Abstract
Food supply from forests is a fundamental component of forest ecosystem services, but information relating to suitability for human consumption and sustainable utilization of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in developing countries is lacking. To address this gap in knowledge, diverse datasets of edible plants and macro-fungi were obtained from field collections, historical publications, and community surveys across seven cities in Guangdong Province (GP), southern China. Seven edible parts and five food categories of plant species were classified according to usage and specific nutrient components. Edible plant species were also categorized into different seasons and life forms. Our results show that at least 100 plant species (with 64 plant species producing fruit) and 20 macro-fungi were commonly used as edible forest products in subtropical GP. There were 55 and 57 species providing edible parts in summer and autumn, respectively. Many edible plants had multiple uses. Tree and herbaceous species made up the majority of the total. Our study provides evidence that both edible plants and macro-fungi can enrich the food supply for residents in rural and urban areas by acting as supplemental resources. We therefore suggest that, in spite of the prevalence of imported foods due to modern infrastructure, edible NTFPs from subtropical forests might be leveraged to support the increasing demand for food in an era of rapid urbanization and global change.
Highlights
Forests and trees are principal components of terrestrial ecosystems, providing the earth with a vast array of socio-ecological benefits [1,2,3]
Provincial gross domestic product (GDP) and primary industry increased by 490% and 250% from
This study reports state-of-the-art knowledge on common forest products in lower subtropical forests in southern China
Summary
Forests and trees are principal components of terrestrial ecosystems, providing the earth with a vast array of socio-ecological benefits [1,2,3]. Among these benefits, forest biodiversity is a crucial dimension, important for valuing ecosystem services, and has been attracting growing attention from municipal authorities, research agencies, and the public. Forests 2018, 9, 666 food security, annually providing livelihoods and food for over 300 million people [8,9,10,11]. Urban greenspaces contribute to and preserve a considerable proportion of terrestrial biodiversity [12]
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