Thirty Popular Medicinal Plants from Montserrat

Plants provide humans with so many gifts and treasures including many health benefits, protection from the elements and building materials. The Montserrat National Trust (MNT), together with the UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum (UKOTCF) and other partners, published a booklet which expands the knowledge of the fascinating history behind ‘weeds and bush’, medicinal plants. These include plants such as bay leaf, arrow root and resurrection fern, which have been a traditional part of life for generations. 

Certain herbs or bush have played a vital role in the healing and other cultural practices in Montserrat for generations. However, reliable sources of information about this aspect of the island’s cultural heritage are disappearing.  

The first edition of the booklet contained 15 medicinal plants of Montserrat was published in 2022 under a UK Research and Innovation grant (under the joint research call from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Natural Environment Research Institute (NERC)).  The second booklet forms part of a project which commenced in April 2023 (DPLUS192) supported by the UK's Biodiversity Challenge Funds. The project aims to provide information on the islands’ biodiversity and how it contributes towards well-being for the whole community, particularly for those involved in physical development so that the island can do this in a sustainable way. 

This second edition contains an additional 15 medicinal plants, and it is the second attempt at capturing information from elders across Montserrat. Traditional knowledge of uses of herbs and plants throughout Montserrat is waning, and the local knowledge is quickly disappearing with the passing of the elders of the community. It is hoped that this attempt to document a further 15 plants will inspire others to continue researching on this important aspect of Montserrat's culture. 

The A5 booklet features colour images of each plant, along with some notes on where they can be found and what uses they are said to have.     

Upon the launch of the booklet, Mrs Sarita Francis, Executive Director of the Montserrat National Trust said:

“One of the mandates of the Montserrat National Trust is to preserve the past. Tapping into the knowledge of elders in the community is an excellent way to develop a comprehensive understanding of the use of herbal medicine. We extend our sincerest gratitude to all those who willingly shared their knowledge with the young interviewers, as well as those who provided funding and training to ensure that this important aspect of our history is documented.”

Catherine Wensink, Executive Director of the UK Overseas Territories Conservation Forum said: 

“This exciting second edition of the booklet expands the information available to the public on the traditional use of plants for healing and for well-being. Some of these plants are native to the island and some are not. Yet, they all form part of the fabric of Montserrat which has an abundance of natural resources. These plants can be found all around Montserrat, literally on the doorstep. There are areas in the Belham River where you can see many of the species listed in the booklet in one place without walking very far. It would be a good companion for an enjoyable walk to search for them or for anyone wanting to know more about how ‘weeds and bush’ have been traditional used in this special part of the Caribbean. It has been produced as part of a project, popularly called the Biodiversity and Well-being Toolkit.”

Income from the sale of this book will be used to support conservation on Montserrat. 

[Note: the file size is 24MB to ensure images are of good quality]