The high altitude ethnobotany of the Rolwaling Sherpas

Ethnobotany is a subject of more than scholarly or historical interest in Nepal. In the five years 1970-75, the export earnings for the sale of Nepalese medicinal plants rose from one and a half to nearly ten million rupees, a trend that held in subsequent years and represents about 3% of the total exports of Nepal. Potential uses of medicinal plants from the higher altitude areas remains under-developed compared to those from the temperate middle ranges and tropical zones, but the possibilities of exploitation are attractive when one considers the ease of transportation and the high profits involved in medicinal plants as compared to the heavier, bulkier and less valuable agricultural products of these remote regions.