Text and photography by Gabriel Mikhail I n Egypt’s Eastern Desert, where Gouna is located, there is a great variety of indigenous trees and shrubs which have adapted to this region ’s hot and arid conditions. Desert gardens have become fashionable in many hot and arid climates around the world. Native plants use less water and insecticides, feed the local wildlife such as birds, are authentic in their setting, show sensitivity to the environment and some are used as medicinal plants. From earliest times the Ancient Egyptians were renowned for their knowledge of medicinal plants. The Papyrus Ebers, an Egyptian medical papyrus of herbal knowledge (c. 1550 B.C.), compiled about 900 remedies, mostly plants, were being used by physicians. Many of the plants that are listed in the Papyrus Ebers are still used for purposes that include slimming and treating ailments such as skin diseases, intestinal parasites, rheumatism and urinary tract diseases. Many Red Sea ga
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