Ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plant species used by communities around Mabira and Mpanga Central Forest Reserves, Uganda

BACKGROUND: Medicinal plants form an integral part of many health care systems in Uganda. This study aimed at documenting the therapeutic importance of plant species used in primary health care among communities living adjacent to Mabira and Mpanga forest reserves in Central Uganda. METHODS: An ethnobotanical study was conducted between April and June 2018 in 7 villages adjacent to Mpanga and 6 villages adjacent to Mabira central forest reserves. Information was obtained from 28 respondents identified using snowball and purposive sampling techniques and interviewed using semi-structured questionnaires. Descriptive statistics were used to present the data. The quantitative analysis of data was done using fidelity level, informant consensus factor, and percent respondent knowledge indices. RESULTS: A total of 136 medicinal plants were recorded. The plant species classified into 55 families were grouped under 14 medical categories with the highest number of plant species being used for digestive disorders (44%), followed by respiratory (38%) and dermatological disorders (36%). Hoslundia opposita Vahl was mentioned by 71% of the respondents for treating 22 disease conditions. Plant Family Fabaceae was the most represented with 16 species. Informant consensus agreement was high (0.7) for respiratory disorders. The fidelity level was 100% for Bidens pilosa L. and Callistemon citrinus Skeels for treating wounds and cough, respectively. Plant remedies were mainly prepared by decoction (31%) and administered orally (36%). A large number of plants (61%) were harvested from wild habitats. Herbs (50%) and leaves (50%) contributed the highest percentage of plant biological forms and parts used in remedy preparation. CONCLUSION: This study recorded plant species with the potential to treat a wide range of illnesses. This is reflected in the high diversity of the recorded species used for medicinal purposes. Pharmacological studies on the plants with high percentage use values and fidelity levels are needed to validate their uses in the management of the said therapeutic applications. Further research on the isolation and characterization of the plant active compounds could lead to the discovery of new potential drugs. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s41182-021-00341-z.