Pengetahuan lokal mengenai pemanfaatan tumbuhan pangan oleh masyarakat etnis Karo di Desa Semangat Gunung belum sepenuhnya terdokumentasi. Sementara itu, pengaruh budaya lain yang masuk dapat mengancam keberadaan pengetahuan lokal masyarakat. Pendekatan etnobotani dilakukan untuk mendokumentasikan pengetahuan lokal masyarakat mengenai pemanfaatan tumbuhan pangan. Data diperoleh melalui wawancara semistruktural dan terbuka, observasi partisipasi, dan skoring kepada masyarakat lokal. Analisis data dilakukan dengan pendekatan kualitatif, yaitu mengelompokkan tumbuhan pangan berdasarkan kategori guna dan pendekatan kuantitatif, yaitu analisis LUVI, ICS, dan FL. Hasil penelitian diperoleh 109 spesies tumbuhan pangan dimanfaatkan oleh masyarakat, yang dikelompokkan menjadi pangan utama, pengganti pangan utama, sayuran, buah-buahan, bumbu, pangan adat, kudapan, minuman, dan pembungkus makanan. Nilai LUVI tertinggi berupa pangan utama, nilai ICS tertinggi berupa tualah (Cocos nucifera), dan nilai FL tertinggi diperoleh 92 spesies.

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Utilization of food plants by the society of Karo ethnic in Semangat Gunung village have not documented yet. The influence of other ethnic cultures that infiltrate to Semangat Gunung village can threaten the local knowledge of its society. Ethnobotanical approach is used to document the local knowledge of the society about food plants utilization. The data were obtained by open-ended and semistructural interview, participant observation, and scoring. The data analysis were carried out by categorizing food plant species based on their use and quantitatively by measuring LUVI, ICS, and FL. The food plant species that used by the society is 109 species. It categorized into 9 subcategory, they are the staple food, alternative staple foods, vegetables, fruits, spices, indigenous foods, snacks, drinks, and food warps. The highest LUVI is staple food subcategory, the highest ICS is tualah (Cocos nucifera), and the highest FL amounts to 92 species.