Exploration of underutilized plants in the coastal belts of Thoothukudi and Kanniyakumari district of Tamilnadu, India

Surveys were undertaken to explore the underutilized plants in the sodic belts of Thhothukudi and Kanniyakumari district of Tamil Nadu during 2020-21. The areas covered were inland sodic soils and coastal tract including part of coastal wetlands. Plants distributed in these lands are collected along with soil samples. Further, information such as geographical location, utility, etc. was recorded. Totally 56 plant species were collected which includes arable crops, horticultural crops, underutilized edible species, fodder crops, medicinal plants, weeds and native wild flora. The information gathered will be useful for further exploitation of these plants for sustainable farming besides the reclaiming salt affected lands in a natural way.