Traditional ecological knowledge has been established to have a bearing on natural resource management by the indigenous communities living in biodiversity rich North eastern hill region. The present study correlates the indigenous knowledge and scientific knowledge in assessing the nutrient availability status of the agricultural soil as practiced by the ‘Nyishi’ tribes who use visual properties such as colour, texture and topographic positioning of land/terrain.

The ethno-botanically important species in traditional agroforests of Nyishi community of Arunachal Pradesh was studied during the year 2004-2005. The plants used by the local people for food, medicine and other ethnobotanical purposes including the utilization and related ethnobotanical aspects were assessed during the survey.

In Northeast India, traditional home gardens have been maintained as a part of rural survival over generations, with a complex vegetational structure harbouring diverse types of local plant species with multiple functions.