Johannesburg - New ornamental plant species, edible and rich in micronutrients, native to Australia and South Africa, are set to debut in the Italian and Mediterranean markets, thanks to research conducted at the Institute of Plant Production of the Sant'Anna School of Pisa. The Italian ornamental plant industry must explore new production horizons to meet international competitiveness challenges. Scientific research suggests that some native species of Australia and South Africa could be cultivated and marketed in Italy and Mediterranean countries. These species show greater adaptability to climate change due to their drought resistance and added value from edible fruits rich in bioactive compounds with high nutritional value. The Sant'Anna School of Pisa presented the preliminary results of the NATIVASA project ("Exploring edible NATIVe Australian and South African plant species for Mediterranean ornamental industry") at the second national horticulture and floriculture conference organized in Padua by the Italian Society of Horticulture. The project, funded by the Ministry of University and Research with European Union funds under the Next Generation EU to support the national research system PRIN2022, is coordinated by Antonio Ferrante, a former professor at the University of Milan and now full professor of Horticulture and Floriculture at the Institute of Plant Production of the Sant'Anna School, in collaboration with Anna Mensuali, a professor at the same institute and the project's scientific coordinator for the Sant'Anna School. The Horticulture group of the Institute of Plant Production, represented by professors Antonio Ferrante and Anna Mensuali and Ph.D. student Annalisa Meucci, presented the research lines and initial results on new ornamental species, whose edible fruits are native to South Africa and Australia, as product innovations in the Italian floricultural sector. Specifically, two research projects were presented in Padua for the NATIVASA project: "Identification of Australian and South African species to be introduced into the ornamental plant production sector" and "Reproduction and vegetative multiplication of native Australian species for the NATIVASA project." This project, developed in collaboration with Flora Toscana, a major national floriculture company, and some professors from the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Environmental Sciences of the University of Pisa, aims to explore non-traditional, underutilized, and unexplored native Australian and South African plant species. These species show greater drought tolerance and lower nutritional needs, making them suitable for the Mediterranean ornamental industry. They can reduce water resource input during production and provide Italian nurseries with new profitable crops with added value, featuring greater sustainability. (9colonne)