Keanekaragaman dan Etnobotani Famili Araceae di Desa Luat Lombang dan Desa Simasom Sekitar Ekosistem Batang Toru

Abstract

Araceae is a family of plants with many unique characteristics and benefits. They are known as a plant family with diverse life forms, ranging from climbing plants to terrestrial plants, and even epiphytes. Unfortunately, exploration of Araceae in rural forest areas such as Luat Lombang and Simasom Villages in North Sumatra has been limited. Yet, information on the abundance and utilization of Araceae is crucial to support conservation and sustainable utilization. This study aims to explore the diversity and potential uses of Araceae species in Luat Lombang and Simasom Villages, North Sumatra. The study was conducted from September 2023 to December 2023. The study employed purposive sampling for vegetation analysis. Descriptive analysis was used to determine the potential uses of all Araceae species found at the study site. The results of the research show that there are 13 types of Araceae in Luat Lombang Village, namely Amorphophallus gigas, Amorphophallus prainii, Amorphophallus titanum, Caladium bicolor, Caladium marmoratum, Colocasia esculenta, Apoballis mutata, Spathiphyllum conifolium, Schismatoglottis scintillans, Syngonium macrophyllum, Syngonium podophyllum, Typonium blumei and Xanthosoma robustum and 6 types of Araceae were found in Simasom Village, namely Amorphophallus gigas, Amorphophallus titanum, Xanthosoma robustum, Colocasia esculenta, Syngonium podophyllum, Xanthosoma sagittifolium. The ethnobotanical potential of Araceae is utilized by the community at the research site as a food plant, medicinal plant, and ornamental plant. The Araceae family has much interesting potential for development, but utilization of this plant species is still minimal. Therefore, more research is needed to discuss the potential, processing methods, and development of Araceae plants to support Indonesia's economic growth.