Identification and Introduction of The Medicinal Plants Used by Honeybees in Markazi Province

Medicinal plants contribute greatly to increase the therapeutic properties of bee products such as honey, pollen, royal jelly, and propolis. In fact, the pharmaceutical value of honeybee products is associated with the plants that attract honeybees. In this study, pollinating plants used by honeybees were gathered and identified from different regions of Markazi province through direct observation. Simultaneously, to supplement the data, the pollens of these plants were gathered and examined by Erdtman acetolysis. Over 132 plant species from 32 families were found to be used by honeybees. Of these plants, 56 species were from medicinal plants. The highest number of medicinal plants were related to Composite (8 species), Rosaceae (8 species), Labiatae (7 species) and etc. This study will help to identify the medicinal plants occurring in Markazi province, the pattern of distribution and dispersion of these plants in the region under study, and the botanical and pharmaceutical data on them. Keywords Author Keywords:Medicinal plants; Honeybees; Markazi province; Iran