Wild Plants Used as Vegetables by Transhumant People Around the Georgia–Turkey Border in the Western Lesser Caucasus

<p>&nbsp;Recent ethnobotanical studies in the Caucasus, mainly in Georgia, reveal the</p> <p>significant ethnobotanical knowledge of local people related to wild edible plants.</p> <p>However, few studies have been conducted in the Lesser Caucasus, West Georgia,</p> <p>and the Turkish Caucasus. is study aims to represent and evaluate the cultural</p> <p>importance of wild vegetable plants and their patterns of use along the</p> <p>Georgia&ndash;Turkey border. During the transhumance period in the summers of 2017</p> <p>and 2018, 104 participants (65 in Turkey and 39 in Georgia) were interviewed</p> <p>using a semistructured questionnaire. e Cultural Importance Index and</p> <p>Relative Frequency of Citation were used to compare the relative importance of</p> <p>species in each region. e use of 83 wild plant species from 23 plant families as</p> <p>vegetables was documented, with 45 species recorded in Georgia and 72 species in</p> <p>Turkey. One-third of the recorded wild plant species and 52 use instances out of</p> <p>122 species-use combinations were shared on both sides of the border. Women</p> <p>and men had mentioned almost the same number of species, and there was a</p> <p>nonsignificant correlation between plant knowledge and age. Although there</p> <p>were no significant differences in the plant parts used, the way people used plants</p> <p>as vegetables varied significantly across the border. Considering the floral</p> <p>similarity across the border, the number of species used in common and shared</p> <p>vegetable plant knowledge was quite low. ere is not a significant difference</p> <p>between the two countries in terms of the most frequently cited and culturally</p> <p>important species (Rumex, Urtica, and Polygonum&nbsp;spp.). However, the</p> <p>recognition of some of the most important shared species (Heracleum,</p> <p>Chaerophyllum, Arctium, and Campanula&nbsp;spp.) diverged significantly in different</p> <p>administrative regions.</p>