Flora of Jaunsar Bawar Chakatra Hills, Western Himalaya: With Ethnobotanical Notes. 2017. 146 col. photographs. 1003 p. gr8vo. Hardcover.

Jaunsar-Bawar, geographically known as Chakrata is the northern mountainous tract of Uttarakhand State in Western Himalaya. It is inhabited by Jaunsari tribe, decendents of Kushans and Huns, till recently untouched by the urban culture. They have a high potential of Ethnobotanic knowledge. Out of ca 700 km of the area, more than half is reserved forest. The altitude varies from 477 m to 3071 m. All higher areas are snow covered during winters. The vegetation varies from tropical forests to temperate pastures. Being in the vicinity of Indian Forest School and Indian Forest College, it has been the outdoor laboratory of forestry classes for over a century.

The area has been collected in 19th century by botanists like Duthie, Gamble, Brandis, Parkinson, etc. The Flora of Jaunsar Bawar (Chakrata Hills, Western Himalaya) with notes on Ethnobotany is based on all historical collections made during the past more than 150 years housed in CAL, DD, BSD and BSIS herbaria.

The present endeavour embodies the painstaking work and fresh collections by the author since 1977. It comprises 1289 species of angiosperms spread over 689 genera and 156 families arranged as per Bentham and Hooker with split families. Detailed description of vegetation types is given. Taxonomic enumeration includes current nomenclature of all taxa at family, genus and species levels with full citations of literature according to current rules, synonyms, basionyms and detailed morphological descriptions, phenology, notes and detailed exsiccatae. Exhaustive indented dichotomous keys to families, genera, species and sub-specific taxa are given. A chapter on gymnosperms, both native and cultivated is also included.

Lists of plants, endemic to Jaunsar Bawar and type material from this area are given. An exhaustive chapter on Ethnobotany comprising 254 species is provided. Besides index to vernacualr and scientific names, over one hundred coloured photographs are included. The book is immensely useful to scientists, amateurs and students working particularly with plants of Western Himalaya and those interested in Ethnobotany of Uttarakhand.