Hedychium spicatum

Over-exploitation for its medicinal properties and its increasing demand as a source of essential oil for pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries is the major threat to the species.

Cultivation can be an important strategy for the conservation of the species as trade for medicinal markets is the primary driver of population decline. The species is cultivated in some Indian Himalayan states (Goraya and Ved 2017). In Himachal Pradesh, India the species is mentioned under export permit after 1993 by the State Forest Department including levied royalties of Rs. 70 per quintal (Rawat et al. 2018). In Sikkim, India the state government has banned harvesting of the species from the wild since 2001 (Badola 2009). Population assessment, data on the demand, and development of cultivation protocols are needed to better understand population dynamics.

A Conservation Assessment and Management Prioritization (CAMP) workshop assessed this species as Vulnerable for Indian Himalayan states (Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttarakhand) (Ved et al. 2003).  The species is included in the ‘Near Threatened’ category of essential oil bearing plants by Samant et al. (2000).