Floristic Composition of the Plants of the Cholistan Desert, Pakistan

A floristic survey of Cholistan desert was carried out during 2009-2011 and total of 38 families, 106 genera and 154 species were documented from the area. Among families, 33 families belong to Dicotyledons of 79 genera and 115 species, while the 38 species of 26 genera belong to 4 families of Monocotyledons and 1 family of gymnosperms with 1 genus and 1 species. The largest family was Poaceae with 34 species followed by Papilionaceae and Zygophyllaceae with 10 species while Asteraceae with 9 species respectively. The life form of plant species was determined by following the Raunkier’s method. Therophytes comprised of 74 species (48%), Chamaephyte 40 species (26%), Hemicryptophyte 18 species (12%), Phanerophyte 19 species (12%) and Cryptophyte 3 species (2%) of the flroa of the area. It will be helpful and serve for the conservation and sustainable utilization of plant resources of the study area.