (including planting and tending), genetics and breeding, identification, pest and disease control, animal-related research, components analysis and extracts, vegetation survey, biotechnology, management, recreation and forest healing, and research review. Among the total 2,433 articles published, 611 (25.1%) were related to plants for special usage or purposes. The highest frequency (14.9%) in publications was found in the field of silviculture followed by physiology, propagation, identification, and genetics and breeding, respectively. On the bases of usage, edible plants showed higher frequency (26.5%) than others, followed by industrial purpose, bioenergy/phytoremediation usage, landscape plants, medicinal plants, and rare/endangered/endemic plants. Populus plant species was the most popular in research, showing 62 articles; and Castanea crenata 36; Pinus koraiensis 35; Robinia pseudoacacia 20; Ginko biloba 17, etc. Based on the survey and analysis, the following points are suggested: 1) improved evaluation of forest plants as non-wood resources, 2) expanding research topics on the basis of production, management, and utilization of non-wood forest resources, 3) management of database of forest plant information and encouragement needed to strengthen cooperative researches satisfying the needs of other industrial and scientific areas, and 4) encouraging to promote traditional knowledge based research on forest plants.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.39-54
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• 2016

The present study analyzes the diversity and usage of NTFPs and evaluates their importance in the day to day life of the people of rural Meghalaya. People use 172 NTFPs belonging to 139 plant species mainly for food, medicine and fuelwood and to a lesser extent for construction, handicrafts and ornamental purpose. These 139 plants belonged to 117 genera and 70 families with Rosaceae, Poaceae and Fagaceae families as the dominant NTFP yielding families. Fruits from shrubs and trees are most commonly harvested by people. Collection and availability of NTFPs for use as food are more during the summer season, which is also the period with least availability of job. NTFPs for subsistence use are greater in number than those having commercial value. The most commonly harvested plant parts are fruits and leaves. Roots, rhizomes and whole plants are extracted in lesser quantity which is a positive approach from sustainability point of view. NTFPs and other forest products also form a vital part of the rural household's income generation activities.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.108 no.1
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• pp.116-126
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• 2019

The production volume and amount of non-timber forest products in Korea has been on the increase for the past five years. In particular, the production amount of wild vegetables (edible mountain plants) is approximately KRW 400 billion as of 2017, accounting for 14 % of the total production amount of non-timber forest products. Among wild vegetables, especially the production volumes and amounts of bracken, saw-wort (Saussurea), and thistle have grown steadily. Nevertheless, severe price competition with cheap imports and little changes in the pattern of wild vegetable consumption may negatively affect the prices of domestic wild vegetables. This, in turn, can decrease the overall consumption of wild vegetables. Recently, however, consumers have preferred healthy food with increases in their income and interest in health. Therefore, now is a crucial time for the wild vegetable market. Accordingly, this study analyzed consumers' purchase and consumption behavior related to wild vegetables through a consumer survey to contribute to establishing various strategies and policies for promoting the consumption of these vegetables. Also, this study identified consumers' awareness and intention regarding wild vegetables by analyzing social big data. Different from previous studies, this study investigated consumers' awareness and intention by analyzing SNS social big data, as well as conducting a survey. The results of the study will help prioritize strategies and policies for boosting the consumption of wild vegetables.