Wild vegetable resources characteristic and developing proposition in Xishuangbanna

Xishuangbanna, located in the southern of Yunnan Province, China, is rich in wild vegetable resources. More than 277 species of wild vegetables belonging to 201 genera and 79 families are reported in this paper. They can be divided into 6 groups based to edible part such as flowers 35 species, fruits 22, tender stems and green leaves 192, bamboo shoot 13 and root tuber 27. The collecting season, collecting resources and taste of mainly wild vegetable in Xishuangbanna are described according to authors' interviews and investigations. We found the amounts of healthy such as mineral and microelement, protein and amino acid are higher in wild vegetables than commonly wild vegetable (Toona sinensis) in China. The way of exploration and utilization of wild vegetable resources in Xishuangbanna is discussed.