Wild Edible Plants (WEPs) are those plants which are not cultivated but are collected from their natural habitat for human consumption. Studies on WEPs in different parts of the world have revealed that these plants can be utilized as good sources of minerals and other micronutrients which are commonly lacking in regular human diets. Many of these plants also have immense therapeutic properties and nutraceutical potential. The current study was carried out in the Bhaderwah region of Jammu and Kashmir, India, which is a predominantly rural area inhabited by some tribes, in addition to various ethnic groups. The region is mountainous and rich in floral diversity. The local people consume many wild plants for their health benefits. The diversity of these plants in the region was studied and some of these plants were evaluated for their nutritional value and for the presence of heavy metals. WEPs were collected from the study area by carrying out field trips. Ethnobotanical investigations were also conducted. The collected plants were identified. Herbarium sheets of the identified specimens were prepared and subsequently submitted to the University of Jammu Herbarium. For nutrient analysis, standard methods of the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists (AOAC) were used. For mineral analysis, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) and XRF were used. This field study indicated a rich diversity of WEPs in the region. Sixty plants belonging to 31 families were identified. Some of the evaluated plants were found to have good nutrient and mineral content, with limited anti-nutrients.

It can be concluded that the study area has a rich diversity of WEPs, some of which are high-altitude plants with immense medicinal properties. WEP diversity in the region needs to be explored further and evaluated for important phytochemical and nutraceutical potential.