Medicinal plants have played an important role in treating and preventing a variety of diseases throughout the world. India is one of the most medico-culturally diverse countries in the world where the medicinal plant sector is part of a time honoured tradition that is respected even today. Therefore, the present Study was initiated to document the Medicinal plant wealth in the Marthandanthurai coastal Villages of Kanniyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India. Taxonomically, a total of 57 plant species belonging to 51 genera and 34 families were recorded. Of these 30 (53%) were herbs, 11 (19%) were shrubs, 13 (23%) were trees and 3 (5%) were climbers/creepers. The plant parts used for the preparation of medicine, whole plants were found to be most frequently used for the preparation of remedies. The mode of preparations is paste, juice, decoction and powder. The medicinal plants of the study area have been used to treat 62 illnesses. The 62 various ailments against which ethnomedicinal treatments have been recorded in the study area can be grouped into 11 major categories of symptomatically and organ-system related diseases/ problems.
