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Ethnobotany of Mountain Regions: Eastern Africa

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Ethnobotany of the Mountain Regions of Africa

Part of the book series: Ethnobotany of Mountain Regions ((ETMORE))

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Abstract

The eastern African plains are bordered by a chain of mountains consisting of old cristallinic Precambrian basement rocks, mainly extremely durable gneisses and granites (Nyiro-Ndoto and Mathews Ranges, Shackleton 1946). A series of Quarternary volcanic peaks like Mt. Kulal (2285 m), Mt. Marsabit (1707 m), and the Huri Hills (1479 m) tower over the inland plains. Most regions of Central Kenya are covered with tertiary to recent lavas and tuffs (Baker 1960; Mason 1963). The soils of the plains consist mainly of Vertisols, Regosols, Lithosols, and Cambisols. The mountain slopes are covered with humic Nitisols and Acrisols in case of the basement formations and the lower volcanic areas, and deep humic Andosols above about 2700 m (Mäckel 1986; Mäckel and Schultka 1988; Mäckel and Walter 1983, Schmitt 1991, Speck 1983).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ethnobotany, Institute of Botany and Bakuriani Alpine Botanical Garden, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia

    Rainer W. Bussmann & Narel Y. Paniagua-Zambrana

  2. Saving Knowledge, La Paz, Bolivia

    Rainer W. Bussmann

  3. Herbario Nacionál de Bolivia, Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, La Paz, Bolivia

    Narel Y. Paniagua-Zambrana

  4. Department of Botany, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agricultura and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya

    Grace N. Njoroge

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  1. Rainer W. Bussmann
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  2. Narel Y. Paniagua-Zambrana
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  3. Grace N. Njoroge
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Correspondence to Rainer W. Bussmann .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Botany, Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia

    Rainer W. Bussmann

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Bussmann, R.W., Paniagua-Zambrana, N.Y., Njoroge, G.N. (2020). Ethnobotany of Mountain Regions: Eastern Africa. In: Bussmann, R.W. (eds) Ethnobotany of the Mountain Regions of Africa. Ethnobotany of Mountain Regions. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77086-4_175-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77086-4_175-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-77086-4

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