Medicinal and wild food plants of Marmara Island (Balikesir – Turkey)

Medicinal and wild food plants have always played an important role in people’s lives especially in rural areas. Similar situation can be said for islands due to the reason of them being isolated from mainland. This paper reports an ethnobotanical investigations performed in 2009 and 2014 to determine medicinal and wild food plants of Marmara Island. A total of 30 individuals were interviewed (19 men, 11 women). Totally, 22 plants are recorded as used as traditional folk medicine for the region, and nine of these are also used as a source of wild food. Furthermore, 18 taxa are wild sources of nutrition for the area. The plants most commonly used in the region as medicinal remedies were Salvia fruticosa, Hypericum perforatum, Ficus carica, and Mentha spicata. Plants are mostly used for the treatment of abdominal pain, the common cold, and haemorrhoids. The species most commonly used for food are: Salvia fruticosa, Arbutus unedo, Rhus coriaria, and Rubus sanctus. This ethnobotanical study conducted in this island will enable the traditional use of wild plants both as food sources and herbal remedies to be passed on to future generations.


Introduction
Ethnobotanical studies are very important in revealing the global current, cultural, traditional, and historical use of plants [1] as a source of folk medicine and food; a practice which has gradually increased in Southern European countries  and also in Turkey .
The aim of this study is to present information about the traditional use of herbal medicine and food derived from wild plants recorded for Marmara Island, a locality for which no such investigation (except for some ethnobotanical notes recorded during floristic research [82,83]) has hitherto been undertaken.This study, thus, records for the first time, the traditional use of plants for medicinal and nutritional purposes on Marmara Island, the second largest Turkish island.

Study area
Marmara Island (40°35' N, 27°33' E), the second largest Turkish island, is situated in the Sea of Marmara (Fig. 1).It covers an area of 117 km 2 , and its highest point is 700 m a.s.l.It consists of five villages (Fig. 2), its population being 6000.
In ancient times, the island was called "Proikonesos" or "Proconnesus".The modern name "Marmara" is derived from the Greek marmaron, which, in turn, is derived from marmaros, "crystalline rock", "shining stone" because it was famous for the white marble (Latin marmor) quarried there [84].
Proconnesus was colonized by the Greek inhabitants of the Ionian city of Miletus, in the middle of the eighth century BC.According to historical evidence, Proconnesus was burned in 493 BC by a Phoenician fleet in the service of the Persian King Darius.In 410 BC, Proconnesus was subjected to the domination of Athens, and, in the early third century BC, it was conquered by the Romans and became part of the Roman Empire.Subsequently, it became part of the Byzantine and the Ottoman Empires, as did Constantinople and its neighboring cities [85].
It is clear that people reside on Marmara Island for almost the last 100 years, originated from Greece, Bulgaria, and the Black Sea region.Following the Treaty of Lausanne, in 1923, Rums living outside Istanbul were exchanged for Turkish people living  in Greece [86], and Turks who had come from Greece, especially from the Island of Crete, were placed on Marmara Island.Besides these, people from the Black Sea region, and from Bulgaria, especially during the period 1912-1913, and again in the 1950s (referred to as refugees), were placed on the island.
The traditional occupations of the island are tourism and fishing.The remaining arable land is covered with olive trees, and many farmers are involved in the cultivation of grape vines, whereas other settlers work in the marble quarries (Fig. 3).
The flora of Marmara Island comprises at least 475 species of vascular plants, assigned to 312 genera and 88 families [83].
Vegetation cover of the island consists mostly of Mediterranean forest trees, maquis, and frigana (Fig. 4).Besides with plants exposed over large areas, and Europe -Siberia, which is lesser, and Euxine elements are seen in this area [87].

Field study
This ethnobotanical study addresses the use of wild plants as a source of food and medicine.During field work (2009 and 2014), all the settlements (a total of five villages: Saraylar, Çınarlı, Asmalı, Gündoğdu, and Topağaç) were visited.Data were collected mainly by means of the free listing method, and supplemented by the observations of participants during informal walks with selected key informants.A total of 30 people were interviewed.Of these, 19 were men, 11 were women.The age of informants varied from 40 to 85, the mean age being 62. Interviews were arranged at various places (e.g., tea houses, gardens, homes, etc.).
Interviewers were asked about the traditional and other domestic uses of plants, as they relate to food and medicine [88].During the interviews, local names, names of the part(s) of the plants used, the ailments treated, the therapeutic effect, the methods of preparation, and the methods of administration were gathered for medicinal plants, and local names, names of the part(s) of the plants used and were gathered for food plants.
Besides these, species not strictly being part of our remit (i.e., not used for medicinal purposes, but nonetheless used in everyday infusions as a "recreational tea"), were also included, if specifically mentioned by the respondents [89].
The Code of Ethics of the International Society of Ethnobiology [90] was strictly followed.
The collected plants were identified by the author using the Flora of Turkey and East Aegean Islands [91].Voucher specimens were deposited at the Herbarium of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Marmara (MARE).

Results
The plants used for medicinal and food purposes on Marmara Island are presented in Tab. 1, and arranged alphabetically according to their botanical names, together with relevant information.Taxonomical changes to The Plant List [92] are shown in parentheses in Tab. 1, together with popular scientific names.During this study, 58 specimens were collected for the region investigated and 22 taxa, belonging to 19 families, were recorded.The most common medicinal plant families present were Asteraceae (27%), Lamiaceae (20%), and Rosaceae (13%).Aerial parts and fruit parts are mainly used for medicinal purposes.
Plants are mainly used medicinally for [according to Use record-(N) value] abdominal pain, the common cold, and haemorrhoids.
During the course of the study, a total of 29 remedies were recorded.Most remedies were taken internally, the main preparation methods being infusion and direct application.
According to the local people, Ecballium elaterium and Dracunculus vulgaris should be used with great caution, since overdosing can be dangerous.
A previous floristic study for the region contains information about the local use of certain plants [82], e.g., the use of Balllota acetobulosa for the treatment of haemorrhoids.In this study, which was conducted 30 years later, the author found that this same plant is still used today for the treatment of haemorrhoids.The use of Satureja parnassica Heldr.et Sart subp.siplylea P.H. Davis for the treatment of abdominal pain was also recorded.However, this plant could not be collected by the author.
The plants most commonly used in the region as medicinal remedies were Salvia fruticosa, Hypericum perforatum, Ficus carica, and Mentha spicata.
Leaves and other aerial vegetative organs form the largest category (14 species), followed by fruit (seven species), flowers (five species), and subterranean organs (three species).
Leaves and other aerial vegetative organs are still used as the basis of raw salads, or cooked, and fruit is eaten raw; jam is made, as well as pekmez and pickle, and four species are used for spices.Five taxa (Alcea pallida, Matricaria chamomilla, Mentha spicata subsp.spicata, Origanum vulgare subsp.hirtum, and Salvia fruticosa) are used for recreational tea.
Wild vegetables are still used on Marmara Island.These are usually weeds growing in abandoned fields, on roadsides and in hedgerows.They are mainly collected in spring (March-April), and some fruit are collected at the end of summer and in autumn.The interviewees reported that they use wild food plants in particular, because these are considered to be healthier.For example, Salvia fruticosa, which is common especially in the northern and eastern parts of the region, is frequently gathered by local people, and is drunk as a tea (Fig. 5).It is the most popular drink in cafes on the island, in tea gardens, and at the homes of local people.
Of the three women interviewed, two stated that they gather Arbutus unedo, Ficus carica, Rosa canina, and Rubus sanctus while on short walks of the island, and use these to make jam and pekmez.
Furthermore, in former times, petals of Papaver dubium (after removing the black parts at their bases) were steeped in a bottle full of water to which had been added lemon salt, and then exposed to sunlight.Sugar was subsequently added prior to drinking.However, its use has gradually diminished.
External parts of fruit of Rhus coriaria, which commonly grows in the area, are removed after drying and pulverized, before being used as a spice for salads and meals.
In this region, before Muscari comosum is used, it is boiled five times, and the water changed each time.Olive oil is then added and the plant eaten.
Apart from those plants growing in the area which are used for treatment, and are thus listed, Juglans regia, Olea europae var.europae, and Punica granatum are also used as sources of nutrition.However since our study relates solely to wild plants used for nutrition, this information was not included in Tab. 1.
Despite both studies conducted in Turkey and on the Balkan Peninsula, in Italy and Spain, there were few records describing the use of Muscari comosum as a food source.

Conclusion
This research, conducted on the second largest Turkish island, Marmara Island, has investigated those plants used as traditional household remedies and as wild sources of food.Here, the use of Anthemis auriculata as a herbal remedy is recorded and detailed for the first time.Also the rare use of Muscari comosum is recorded.The study also revealed that the results obtained for Marmara Island closely resembled those obtained for other Mediterranean countries.This ethnobotanical study will enable the traditional use of wild plants both as food sources and herbal remedies to be passed on to future generations.

Fig. 1
Fig. 1 Geographical location of the study area.

Fig. 2
Fig. 2 General view of a village in Marmara Island.

Fig. 3
Fig. 3 General view of marble quarries in Marmara Island.

Fig. 4
Fig. 4 General view of the Marmara Island's vegetation.