Ethnobotany of Medicinal Plants Used by the Subanen Tribe of Lapuyan, Zamboanga del Sur.

Ethnobotanical documentation was conducted in the Municipality of Lapuyan, Zamboanga del Sur. This was done through informal interviews, walk-through interviews, and focus group discussions with seven selected healers of the Subanen tribe. There were 89 medicinal plant species documented belonging to 39 genera under 41 families. Leaves were the most frequently used plant part which were prepared through decoction and taken internally. Respiratoryrelated diseases are the most common ailments that the Subanen tribe encountered. It appears that there is a need to conserve the important medicinal plants especially those that are rarely encountered species. Moreover, further pharmacological tests need to be undertaken to prove the efficiency and potency of the plants as medicine.