Language: English
The state of Meghalaya in Northeast India is in a part of the Indo-Burma hotspot and is rich in floristic diversity and endemism. The variation in edaphoclimatic conditions and the occurrence of different vegetation types i.e., tropical and subtropical broad-leaved forests, pine forests, bamboo and grasslands make it one of the richest botanical regions of the country. The rich floristic diversity of the state was recognized by a number of world-renowned taxonomists. The botanical exploration of the state started towards the end of the 18th century and was subsequently followed by a number of botanists and researchers. This has led to the generation of a large database on the floristic diversity of the state. However, researchers and the general public interested in plants and their identification often face hardship in identifying the species in the field. The present work is the first attempt of its kind to provide a baseline checklist of the flowering plants of the state of Meghalaya with coloured photographs.