An Annotated Inventory of Arboreal Flora in Jammu and Kashmir State

Abstract

Arboreal or woody flora, as a surrogate of biota, is immensely useful for rapid assessment and monitoring of biodiversity in a region. The present chapter provides an annotated inventory of the arboreal flora of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India, including both native and exotic species. At the present stage of investigation, the arboreal flora of the state comprises 768 species, belonging to 362 genera in 106 families. This flora includes 382 species which are exclusively wild-growing, 323 species are cultivated for different purposes, and 63 species are cultivated and grow in the wild as well. Growth form-wise, the trees, shrubs, sub-shrubs, and woody climbers are represented by 291, 364, 39, and 74 species, respectively. The three regions – Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh – contribute 561, 384, and 92 species, respectively, to the total arboreal flora of this Himalayan state.